Magnormos
Encyclopedia
Magnormos is an independent musical theatre production company based in Melbourne
, Australia
, that specialises in producing musicals written by Australian writers, and landmark international works.
In May 2010 Magnormos staged the Australasian premiere of Broadway musical title of show
, which was well received by the critics, and led to members of the Broadway company (Jeff Bowen, Heidi Blickenstaff and Michael Berresse) flying to Melbourne to see the production for a specially added matinee performance which also included a question and answer session. The Q&A session was attended by Tony Award winner Geoffrey Rush
. Media personality Julia Zemiro
was impressed with the production and said, "Magnormos has always stood for excellence. With [title of show], they have surpassed themselves." A return season was announced shortly after to play in August 2010, following a brief tour to regional city Frankston
.
Also In 2010, Magnormos produced A Sondheim Triptych to celebrate the 80th birthday of Stephen Sondheim
. The Triptych included presentations of Saturday Night
, Merrily We Roll Along
, and Anyone Can Whistle
. The 2010 season concluded with the annual OzMade Musicals showcase on November 15th, for the first time presented at Melbourne's iconic Comedy Theatre.
The Magnormos 2011 season includes the Melbourne premiere of The Hatpin
, and the world premiere of flowerchildren - the mamas and papas story starring Matt Hetherington, Laura Fitzpatrick, Dan Humphris and Casey Donovan
as Mama Cass. Another triptych at Melbourne Recital Centre is scheduled for July, this time featuring three scores from Jerry Herman
.
's 'working' at the Athenaeum Theatre as part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival
. The production was an Australian adaptation by Aaron Joyner, with permission and involvement by Stephen Schwartz
himself.
Magnormos produces the annual OzMade Musicals concert, the Prompt Musical Program, the Musical Theatre Readings Program and Musical Theatre Trivia Nights.
, and the newly opened Federation Square
. In 2004 it was held at the BMW Edge, Federation Square and in 2005 it moved back to Theatre Works where it played until 2006. In 2007, for the fifth birthday of Magnormos, OzMade Musicals was moved to the Athenaeum Theatre in Collins Street Melbourne, where it also played in 2008. In 2010 it will be held in the Comedy Theatre Melbourne
.
OzMade Musicals debuts new musicals through the 'On The Drawing Board' program. Submissions are accepted across Australia, and successful applicants are provided with development assistance and then presented as a fifteen minute segment at the concert.
Existing musicals are celebrated as 'OzMade Flashbacks', one song highlights from Australian musicals that have been performed.
Musicals which have been presented in OzMade Musicals concert's include Paris, Metro Street, Eurobeat, and Virgins.
's Saturday Night
, Mel Brooks
' Archy & Mehitabel, Craig Christie's Water Into Wine and Peter Pinne
's A Bunch of Ratbags.
From 2007, Magnormos shifted to producing full productions again under the name of the Prompt! Musicals Program. Musicals shown through Prompt! include Mary Bryant (Nick Enright
/David King), Life's A Circus (Anthony Costanzo), Love Equals (Craig Christie/Kristin Keam), Flora the Red Menace
(John Kander
/Fred Ebb
/David Thompson), The Thing About Men
(Joe DiPietro
/Jimmy Roberts) and the Australasian premiere of [ title of show
].
Other productions include an orchestral concert of Kevin Purcell and Victor Kazans 'Rebecca - the Musical', and workshops of new musicals 'Flowerchildren' (Peter Fitzpatrick) and 'Better Than Broadway' (Melvyn Morrow
, David Mitchel, Ray Cook).
, Tony Sheldon
, Nancye Hayes, Silvie Paladino, Anne Wood, Terence Donovan
, Michael Cormick, Robert Grubb
, Shaun Murphy, Sally Bourne, Jane Badler
, Matt Hetherington, Chelsea Plumley, and many more.
Magnormos has been aligned with Theatre Works since 2003. Other supporters include the City of Port Phillip
.
