Kate is a performer, pun-maker upper, and half of the writing team Samsel/Anderson. Their work has been featured in the New York Theater Barn’s D-Lounge Series, The Platform: London, as well as “4@15” with NYU Steinhardt and UC Irvine. They have penned three short musical comedies, “Camp Wish-No-More”, “Llamaze 101”, and “My Little Brony”. “Camp Wish-No-More”, an original musical about a camp for delusional girls who believe they are Disney Princesses, was developed into a full length 90 minute musical, and presented as a staged reading with NYU Steinhardt in the fall of 2013. Kate and Elyssa contributed “Kittens First Full Moon” based on the book by Kevin Henkes to Theatreworks USA’s “Fly Guy and Other Stories” which will tour the US in the fall of 2014. Kate and Elyssa are currently working on some exciting new projects including a full length musical adaptation of a bestselling novel.

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Damian is a writer and performer that grew up in the hangnail of America— the state of Florida. He earned a BFA in Musical Theatre from the University of Central Florida, beginning a career as an actor, singer and dancer. Over time, his desire to further explore his development as an artist and storyteller encouraged him to begin writing. As a composer-lyricist-librettist, he is an alumnus of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop (Bookwriting Cohort) and recipient of a Drama Club Camp Writing Residency. He’s also been a finalist for the Dramatist Guild Foundation Fellows Program and Write Out Loud Songwriting Contest.

As a screenwriter, he is a winner of the Shore Scripts TV Writing Mentorship and was a finalist for the Los Angeles International Screenplay Awards Diversity Initiative. His passion is telling stories that explore universal themes— love, family, growing up, existential crises— but find specificity in character, concept or tone.

Utsav is an NYC-based composer/lyricist, orchestrator, and pianist. His regional experience includes the world premiere of THE WANDERER at Paper Mill Playhouse (Music Assistant) and the world premiere of A BEAUTIFUL NOISE at Emerson Colonial Theatre (Music Assistant/Rehearsal Pianist). As a writer, his work has been produced at Brooklyn Children’s Theatre, at Hear Our Voices at UNC Greensboro, and at Curtain Up, Berklee’s annual showcase of original musical theatre. Utsav is a graduate of Berklee College of Music, where he studied Film Scoring, Contemporary Writing & Production, and Musical Theatre Conducting. As an Indian-American artist, Utsav is passionate about bringing representation of marginalized groups to the theatre industry – both on stage and off. www.utsavbhargava.com

Christin is a playwright and performing artist from the Bronx. She holds an MFA in Playwriting from Indiana University and completed her BA in Political Science and Philosophy at Fordham University. Cato is also a graduate of Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School for Music and Art and the Performing Arts. She is affiliated with NYC theater companies, Pregones/PRTT (ensemble member & former Resident Dramaturg), INTAR Theatre (UNIT 52 ensemble member), and the Latinx Playwrights Circle. Cato’s artistic style is expressed through Caribbean culture and the Afro-Latinx diaspora, honoring her Puerto Rican and Jamaican roots. Recent off-broadway productions include The Good Cop (DUAF 2022) . Upcoming productions include, Sancocho (Vision Latino Theatre Company/ Destinos, 5th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival); American Made (Samuel French OOB Festival/ NYC); and an audio play journey, The Mayor of Hell’s Kitchen Presents: A Time Traveling Journey Through NYC’s Wild West (The Parsnip Ship & Playwrights Horizons/ NYC). Publication/Contributor credits include: We Are Not Neutral (Amazon Books) and, launching soon, Latinx Actor Training (Routledge). She has developed her work with The Classical Theatre of Harlem, Harlem9, Pregones Theater, Milagro Theatre, Borderlands Theater, Teatro Vivo, Smith College, Indiana University, Texas State University, Cardinal Stage, The Road Theatre Company, The Kennedy Center, Piper Theatre Productions, and many others. Cato is also the 2020 Greater Good Commission recipient for Afro-Latinx writers and the 2021 ReImagine New Plays in TYA grant. She is a 2021-2022 PWC Core Apprentice Playwright. An aspiring screenwriter, she is currently represented by 3 Arts Entertainment. She is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America. www.christinevecato.com

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Frances is a Haitian-American actress/visual artist from Cambridge, MA. Acting since the age of nine, you may have seen her on WGBH/PBS’s third season of “ZOOM”! She later studied theatre at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, and Hampshire College. A self-taught pointillism/stipple artist, her work can be found in a few University halls, overseas, and on the set of the Netflix Series “Raising Dion.” You can also find a few prints for sale at www.etsy.com/shop.FrankMariKathrin, she describes her work as minimal, spiritual, and brown. Frances is currently based in Atlanta, GA, auditioning for film and TV projects to achieve her goal of reaching the Silver Screen.

