MTI TEMPORARILY STOPS THE MUSIC FOR A REAL-LIFE DRAMA


Music Theatre International is proud to present the innaugural
Courage in Theatre Award to students of Wilton High School.

Music Theatre International is singing and dancing some serious new material to support the real-life drama of the student production of VOICES OF CONFLICT at Wilton High School in Wilton, Connecticut.

Students were preparing to present VOICES IN CONFLICT (link), a powerful and moving presentation drawn from interviews, letters and essays written by Iraqi civilians and American soldiers serving in Iraq.

Devised by Wilton High School drama students as a class project, the drama encountered a roadblock. It was deemed "too controversial" by the school's principal, and all performances were canceled.

News of this controversial decision soon appeared in The New York Times (link), and the voices of Americans were heard loud and clear. The students received thousands of supportive messages, even some from soldiers currently serving in Iraq.

Music Theatre International knew it had to take unprecedented action to recognize these students. We created the first-ever "Courage in Theatre Award", (Click here to read letter from MTI President Freddie Gershon) and the response was great. More and more people in the theatre community also offered support and help. And, VOICES IN CONFLICT is making its debut.


Actor and Wilton resident Joe Pantoliano announces
the Music Theatre International Courage in Theatre Award at Wilton High School.

The drama continues, and Broadway history is being made.

On June 15, VOICES IN CONFLICT will make its off-Broadway debut at the Public Theatre in New York. Our Courage in Theatre Award will be presented to the Wilton High students (Sarah Anderson, Nicholas Basille, Erin Clancy, Afton Fleming, Devon Fontaine, Natalie Kropf, Seth Koproski, Nick Lanza, Cameron Nadler, James Presson, Allie Rizzo, Tara Ross, Dagan Rossini, Katy Ryan and Taylor Telyan) and their teacher, Bonnie Dickinson, as part of the evening's festivities. (Link)

MTI is proud to be part of this chapter in theatre in history.

We have heard from many of our schools, teachers and participants in Broadway Junior and other MTI shows. It's an important subject, and we encourage you to tell us what you think about this conflict, how it has evolved, the courage of the students, the topic itself and other thoughts you might have.

Just click below to add your comments on this remarkable event!*

*All opinions are welcome. We ask that you treat all comments and posters with respect and keep the comment discussion on topic. Please allow up to 24 hours for your comment to be posted. MTI reserves the right to edit comments for abusive language or inappropriate content.

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

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