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, that specialises in producing musicals written by Australian writers, and landmark international works.
In May 2010 Magnormos staged the Australasian premiere of Broadway musical title of show
Title of show
[title of show] is a one-act musical, with music and lyrics by Jeff Bowen and a book by Hunter Bell. The show chronicles its own creation as an entry in the New York Musical Theatre Festival, and follows the struggles of the author and composer/lyricist and their two actress friends during the...
, which was well received by the critics, and led to members of the Broadway company (Jeff Bowen, Heidi Blickenstaff and Michael Berresse) flying to Melbourne to see the production for a specially added matinee performance which also included a question and answer session. The Q&A session was attended by Tony Award winner Geoffrey Rush
Geoffrey Rush
Geoffrey Roy Rush is an Australian actor and film producer. He is one of the few people who has won the "Triple Crown of Acting": an Academy Award, a Tony Award and an Emmy Award. He has won one Academy Award for acting , three British Academy Film Awards , two Golden Globe Awards and four Screen...
. Media personality Julia Zemiro
Julia Zemiro
Julia Zemiro is an Australian television presenter, radio host, actor, singer and comedian.- Early life :...
was impressed with the production and said, "Magnormos has always stood for excellence. With [title of show], they have surpassed themselves." A return season was announced shortly after to play in August 2010, following a brief tour to regional city Frankston
Frankston, Victoria
Frankston is a suburb within the Greater Melbourne metropolitan area in Victoria, Australia. It is located 40 km southeast of the state capital Melbourne at the southernmost edge of Greater Melbourne, near the beginnings of the Mornington Peninsula...
.
Also In 2010, Magnormos produced A Sondheim Triptych to celebrate the 80th birthday of Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Joshua Sondheim is an American composer and lyricist for stage and film. He is the winner of an Academy Award, multiple Tony Awards including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize and the Laurence Olivier Award...
. The Triptych included presentations of Saturday Night
Saturday Night (musical)
Saturday Night is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and the book by brothers Julius J. Epstein and Philip G. Epstein, based on their play, Front Porch in Flatbush....
, Merrily We Roll Along
Merrily We Roll Along (musical)
Merrily We Roll Along is a musical with a book by George Furth and lyrics and music by Stephen Sondheim. It is based on the 1934 play of the same name by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart....
, and Anyone Can Whistle
Anyone Can Whistle
Anyone Can Whistle is a musical with a book by Arthur Laurents and music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. The story concerns a corrupt mayoress, an idealistic nurse, a man who may be a doctor, and various officials, patients and townspeople, all fighting to save a bankrupt town...
. The 2010 season concluded with the annual OzMade Musicals showcase on November 15th, for the first time presented at Melbourne's iconic Comedy Theatre.
The Magnormos 2011 season includes the Melbourne premiere of The Hatpin
The Hatpin
The Hatpin is a musical theatre production inspired by the true story of Amber Murray who in 1892 gave up her son to the Makin family in Sydney, Australia. Written and developed in 2006–2007, by James Millar and Peter Rutherford , The Hatpin opened at the Seymour Centre in Sydney on 27 February...
, and the world premiere of flowerchildren - the mamas and papas story starring Matt Hetherington, Laura Fitzpatrick, Dan Humphris and Casey Donovan
Casey Donovan (singer)
-Australian Idol :Donovan transferred to the Australian Institute of Music in Sydney's Surry Hills in 2004 and it was in this year that her stepfather encouraged her to audition for the second season of Australian Idol...
as Mama Cass. Another triptych at Melbourne Recital Centre is scheduled for July, this time featuring three scores from Jerry Herman
Jerry Herman
Jerry Herman is an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway musical theater. He composed the scores for the hit Broadway musicals Hello, Dolly!, Mame, and La Cage aux Folles. He has been nominated for the Tony Award five times, and won twice, for Hello, Dolly! and La Cage...
.