Sammy is a composer/lyricist, music director, performer, and teaching artist. He recently graduated from Yale University, where he studied Psychology and Education (BA) and wrote an award-winning thesis on high school musicals! He loves developing new musicals kids and adults (aka ‘big kids’). Sammy has worked with New York City Center, 54 Below, Music For Autism, Yale Repertory Theater, Brooklyn Youth Chorus, Irish Repertory Theater, and other arts organizations. His musical Wake (co-written with Asher Muldoon and Danielle Koenig) will have a staged reading at the Emerging Artists Theatre in Spring 2022, and he’ll soon be music directing a production of Legally Blonde (Kidz Theater). A new Brooklyn resident, Sammy works at the Berkeley-Carroll School and teaches songwriting at the Brooklyn Music School. He loves cooking, going on very long walks, watching TV, and cuddling with his cat (Misty).

Nia is a NYC-based actress, lyricist, and librettist. She holds a BA in Theatre/ Music from Manhattanville College. She has performed in venues ranging from black box theaters to large stages in the British Virgin Islands. She began her musical theatre writing journey as part of the inaugural Musical Creators’ Institute cohort in 2020. She has written for the A BroaderWay Foundation and CPA Theatricals, Inc. She has a passion for telling untold stories, bringing background characters into the spotlight, and uncovering their secrets. She has written a play, “Gabrielle’s Book”; one-act musicals“The Papillon Waltz”, “The Magical Macaroons”, and “Meta: More For Sis”; and various cabaret songs (including a few she composed). She is a proud member of the Dramatist Guild of America and Maestra.

Ruchir is an awarded actor, songwriter, and musician, originally from Omaha, Nebraska. This is his first year with BCT as a composer and lyricist! He graduated from Northwestern University in 2021 with concentrations in Theatre, Musical Theatre, Creating the Musical, and Screen Acting. He has collaborated in various capacities with several new work organizations, including New Musicals Inc., the American Music Theatre Project, and the Agnes Nixon Playwrighting festival. His original musical, A BRIDGE TO THE MOON, received 3rd prize in New Musicals Inc. “Search for New Musicals 2021”, and his work on STATE OF THE ART was awarded the 2020 John Paynter Award for “Outstanding Creation of Music”. He is proudly represented by Paonessa Talent. More at www.ruchirkhazanchi.com. Thank you to my teachers.

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Ben is a composer, music director, and arranger living in New York City. He is a former resident writer at Musical Theatre Factory, and an alumnus of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Workshop. As a music director or arranger, Ben has worked at regional theaters around the country, such as North Shore Music Theater, Merry Go Round Playhouse, and Surflight theater. His orchestrations have accompanied singers such as Kristin Chenoweth, Tituss Burgess, and Donna Mckechnie. He has also served on the music teams of two Broadway musicals, THE ADDAMS FAMILYand THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD. Ben holds an MA in composition from Queens College, and a BA from Vassar College.

Jameel is a singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, teacher, and author. Hailing from Tuscaloosa, AL, Jameel earned his Bachelor’s of Music Education Degree specializing in Choral Music from Florida State University. Jameel relocated to New York City and earned his Master’s Degree in Educational Theatre at New York University. Jameel teaches in
the New York City public school system and is the Songwriting Lead for Music Unlimited Entertainment, LLC, a full-service music publishing company.

Adam is a playwright from Fairfax, Virginia. Plays include Central Air (Columbia@Roundabout Winner, O’Neill Semi-Finalist), Earendil, The Entheogens, Full Course Menu (Fresh Fruit Festival), Breakfast (Winner: Best Performance, Act One One Act Fest), Spin (Columbia@Roundabout Finalist), Home Delivery (New Harmony Project Finalist, Geffen Theater Annex). Adam is currently developing a television show based on his play Central Air with FX and Cate Blanchett’s production company. He’s currently a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Bookwriting Workshop. He’s written opera libretti with composers such as Nico Muhly and David Little. Adam co-wrote and co-directed Complete Works, a comedy series about a National Shakespeare Competition that aired on Hulu in 2013. Adam has an MFA in Playwriting from Columbia University, as well as an MFA in Film Producing a BA in English Literature, both from University of Southern California. He lives in the East Village.

Jonelle is an actor, model, youth theatre producer, and teaching artist based in NYC and Long Island, and is thrilled to be directing and choreographing at Brooklyn Children’s Theatre! Her commercial credits include Purell, Prudential, My Heritage DNA, New Balance, and Johnson & Johnson Band-aids. Theatrically, she’s performed at The Brick Theater, Target Margin Theater, Columbia University, Primary Stages, and most recently devised The Space Between The Letters at The Jack Theater in Brooklyn, which will be featured in the Under The Radar Festival at The Public Theater in January. She co-created and supervises Pit Theatrical, a non-profit theatre group for teens in conjunction with The Jeanne Rimsky Theater in Port Washington, NY, and she has had the absolute pleasure to have working with youth, both teaching and producing dozens of shows, for the last five years. She is an Ithaca College graduate with a BFA in Acting.

