(North Bergen, NJ—December 11, 2014) Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) and High Tech Musical Theatre joined forces to provide Musical Theatre majors with a chance to partake in script analysis, see the Broadway play The Lost Lake, and visit with Director Victor Maog, actors Frank Hartz (from HBO’s The Leftovers), and Jonathan David (from Showtime’s Shameless), announced Dr. Joseph Giammarella, Principal of High Tech High School.
In a series of visits, majors read an advance copy of The Lost Lake, starring Traci Thoms and John Hawkes. The team responsible for the Pulitzer Prize-winning Proof and The Columnist returned to MTC with The Lost Lake, a riveting and spirited world premiere play written by Tony Award-winner David Auburn and directed by Tony winner Daniel Sullivan. An engrossing, revealing portrait of two strangers bound by circumstance, The Lost Lake dramatizes the struggle for human connection in an imperfect world.
The Musical Theatre majors worked on improvisational theatre and original script work based on the play. They also composed original material, performing it in class with professional actors. Already in deep preparation for their upcoming Magic of Disney production in January and spring production of A Chorus Line, the majors visited MTC’s production of Country Home with Blythe Danner and look forward to the upcoming Constellations with Jake Gyllenhaal. They will be working closely with the play Airline Highway this spring, helmed by Tony winning director Joe Mantello (of Wicked and The Normal Heart).
“I feel that it’s imperative that students are exposed to artists working in the professional theatre world,” says Alex Perez, director of High Tech Musical Theatre. “We are excited to create new alliances with such an incredible theatre company like Manhattan Theatre Club.”
Founded in 1970 and committed to the creation of new plays and musicals through an intensive Artistic Development Program, MTC presents original works on its stages. MTC’s Education Program promotes active participation in the arts through in-class instruction, student and family matinees, teacher training, internships, and online distance learning. MTC includes a subscriber base of 20,000 at present and showcases its productions at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.