History
Magnormos was founded in 2002 by Aaron Joyner. The inaugural production was Stephen SchwartzStephen Schwartz (composer)
Stephen Lawrence Schwartz is an American musical theatre lyricist and composer. In a career spanning over four decades, Schwartz has written such hit musicals as Godspell , Pippin and Wicked...
's 'working' at the Athenaeum Theatre as part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival
Melbourne Fringe Festival
The Melbourne Fringe Festival is an annual independent arts festival held in Melbourne, Australia. The Festival runs for three weeks from late September to early October, usually overlapping with the beginning of the Melbourne International Arts Festival...
. The production was an Australian adaptation by Aaron Joyner, with permission and involvement by Stephen Schwartz
Stephen Schwartz (composer)
Stephen Lawrence Schwartz is an American musical theatre lyricist and composer. In a career spanning over four decades, Schwartz has written such hit musicals as Godspell , Pippin and Wicked...
himself.
Magnormos produces the annual OzMade Musicals concert, the Prompt Musical Program, the Musical Theatre Readings Program and Musical Theatre Trivia Nights.
OzMade Musicals
OzMade Musicals is an annual gala concert of Australian musical theatre. The first OzMade was in 2003 at Theatre Works in St KildaSt Kilda, Victoria
St Kilda is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 6 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Port Phillip...
, and the newly opened Federation Square
Federation Square
Federation Square is a civic centre and cultural precinct in the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia....
. In 2004 it was held at the BMW Edge, Federation Square and in 2005 it moved back to Theatre Works where it played until 2006. In 2007, for the fifth birthday of Magnormos, OzMade Musicals was moved to the Athenaeum Theatre in Collins Street Melbourne, where it also played in 2008. In 2010 it will be held in the Comedy Theatre Melbourne
Comedy Theatre, Melbourne
The Comedy Theatre is a 997 seat theatre in Melbourne. It was built in 1928, and was built in the Spanish style, with a Florentine-style exterior and wrought-iron balconies. It is located at 240 Exhibition Street, and diagonally opposite Her Majesty's Theatre, it is a part of the Marriner Theatre...
.
OzMade Musicals debuts new musicals through the 'On The Drawing Board' program. Submissions are accepted across Australia, and successful applicants are provided with development assistance and then presented as a fifteen minute segment at the concert.
Existing musicals are celebrated as 'OzMade Flashbacks', one song highlights from Australian musicals that have been performed.
Musicals which have been presented in OzMade Musicals concert's include Paris, Metro Street, Eurobeat, and Virgins.
Productions
Until 2007, Magnormos predominantly presented readings of musicals, and these included Stephen SondheimStephen Sondheim
Stephen Joshua Sondheim is an American composer and lyricist for stage and film. He is the winner of an Academy Award, multiple Tony Awards including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize and the Laurence Olivier Award...
's Saturday Night
Saturday Night (musical)
Saturday Night is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and the book by brothers Julius J. Epstein and Philip G. Epstein, based on their play, Front Porch in Flatbush....
, Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks is an American film director, screenwriter, composer, lyricist, comedian, actor and producer. He is best known as a creator of broad film farces and comic parodies. He began his career as a stand-up comic and as a writer for the early TV variety show Your Show of Shows...
' Archy & Mehitabel, Craig Christie's Water Into Wine and Peter Pinne
Peter Pinne
Peter Pinne is an Australian-born writer and composer.Pinne started working as a television executive for the Reg Grundy organisation. Firstly, as Head of Production from 1980, later rising to become a Senior Vice President of the company. During this period, he worked on numerous shows including...
's A Bunch of Ratbags.
From 2007, Magnormos shifted to producing full productions again under the name of the Prompt! Musicals Program. Musicals shown through Prompt! include Mary Bryant (Nick Enright
Nick Enright
-Life:He was drama captain of St Ignatius' College, Riverview in 1964, where, like Gerard Windsor and Justin Fleming, he was taught by Melvyn Morrow. At that school, he won the 1sts Debating Premiership in both 1966 and 1967....