Originally from Oregon, Lauren received her BFA in Musical Theater from The New School by way of AMDA NY. She has performed Off-Broadway in Shout The Mod Musical, Passion, Stop The World, The Boyfriend among many other plays, musicals, and workshops. Her work can also be seen on screen, in a few cameos on Saturday Night Live, in several short films, and the acclaimed web series, Big City, which she wrote produced, and starred in. Two of her projects, Callie Wants a Solo and Boys and Other Distractions, have gone on to win audience choice at the Brooklyn Short Film Festival and have been featured selections at the New York Independent Film Festival and Williamsburg Independent Film Festival, among others. Lauren is also a professional Voice Over artist having voiced various commercials for TV, Radio, and Internet as well as cartoons! She has been a teaching artist for the past five years, teaching acting, musical theater, voice lessons, and voice-over. She has directed several of musicals for kids including, The Sound of Music, Seussical, Shrek, Peter Pan, Thoroughly Modern Millie Jr., Little Women, Into The Woods Jr., and Legally Blonde Jr.

Elyssa is an actress/violinist/pianist/composer. Elyssa and Kate Anderson most recently wrote MY LITTLE BRONY, and LLAMAZE 101 for 4@15 Festival at NYU (dir. Brian Blythe), and were featured in NYTB’s monthly series at the D-Lounge in October 2012. Samsel and Anderson developed CAMP WISH-NO-MORE with NYU Steinhardt. Elyssa is a member of the BMI Advanced Workshop, and trained for Musical Theatre Performance at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. She is a member of AFA. More info can be found on SamselAnderson.com or ElyssaSamsel.com.

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Sissy is a librettist / lyricist, comedian, and novelist. She has performed stand-up comedy at various venues throughout the U.S. She is the author of two humorous novels: The Adventures of Sissy Van Dyke, and Further Adventures of Sissy Van Dyke. Sissy is a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Advanced Workshop.

Jennifer is a Bronx-based actor, singer, voiceover artist, and teacher. She performed off-Broadway in the Jackie Mason Musical for over five years and won Best Actress in the West Village Musical Theatre Festival for an original work with music from award-winning composer Sheldon Harnick. Jennifer also appeared at Lincoln Center with Essential Voices USA, in numerous cabaret and regional theatre performances, and she can be seen on film in several shorts and a feature on Amazon Prime. Current projects due for release include the short films The Missed and American Boy, both produced in 2021. Before coming to NYC, Jennifer got her B.S. in Medicinal Chemistry and M.Ed. in Science Education at SUNY Buffalo and taught high school science for 15 years. As a teacher at Harlem Village Academy in NYC, Jennifer directed, choreographed, and stage managed the high school musical performances and taught IB Theatre in addition to science. Jennifer is currently an Adjunct Professor at Berkeley College and is a member of Actors Equity and SAG-AFTRA. More at www.jenniferyadav.com.

Miss Olithea is a native New Yorker that has been singing since the age of three. By the age of 18 years old, she had performed at every major concert hall in NYC. She attended The Hartt School and received her BFA in musical theater. Olithea is grateful for the opportunity she has had to perform in various theater productions all over the country. After the passing of her father, Olithea changed gears and decided to start writing her own music. She has come out with 2 EP’s Long Day’s Journey (2016) and To Be Seen And Heard (2017). Since those releases, Olithea has deepened her practice in meditation and improvisational music. With the use of vocal loops, fx, and sound bowls, she channels spirit that calms the heart and eases the mind.

Isabella is a theatre artist and educator. She loves to design costumes, write plays and create theatre with people of all ages. She holds an M.A. in Educational Theatre from New York University.

Meredith is an NYC-based, Philly-‘burbs-bred performer, writer, producer, and Twizzler-lover. Past experiences include staging her sold-out solo show Joy Ride (NYC Fringe Audience Choice Winner), hosting comedy variety shows across the city, and originating roles in Off-Broadway premieres including Scarcity (Atlantic Theater Company) and Next Year in Connecticut (SheNYC, Classic Stage Company). With her collaborator Utsav Bhargava, she was a Write Out Loud Contest finalist, Prospect Musical Lab participant, and Greenhouse Reading Series selected writing team. She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, and a member of Maestra and the BMI Advanced Musical Theatre Workshop. @merbrandt // www.meredithbrandt.com.

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Simon Broucke is a composer/lyricist, orchestrator, and music director based in New York City. He has worked on several off-broadway and regional productions, including Masquerade, A Comedy of Errors (The Public Theater), Last Coffee in Rockville (The Farm), The King’s Wife (Playwrights Horizons), and Showing Up (Middlebury Town Hall Theater). His original works have been featured in the Soundbites Festival (2023, 2025), and he has written concert music for a variety of ensembles in New York and Vermont. He has also composed dance music for the Columbia Ballet Collaborative and the Schoen Movement Company. His orchestral arrangements of cinematic music have been performed by pops orchestras in the United States and Europe. He graduated from Columbia University in 2019 where he received the Charles S. Miller award for excellence of the highest standard in the field of music composition. In 2020 he received the New York Youth Symphony Musical Theatre Songwriting Director’s Award for Commitment and Achievement. He is a member of the advanced BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop. simonbroucke.com

Gini is a Taiwanese American playwright, lyricist, and creative educator. She is passionate about writing stories that explore intergenerational conflicts, mental health, and education. She holds a BFA in Dramatic Writing from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Gini is a lyricist in the Advanced BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Workshop.

