POLYPHONE 2025

Now approaching its 10th year, Polyphone is a festival of new and emerging musicals at University of the Arts in Philadelphia.

Polyphone represents an institutional effort by the University of the Arts to change how musicals are born and how young theater makers are trained. Each spring we bring cutting-edge creators of new musical theater to Philadelphia to collaborate with student casts and production teams on new musicals in process. Polyphone has made a transformative impact on hundreds of young artists, audiences, and the field of new musicals.

Over the course of 7 weeks, guest artists engage in targeted exploration of their work and make changes while seeing their musicals on their feet for the first time. In the final week, we share our process with audiences in the form of off-book, staged concert productions with a small band and elements of theatrical design. On the last day of the festival, all shows are performed in a marathon. The result is not a final product, but an epic sharing of process.

We define a musical as a performance in which music is a primary mode of storytelling. This can include ensemble-based, devised, experimental and/or operatic work, and book musicals.

We are seeking full-length musicals in development with a cast of 7 or more named or significant characters. Proposed musicals must be complete early to mid-stage drafts and must have been read at least once in a reading, workshop, or concert setting. Zoom and other online readings are acceptable.

We are open to musicals of all styles and genres, but prioritize pieces that look toward the future of the musical theater form. We are motivated to program voices and stories systematically excluded from the musical theater canon.

We favor original stories or radical adaptations rather than more traditional stage adaptations. Authors must have proof of underlying rights for any adaptations based on existing works not in the public domain.

While anyone regardless of location may apply, due to travel logistics and budget limitations Polyphone is best able to support artists who reside within 150 miles of Philadelphia.

1. Applicant artists must be authors of the musical, i.e. composers, lyricists, librettists, playwrights, songwriters, devisers.

2. The proposed musical must be a complete early to mid-stage draft and must have been read at least once in a reading, workshop, or concert setting. Zoom and other online readings are acceptable.

3. The proposed musical must have a cast requiring 7 or more performers. A cast of 10-15 is ideal. In rare cases we will consider pieces written for fewer performers if creators are interested in expanding cast size.

4. Composers must be able to provide an in-progress piano/vocal score, lead sheets, or the equivalent in time for callbacks in October.

5. Applicants, Directors, and Music Directors must be available for in-person rehearsals in Philadelphia on Friday evenings, Saturdays, and Sundays beginning February 2024, with tech and performances scheduled early to mid-April 2024. A complete production calendar will be provided at time of acceptance. For Non Philadelphia-based artists, bus travel and housing will be provided for weekend rehearsals, tech and festival weeks. There is no housing for the full rehearsal period.

6. Artists that will be enrolled undergraduate students in the spring 2024 semester are not eligible to apply.

1. Each participating artist receives an artistic fee.

2. (for Non-Philadelphia artists) Housing will be provided during weekend rehearsals as well as the tech/production process

3. Reimbursement for transportation is provided.

4. Each show will be given a professional director and music director. Choreography or additional specialized support may also be provided when required by the needs of the show.

4. Student cast, small band (3-4 musicians) and creative assistants.

5. Dramaturgical, logistical, and technical support from the festival creative leadership and the UArts community.

Polyphone is a hybrid educational and creative opportunity. Polyphone guest artists are asked to play the role of educator and artist during the rehearsal period, under the guidance of the Artistic Director, Dean of the Brind School, and UArts Faculty and Staff.

Polyphone Festival performances employ extremely limited phyiscal production elements, but full lighting and sound support. All Polyphone presentations use handheld mics (wired and wireless). Bands are limited to 3-4 musicians. There is no projection or video support for Polyphone stage presentations.

Directors and MDs are selected by the Artistic Director, Associate Producer, and Dean of the Brind School with input and the needs of Festival authors in mind. We cannot guarantee that we will accommodate the hiring of attached directors, music directors, or other creative personnel associated with shows.