/David King), Life's A Circus (Anthony Costanzo), Love Equals (Craig Christie/Kristin Keam), Flora the Red Menace
Flora the Red Menace
Flora the Red Menace is a musical with a book by George Abbott and Robert Russell, music by John Kander, and lyrics by Fred Ebb. The musical starred Liza Minnelli in the title role in her Broadway debut, for which she won a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical...
(John Kander
John Kander
John Harold Kander is the American composer of a number of musicals as part of the songwriting team of Kander and Ebb.-Life and career:Kander was born in Kansas City, Missouri, the son of Bernice and Harold S. Kander...
/Fred Ebb
Fred Ebb
Fred Ebb was an American musical theatre lyricist who had many successful collaborations with composer John Kander. The Kander and Ebb team frequently wrote for such performers as Liza Minnelli and Chita Rivera....
/David Thompson), The Thing About Men
The Thing About Men
The Thing About Men is a musical with music by Jimmy Roberts and lyrics and book by Joe DiPietro. It is based on the 1985 German film Men by Doris Dörrie...
(Joe DiPietro
Joe DiPietro
Joe DiPietro is an American playwright and author.Born in Teaneck, New Jersey, DiPietro grew up in nearby Oradell. Son of the banker Lou, and Jean DiPietro. He attended Oradell Public School and River Dell Regional High School. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Rutgers University in 1984 with a...
/Jimmy Roberts) and the Australasian premiere of [ title of show
Title of show
[title of show] is a one-act musical, with music and lyrics by Jeff Bowen and a book by Hunter Bell. The show chronicles its own creation as an entry in the New York Musical Theatre Festival, and follows the struggles of the author and composer/lyricist and their two actress friends during the...
].
Other productions include an orchestral concert of Kevin Purcell and Victor Kazans 'Rebecca - the Musical', and workshops of new musicals 'Flowerchildren' (Peter Fitzpatrick) and 'Better Than Broadway' (Melvyn Morrow
Melvyn Morrow
Melvyn Morrow is an Australian playwright.He co-wrote "Shout! The Legend of the Wild One" and "Dusty - The Original Pop Diva" with John-Michael Howson and David Mitchell....
, David Mitchel, Ray Cook).
Artists
Many Australian musical theatre stars have appeared on the Magnormos stage including Toni LamondToni Lamond
Toni Lamond AM is an Australian cabaret singer, stage actor, dancer and comedienne...
, Tony Sheldon
Tony Sheldon
Tony Sheldon is an Australian actor/singer best known for his work in theatre; he is also a writer.- Career :...
, Nancye Hayes, Silvie Paladino, Anne Wood, Terence Donovan
Terence Donovan (actor)
Terence Donovan , also known as Terry Donovan, is an English-born Australian actor and the father of fellow actor and entertainer Jason Donovan...
, Michael Cormick, Robert Grubb
Robert Grubb
Robert Grubb is an Australian actor. He studied acting at National Institute of Dramatic Art , where he graduated in 1978.Grubb played the role of Dr. Geoffrey Standish in the popular series The Flying Doctors...
, Shaun Murphy, Sally Bourne, Jane Badler
Jane Badler
Jane Badler is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Diana, the chief antagonist in NBC's science fiction TV series, V, between 1983-85. Badler also appeared in ABC's "reimagined" version of V in 2011, again playing an alien named Diana, who this time is the mother of...
, Matt Hetherington, Chelsea Plumley, and many more.
Magnormos has been aligned with Theatre Works since 2003. Other supporters include the City of Port Phillip
City of Port Phillip
The City of Port Phillip is a Local Government Area in Victoria, Australia. It is located on the northern shores of Port Phillip, south of Melbourne's central business district. It has an area of 20.62 km² and has an estimated population of 96,110 people....
.