Cassidy is a Brooklyn-based performer, writer, and performing arts educator. She holds a BA in Theatre & Dance from Dickinson College, a certificate in physical theatre from the Headlong Performance Institute in Philadelphia, and studied classical theatre at the Pearl Conservatory in New York City. Her most recent creative projects include performing as a clown with the Big Apple Circus and serving as the voice of an adventurous mouse in a new animated TV program. Cassidy has authored and produced several original musicals for children and for the past 8 years has had the pleasure of teaching classes in acting, musical theatre, clowning, playwriting, and dance, for various programs throughout the NYC area, including The Dalton School, Creative Arts, and Athletics, KJK Productions and Brooklyn Children’s Theatre. www.cassidydermott.com

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Fernanda (music director, they/she) is an NYC-based composer and music director from Goleta, California. As a composer, Fernanda has written eight shows for young audiences (two of which are bilingual, Spanish-English) and five for general audiences. Commissions include: Raquel’s Purple Pineapple Adventures (Creede Repertory Theater, CO), The Fairy Goddaughter (Nashville Children’s Theatre, TN), The Hobbit (First Stage, WI), We All Scream For Ice Cream, Sweet Tooth and Scouts (Brooklyn Children’s Theater, NY). When not writing, Fernanda spends their time teaching voice and piano lessons to some of the top talent in the MT industry with Liz Caplan Vocal Studios. Fernanda is a rehearsal pianist for Moulin Rouge on Broadway, as well as an active member of the BMI Musical Theatre Workshop and an alumnus of Columbia University. Check them out at fernandadouglas.com!

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Aïssa is a writer, director, actress, and tech consultant. She recently graduated from Yale University, where she received her B.S. in Cognitive Science. Aïssa has worked and performed with the Yale Repertory Theatre, Bedlam, Symphony Space, The Chain Theatre, Stagedoor Manor, the Emerging Artists Theatre, and Little Y. Before coming to rest in the Big Apple, Aïssa grew up in Paris, Amsterdam, Johannesburg, and Montreal where she was lucky enough to participate in a whole host of diverse YA theatre opportunities. This is part of what makes her so excited to bring some of those experiences to BCT, and help introduce the next generation of performers to the art form she so loves.

Lindsay is an actress and teaching artist, performing and teaching all over NYC. After graduating from Syracuse University with her BFA in Drama, this Jersey girl set off on a crazy journey across the US and Canada with Missoula Children’s Theater, bringing theatre to deserving communities each week for a year. This solidified her lifelong love of the stage as well as her passion for teaching. Nowadays she can be seen in classrooms across the city teaching drama, musical theater, and dance with Arts Connection. She is a production advisor to Broadway Jr. which gives middle schoolers here in NY the opportunity to perform on a Broadway Stage! And at The Creative Arts Studio, in Boerum Hill Brooklyn she is the resident Drama and Music teacher as well as The Coordinator for their Summer Arts Camp. She also directs Creative Arts Studio’s Student Theatre Company (CASTCO). She also directs with Brooklyn Children’s Theatre in Park Slope. As an actress Lindsay has appeared in numerous productions here in NY and regionally including Cortland Repertory Theatre, MOC Musical Theatre, Elephant Theatre, Abington Stage, NYC Fringe, Strawberry One-Act Festival, Alphabet Arts plus many many more. In addition to the stage, she works as a voice over actor. You can also catch Lindsay performing with the award winning improv/sketch comedy group Story Pirates.

Julia is a singer/songwriter and pianist based in Brooklyn, NY. Growing up in the city, Julia has been performing since a young age at historic venues such as The Bitter End and Rockwood Music Hall. In 2019, Julia released her debut album “Brooklyn”, followed by her sophomore release and EP “Ghost”. Julia is currently enrolled in the graduate studio composition program in the Conservatory of Music at Purchase College, working towards her Master of Music. She is looking forward to recording and releasing her next album. For more information, visit https://juliaklot.com/.

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Mason is an award-winning singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, actor, and an alumnus of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop. Most recently, he has co-written 504: An Accessible Musical, with lyrics and book by Abbie Goldberg, as well as a commissioned piece with Peyton Marion for Village Songs at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater in NYC. Other recent credits include his self-produced mini-musical The Adventures of Inspector Lockshire (Book, Music, and Lyrics), which was presented virtually through the BMI Workshop, and is now available online. As a songwriter, Mason composed and self-produced the album Pictures in My Mind (2016), and two EP’s, The McDowell Brothers (2011) and Looking Glass (2019). He also works extensively as a music director, pit musician, singer, actor, and private music instructor. Mason currently lives in Staten Island, and is a Graduate of NYU Tisch’s Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program.

