(PRINCETON, NJ) -- Following the success of its pilot program, launched in the spring of 2017, The Springboard Project has announced the next round of applications for The Springboard Project, an initiative designed to inspire and support early development of dance-driven musicals.
Preliminary letters of Inquiry are now being accepted for 2018. The deadline is October 6, 2017. After the initial submission, select applicants will be invited to submit a full proposal, due in December, and final projects will be notified in February 2018 for residencies in June 2018.
Designed to encourage collaborations in which choreography plays an integral part in the conception and creation of new musicals, The Springboard Project provides a fully supported three-week development workshop for two creative teams in early conceptual stages of a new musical. Creative teams may range in size and must include a choreographer and a composer.
The Jerome Robbins Foundation and Project Director Mara Isaacs spent two years conducting an in-depth inquiry into the feasibility and desirability of an initiative that would support the development of dance-driven musicals.
"Overwhelmingly, we heard from directors, choreographers, composers, lyricists, and book writers that while the appetite for developing dance-driven musicals is genuine, there is a profound frustration with the limited avenues available to independent artists," says Ellen Sorrin, a director of the Robbins Foundation.
It was out of these conversations that The Springboard Project was created to 1) encourage creative teams to incorporate choreographic and directorial ideas at conception, 2) to develop the work with dance fully integrated into the story-telling, and 3) to address the existing financial and practical obstacles to developing those ideas in the early stages of development.
The Jerome Robbins Foundation (Lead Funder): Jerome Robbins established the Foundation in 1958 with the intent to support dance, theater, and their associative arts. The Foundation supports dance and theater companies, presenting organizations, the Jerome Robbins Dance Division at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, and other culturalinstitutions. It has created initiatives such as the Floria V. Lasky Symposium and the Springboard Project to support the field of the performing arts and the issues challenging its mission to remain an integral part of life in these ever‐changing times.
Mara Isaacs (Project Director): Mara Isaacs is the Executive/Creative producer of Octopus Theatricals, a theatrical producing and consulting company dedicated to fostering an expansive range of compelling theatrical works for local, national andinternational audiences. Recognized as a field leader in new play and musical development, Mara has produced over 100 productions on and off-Broadway, across the US and internationally. Prior to founding Octopus, Mara was Producing Director atMcCarter Theatre Center in Princeton, N.J. and previously produced new play development programs and productions for Center Theatre Group/Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles.
In addition to the leadership of The Jerome Robbins Foundation, The Springboard Project is made possible with the generous support of the Frederick Loewe Foundation, Mertz Gilmore Foundation, Geraldine Stutz Trust, Howard Gilman Foundation, and Barbara Slifka.