Alexandra is an NYC-based artist. Stage credits include CATF, Olney Theatre Center, Ford’s Theatre, InterAct, Theater J, and Imagination Stage. On-camera work includes Law and Order, independent films, and commercials like Apple, Capital One, Home Depot. Voiceover work may be heard narrating NYT Bestsellers on Audible, USPS, and Microsoft, among others. An award winning writer, Palting is the creator of two solo musicals: 0874: A Filipino-American Love Story (developed at The Kennedy Center with performances at Connelly Theater, the U.S. Consulate in China, Lincoln Theatre, Merriweather Post Pavilion, and Olney Theatre Center), and Offering for the Earth: A Biorhythmic Celebration of Hildegard Von Bingen (commissioned by the St. Louis Concert Series and the best selling concert in the Series’ twenty year history). As an educator, she is a regular speaker at colleges, universities, and conferences across the country where she strives to equip creatives with the practical skills that a formal education forgets. As a producer, she has harnessed the power of community and storytelling to raise tens of thousands of dollars for arts organizations that champion diverse voices and for nonprofits that provide direct aid to vulnerable populations throughout the pandemic and beyond. Alexandra studied at the University of Delaware, the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and is in the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Advanced Bookwriting Workshop. www.alexandramariapalting.com

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Nick is a composer, playwright, teaching artist, and arts administrator in New York City. He holds a BA in Dramatic Arts (Playwriting) from UC Santa Barbara and an MA in Educational Theatre(Colleges and Communities) from NYU Steinhardt School of Education. Nick is also an alum of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Songwriting Workshop Advanced Class. Nick is a two-time recipient of the Lincoln City Fellowship, which funded the production of two musicals for young audiences written with Willa Bassen, Dido the Queen (2016) a bluegrass adaptation of Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, and Perfect! (2017), an original musical produced by Kidz Theatre. As a teaching artist, he has worked in schools and after-school programs across the country.

Lawrence was twice a Richard Rodgers Award finalist for his musicals, Winter of the Fall and Pride & Prejudice – the Musical, which was also chosen by FWD Theatre Project for development and a public reading in Chicago, was performed in concert at 54 Below, and will have its first full production in England this Fall. He is co-composer of Under the Influence (OUTwright Theatre Festival, Portland, OR), is composer/lyricist for A Maiden’s Consent, a bi-lingual musical which twice toured high schools on a national tour, and co-composer/arranger for Rules for Girls (L.A. Weekly Best Musical nomination). The Way to Your Heart, the Words and Music of Lawrence Rush played at Don’t Tell Mama and his song cycle, Four Elizabeth Barrett Browning Sonnets received performances in the U.S. and Austria. He received the Shalshelet award for Jewish choral music for Sim Shalom which is performed at synagogues throughout the country. His songs and arrangements have been performed by the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, the Turtle Creek Chorale and Musaic. A member of the BMI Advanced Musical Theater Workshop, he is also a teaching artist, musical director, stage director, singer and actor. company.

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Joël is an actor, dramatist, lyricist and scholar whose work amplifies Black women and challenges their imposed societal identities. Her queer musical, 2&1: A Harlem Love Story with Loose Morals with composer Jenna Gillespie Byrd, set during the Harlem Renaissance, was a 2023 Eugene O’Neill Finalist, a 2022 Relentless Award Honorable Mention and received a reading through UNTITLED Musical Project. This past October, thanks to a grant from NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre, 2&1… was released as a concept album and was listed in “Our Favorite Musical Theatre Concept Albums of 2025” by What’s On Stage. The album is available on all major music streaming platforms. Her musical Flophouse with co-writer Justin Anthony Long and composer Joanna Burns addresses the American housing crisis and was a 2023 Rhinebeck Finalist. In 2024, her 10-minute play Ethel and Ethel was selected and premiered at the Obie Award winning festival, The Fire This Time and is streaming on All Arts TV. Additionally, she is the lyricist for the upcoming Yasuke: The Legend of the Black Samurai under the direction of Broadway choreographer JoAnn M. Hunter. An advocate for mental health, she wrote and starred in the web series, Crazy with a K!, which comically depicts depression. She is an alum of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop (librettist and lyricist), and a member of The Dramatists Guild of America, Actors’ Equity Association and a founding member of the UNTITLED Musical Writers Group. She graduated summa cum laude (4.0) with a BS in Liberal Studies from CUNY SPS and is currently working towards her MA in Black Race and Ethnic Studies at the CUNY Graduate Center. When she is not writing or studying, she can be found watching British murder mysteries or reading superhero comics.

Clay loves being part of the BCT family, where his shows include They Fly, The Most Wonderful Cap in the World, The Super Solvers Detective Agency, and the recent A Cure for Creatures. His musicals have been performed in London (I Am Star Trek), Off-Off Broadway (Lost in Staten Island, Downtown Dysfunctionals), in regional theatre (Windjammers, Greenbrier Ghost), and on national tours. His first full-length work for dance, Blue, recently premiered in La Jolla CA.

Winner of BMI’s Harrington Prize for Achievement in Musical Theatre and American Composers Forum’s “Welcome Christmas” choral-writing award, Clay has served on the faculty of Carnegie-Mellon University and Idyllwild Arts and currently teaches at the Hartt School/University of Hartford and the Lucy Moses School (NYC), and is active as a music director, conductor and keyboardist in CT and NY.

A proud member of the Dramatists Guild and BMI and alumnus of Ohio University’s Honors Tutorial College, he is a runner, a pretty good cook, and whenever possible a producer of TV game shows. Recognizing that almost nothing worth seeing or hearing is done alone, Clay is indebted to the writers it is his honor to call collaborators and friends, among them Robin Share, Richard Sheinmel, Susan Murray, and Scott Ethier. Clay lives in Connecticut with his wife Melissa and thier cats Aschenputtel and Gus. More than nearly anything else, he believes in collaboration, the power of the finished first draft, and in showing up.

Craig Baldwin has been involved with the Broadway productions of Martin Short’s Fame Becomes Me (Associate Conductor), 13, The Woman in White, La Cage Aux Folles, 42nd Street (Oscar cover), Jesus Christ Superstar, The Wild Party, and Swan Lake, as well as the Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall. He is currently working as a pianist for New York City Ballet. He was the musical director for a reading of Duncan Sheik’s/ Steve Sater’s Nightingale with director James Lapine at New York Theatre Workshop and Duncan Sheik’s Whisper House at New York Stage and Film. He also served as a dance accompanist for Steven Spielberg’s WEST SIDE STORY.

Craig’s writing credits with lyricist Kathy Lombardi include winning MAC’s Dottie Burman Award for songwriting, the York Theatre’s production of Let’s Face It and NEO5 concert, writing additional material for the opera Esperanza, Temple University’s Sing Out Loud, and the creation of four original musicals for Brooklyn Children’s Theatre. Craig also paired with lyricist Robert Yarnall for BCT’s production of The Ten Year Test made possible by a grant from the Doris Duke Foundation. His film score for the short STAND TO (London Lift-Off Film Festival, Unlonely Film Festival) was a finalist for best score in the New York International Film Awards.

Steven’s credits with BCT include: “Melampus,” “Reigning Cats and Dogs,” “Lost Princess of Oz.” Other scores: “Animal Farm,” “The Curse is Reversed!” “Jack The Ripper: The Whitechapel Musical,” “Four Kisses” and “Perfect Sync.” As Musical Director: over 100 regional and national productions including “Spring Awakening” (FUDGE Theater), “Rent” (Theater at the Mount), “Les Miserables,” “13” (ACTS), “The Add1ng Mach1ne” (Speakeasy Stage), “Annie,” “Disney’s Beauty and the Beast” (Wheelock Family Theatre), “The Who’s Tommy,” (Brandeis Theatre Company), “Das Barbecü” (w/ Amy Graves! at New Repertory Theatre), “The Gig” and “When Pigs Fly” (Lyric Stage Company), “Berlin to Broadway with Kurt Weill“, “The Fantasticks“, “Pirates of Penzance” (Worcester Foothills Theatre), and the world premiere of “Monsters the Musical” (Centastage). Keyboardist: credits include “Nunsense Jamboree” (national tour with Georgia Engel, CD/DVD with Vicki Lawrence), national tours of “Sunday in the Park with George“, “Dreamgirls“, and “Guys and Dolls”.

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Jessica is an Award Winning Actress, Playwright, Librettist, Lyricist, Educator and Producer of Afro- Puerto Rican descent. She is a graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts where she received her B.F.A in Acting. She loves Musical Theatre and loves writing, singing, acting and dancing. She especially loves developing new musicals with children of diverse backgrounds. Jessica is thrilled to be working with Brooklyn Children’s Theatre!

Marc, a native of Singapore, is a composer, lyricist and bookwriter. Marc has written music for plays (TERRA FIRMA), film (MY WOUNDED HEAD), and he has participated in Prospect’s Musical Theater Lab (THE FINAL SÉANCE OF HARRY HOUDINI). Most recently, he has contributed songs to Astoria Performing Arts Center’s THE INSIDERS (Musicals from the Quarantine) in response to the COVID-19 crisis, and to Skylight Music Theatre’s (Milwaukee) KIDWRITES program. Marc is a member of the New Dramatists Composer-Librettist Studio and the BMI Advanced Musical Theater Workshop, and is represented by the Gurman Agency.

Rachel is a playwright, composer, and a graduate of Northwestern University. She fell in love with theatre for young audiences as the resident Music Director of Griffin’s Tale Children’s Repertory Theatre, a group which adapts and musicalizes stories written by elementary school students, performing them in schools throughout the Chicagoland area.

Her original musicals, Painting Faye Salvez and Noise, have received readings and workshops at the New York Musical Festival (NYMF), the Library at the Public Theater, Tuacahn Theatre, The Tank, Emerging Artists Theatre’s New Works Series, Common Ground Theatre Company, and The Chicago Dramatists Guild. Her music has been performed at 54 Below, The Greenroom 42, the York Theatre’s New Works Concert, Titchfield Festival Theatre’s New Songwriters Concert (UK), the Allen & Gray Musical Festival’s New Voices Concert Series, the Tin Pan Alley 2 Concert Series, and Under the Arch Incubator’s New Work Cabaret (featuring the national touring cast of The Band’s Visit!). RachelCovey.com

Julia is a lyricist, actor, and director originally from Birmingham, Alabama and currently living in NYC. She attended The Boston Conservatory, receiving a BFA in Musical Theater with a minor in directing, and is currently a proud member of the BMI Musical Theatre Workshop. As a lyricist, Julia has written songs for Red Mountain Theatre’s Holiday Spectacular, and is a writer for the digital theatre company Pixel Playhouse bringing musicals to the internet. As a director, she developed the off-broadway premiere production of Fallen Skies, written by Matthew Lowy, for the New York International Fringe Festival, and has been a co-director of the Brooklyn Holy Apostles’ Youth Christmas Pageant for the past two years. @julia_gannon

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Evy is an aspiring television and film writer from California, with dreams of making it in New York City. She’s interested in making the ordinary life extraordinary — connecting those little moments into the greater picture.

Kenny is a member of the Advanced class of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Workshop and the Theater Now New York (TNNY) Musical Writers’ Lab. As a book writer & lyricist, he has collaborated on original and parody songs for solo singers and jazz vocal ensembles. His 10-minute musical collaboration with composer Steve Wallace, “Humpty’s Hatching Day” was selected for the TNNY SOUND BITES 7.0 festival and premiered as an animated cartoon musical, later winning a REMI AWARD for Best Short Animated Feature. He is working on a number of projects, including a hip-hop opera version of the novel The Count of Monte Cristo and lyrics for Reading Rainbow Live!

Eve is a Philadelphia-based singer-songwriter, producer, composer, and sound engineer whose work spans music, theatre, film, and digital media. A self-produced independent artist and member of the Recording Academy, Eve writes, produces, records, and engineers original music through Heartboi Productions.
Eve is a returning collaborator with Brooklyn Children’s Theatre, where she has composed and developed original music alongside young artists and fellow writers. She is passionate about using music and storytelling to create spaces where young people can explore their creativity, find their voice, and see their ideas come to life onstage. Her work blends her background in R&B, hip-hop, and contemporary production with a love for collaborative, character-driven storytelling.

Danielle is an actor, librettist, and lyricist from Los Angeles who is absolutely stoked to be working with Brooklyn Children’s Theater. They have received their MFA from NYU’s Graduate Musical Theater Writing Program and their BA from UCLA’s School of Theater, Film, and Television. Recent acting projects include: Charlotte Lucas is 27 And Not Dead (Piper Theater), Parx (Live Source Theatre Group), Alice Formerly of Wonderland (Whitefire Theatre). Notable writing projects include: Stuck (Off-Off Broadway, Winner of Chain Theatre Audience Choice Award), Camp Song (NYMF 2020 Finalist), various songs performed at 54 Below and Duplex Theatre, and a prestigious Writer’s Room Internship at Saturday Night Live. daniellekoenig.com

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Composer: The Movie Star & The Mammy (Joe’s Pub), The Sugar Hill Sisters (NYMF). Composer & Lyricist:”Not So Fair-y Tales,” ”The Beautiful Son,” Rainbow Lullaby (Broadway Records), The Harriet Holland Social Club (Movement Theatre Company), The Taming of Romeo & Juliet, Rice & Rocks (Brooklyn Children’s Theatre), Going Home: Movement of Voices (N.Y. Philharmonic’s New World Initiative), This One Girl’s Story (NC A&T, NYMF, Gayfest, GLAAD Media Award nominee). Music direction: The Color Purple (Cape Fear Regional Theatre),Passing Strange (UNCSA), “Queering The Canon: Kander & Ebb” (Ring of Keys), Brecht on Brecht (Off-Broadway) Spiritual Uprising (People’s Light & Theatre), Black Queens Screen Test (The Tank), ”Turn The Volume Up!- Amplifying Black Keys” (Ring of Keys), For Colored Girls (Public Theatre), The Addams Family, We Got Beth, Billy Ragamatag and the Shadow Circus, Shrek, Beauty and The Beast (Piper Theatre), The Fourth Wall (Off-Broadway). Bring The Beat Back (Polyphone Theatre Festival). BMI Lehman Engel Advanced Musical Theatre Workshop & Steering Committee. TGBTG!

Joi is an actor, librettist, playwright, and educator passionate about creating vibrant, story-driven musical theatre for young performers. A graduate of the University of Michigan and a member of the BMI Advanced Musical Theatre Workshop, Joi brings deep theatrical experience and a love of fantastical storytelling to her writing.

Her dedication to youth-centered theatre is rooted in her extensive work as a teaching artist, including instructing middle and high school students at Interlochen Arts Camp. She is thrilled to collaborate with Brooklyn Children’s Theatre on her new musical for 3rd–5th graders, empowering young actors to express themselves both on stage and off.

Tyrone is a director, writer, and actor most recently seen on Broadway in Disney’s Frozen. Previous stage credits: The Book of Mormon and Disney’s The Lion King. TV: New Amsterdam (recurring), The Blacklist, FBI: Most Wanted, Lovecraft Country (HBO), Dear Edward (Apple TV), and Law and Order: SVU. Favorite regional credits: The Shakespeare Theatre (DC), Dallas Theater Center, Geva Theatre Center, and Goodspeed Musicals (CT).

Tyrone directed an acclaimed production of Harrison David Rivers’ play This Bitter Earth at Philadelphia’s InterAct Theatre Company, and a musical he composed the music and lyrics for entitled Show Way recently had its world premiere at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC. Awards/Honors: ASCAP Frederick Loewe Award, Joseph Jefferson Award, Colorado Theatre Alliance Award nominee (Best Leading Actor in a Musical), Evelyn Russell Layton Award, Off-Broadway Alliance Award nominee (Best Family Show).

Tyrone has worked as a professional teaching artist in New York City Schools with such organizations as ArtsConnection, DreamYard, Atlantic Theatre Company, and New York City Center Encores! What he loves most about teaching theatre is watching students build a safe artistic community in a classroom setting while reaching their own greatest potential. When not performing, directing, writing, or teaching, Tyrone loves the outdoors, spending time with his family, and volunteering with Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and Broadway Serves. Twitter: TyroneLRobinson

Steve is a pianist/musical director who has worked extensively in New York City and across the country. He has music directed and performed on Broadway, Off-Broadway, regionally and internationally. His solo piano recording Variations on a Theme was released in 2001 in association with Waddell Production and Soapbox Records.

For BCT, Steve has composed Little Golden Hood, The Lupine Lady, Things Could Always Get Worse, Ferdinand, The Little Velvet Bunny,Rock #3, The Gods, Recess, Next to Abnormal, and Dancing With the Czars. He was the arranger and musical director for the opening number of the 2007 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade which featured 600 young performers from around the United States.

Steve was on staff at the American Girl Place live theatre in New York City, which featured young girls and adults, and he has served as a musical director and arranger with Camp Broadway. Steve is currently working internationally as a vocal director for Royal Caribbean Cruise lines. www.stevesaari.com

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Ammon is an award-winning pianist, composer and music director. In addition to theatre, he works as an arts educator with multiple nonprofits throughout the city, including the National Dance Institute. He performs with various musical improv troupes and comedy theatres, including Baby Wants Candy and The Second City. He has extensive experience in theatre for young audiences, and has composed for the Brooklyn Children’s Theatre and the award-winning bilingual play Cenicienta (Kennedy Center 2023.) His musical The Most Dangerous Woman in America (with librettist/lyricist Rudy Ramirez) was recently workshopped at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. Ammon is a proud member of the Dramatists Guild and the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop.

Jessica is an award-winning playwright, director, songwriter, dramaturg, and Broadway dancer in a past-life (A Chorus Line, Miss Saigon). Writing credits include: Hello Kitty Must Die (produced by Kevin McCollum, Alchemation), You, Me, I, We (Relentless Musical Award, semi-finalist; O’Neill Conference, semi-finalist; L&IC’s Bingham Retreat, finalist; NAAP’s: Discover New Musicals), Good Mourning (Moxie Arts Commission, American Theatre Blue Ink Award, finalist), and the upcoming CHOKE: A Women’s Pro-Wrestling Musical. Jessica is a member of the Dramatists Guild, the BMI Musical Theatre Writing Workshop, and the Collective at Theatrical Rights Worldwide. She currently serves as Literary Manager at Brooklyn Children’s Theatre where she’s overseen the creation of over 75 new musicals and counting. www.jessica-wu.com

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Arianna was born and raised in Brooklyn and has been dancing for sixteen years. As a teen, she taught pre-ballet and creative movement classes to little kids at her ballet studio. She was a part of BCT’s teen program for two shows, The Little Mermaid Junior and Hairspray, before she went on to study musical theatre at The American Musical and Dramatic Academy, graduating in 2015. Since then, Arianna has performed in a few off-Broadway original musicals and has interned for theatre companies, dance captaining for shows and assistant teaching dance and acting classes for teens. She now lives in Brooklyn with her wonderful husband Robert. Arianna is so excited for the opportunity to work with BCT and teach so many amazing little artists!