Music Theatre International
Encyclopedia
Music Theatre International, often abbreviated MTI, is a theatrical licensing agency based in New York City
. The League of American Theatres and Producers calls MTI "A leader in the theatrical licensing industry."
and orchestrator Don Walker
. Today, MTI is the leading international dramatic licensing agency, helping composers, lyricists and book writers (and their estates) perpetuate and profit from their work. It licenses over 15,000 productions each year in the United States and Canada and has licensed productions in over sixty other countries. It licenses shows for professional productions as well as amateur productions in schools and community theaters, and supplies scripts, musical materials, and other theatrical resources.
Along with the licensing rights to Loesser's works, the company also holds production rights to numerous Broadway, Off-Broadway
, and West End
musicals, including almost all of Stephen Sondheim
's shows. Many of the longest-running musicals in Broadway history are now licensed by MTI including Les Misérables
, Beauty and the Beast
and Fiddler on the Roof
. Others include, to name a few, Annie
, The Fantasticks
, Godspell
, Guys and Dolls
, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
, Legally Blonde, Jekyll and Hyde, Little Shop of Horrors
, The Most Happy Fella
, Miss Saigon
, The Music Man
, My Favorite Year
, Pajama Game, Sweeney Todd, The Drowsy Chaperone
, and West Side Story
.
The company also prepares and licenses "Junior" musicals – shortened versions of popular musicals simplified, and with appropriate language for younger performers, eliminating smoking, drinking and other concepts and activities deemed inappropriate for young performers. Its most popular musical in recent years has been a stage adaptation of the Disney Channel
mega-hit High School Musical
. The sequel to that film, High School Musical 2, is available for adaptation as well. MTI also has a Social website for youth called MTI ShowSpace
.
, Chairman
Drew Cohen, President
John Prignano, Senior Operations Officer
Carol Edelson, Sr. VP., Licensing
Peter Gerstheimer, Chief Financial Officer
Brian O'Sullivan, Director of Amateur Licensing
Larry Lees, Director of Music, Materials and Product Development
Jason Cocovinis, Director of Marketing
Deborah Hartnett, Director of Business and Legal Affairs
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. The League of American Theatres and Producers calls MTI "A leader in the theatrical licensing industry."
Description
MTI was founded in 1952 by American composer and lyricist Frank LoesserFrank Loesser
Frank Henry Loesser was an American songwriter who wrote the lyrics and scores to the Broadway hits Guys and Dolls and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, among others. He won separate Tony Awards for the music and lyrics in both shows, as well as sharing the Pulitzer Prize for...
and orchestrator Don Walker
Don Walker (orchestrator)
Don Walker was a prolific Broadway orchestrator, who also composed music for musicals and one film and worked as a conductor in television.-Biography:...
. Today, MTI is the leading international dramatic licensing agency, helping composers, lyricists and book writers (and their estates) perpetuate and profit from their work. It licenses over 15,000 productions each year in the United States and Canada and has licensed productions in over sixty other countries. It licenses shows for professional productions as well as amateur productions in schools and community theaters, and supplies scripts, musical materials, and other theatrical resources.
Along with the licensing rights to Loesser's works, the company also holds production rights to numerous Broadway, Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
, and West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
musicals, including almost all 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...
's shows. Many of the longest-running musicals in Broadway history are now licensed by MTI including Les Misérables
Les Misérables (musical)
Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....
, Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast (musical)
Beauty and the Beast is a musical with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice and a book by Linda Woolverton, based on the 1991 Disney film of the same name. Seven new songs were written for the stage musical...
and Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem...
. Others include, to name a few, Annie
Annie (musical)
Annie is a Broadway musical based upon the popular Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie, with music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and the book by Thomas Meehan. The original Broadway production opened in 1977 and ran for nearly six years with a blonde Annie as the poster...
, The Fantasticks
The Fantasticks
The Fantasticks is a 1960 musical with music by Harvey Schmidt and lyrics by Tom Jones. It was produced by Lore Noto. It tells an allegorical story, loosely based on the play "The Romancers" by Edmond Rostand, concerning two neighboring fathers who trick their children, Luisa and Matt, into...
, Godspell
Godspell
Godspell is a musical by Stephen Schwartz and John-Michael Tebelak. It opened off Broadway on May 17, 1971, and has played in various touring companies and revivals many times since, including a 2011 revival now playing on Broadway...
, Guys and Dolls
Guys and Dolls
Guys and Dolls is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" and "Blood Pressure", two short stories by Damon Runyon, and also borrows characters and plot elements from other Runyon stories, most notably...
, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Abe Burrows, Jack Weinstock, and Willie Gilbert, based on Shepherd Mead's 1952 book of the same name....
, Legally Blonde, Jekyll and Hyde, Little Shop of Horrors
Little Shop of Horrors (musical)
Little Shop of Horrors is a rock musical, by composer Alan Menken and writer Howard Ashman, about a hapless florist shop worker who raises a plant that feeds on human blood. The musical is based on the low-budget 1960 black comedy film The Little Shop of Horrors, directed by Roger Corman...
, The Most Happy Fella
The Most Happy Fella
The Most Happy Fella is a 1956 musical with a book, music, and lyrics by Frank Loesser. The story, about a romance between an older man and younger woman, is based on the play They Knew What They Wanted by Sidney Howard...
, Miss Saigon
Miss Saigon
Miss Saigon is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby, Jr.. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly, and similarly tells the tragic tale of a doomed romance involving an Asian woman abandoned by her American lover...
, The Music Man
The Music Man
The Music Man is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and uniforms to naive townsfolk before skipping town with...
, My Favorite Year
My Favorite Year
My Favorite Year is a 1982 American comedy film directed by Richard Benjamin which tells the story of a young comedy writer. It stars Peter O'Toole, Mark Linn-Baker, Jessica Harper, Joseph Bologna, Lou Jacobi, Bill Macy, Lainie Kazan, Selma Diamond, Cameron Mitchell, and Gloria Stuart. O'Toole was...
, Pajama Game, Sweeney Todd, The Drowsy Chaperone
The Drowsy Chaperone
The Drowsy Chaperone is a musical with book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar and music and lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison. It debuted in 1998 at The Rivoli in Toronto and opened on Broadway on 1 May 2006. The show won the Tony Award for Best Book and Best Score. It started as a spoof of old...
, and West Side Story
West Side Story
West Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
.
The company also prepares and licenses "Junior" musicals – shortened versions of popular musicals simplified, and with appropriate language for younger performers, eliminating smoking, drinking and other concepts and activities deemed inappropriate for young performers. Its most popular musical in recent years has been a stage adaptation of the Disney Channel
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
mega-hit High School Musical
High School Musical on Stage!
High School Musical on Stage! is a musical based on the Disney Channel Original Movie High School Musical, with music and lyrics by Matthew Gerrard, Robbie Nevil, Ray and Greg Cham, Drew Seeley, Randy Petersen, Kevin Quinn, Andy Dodd, Adam Watts, Bryan Louiselle, David N. Lawrence, Faye Greenberg...
. The sequel to that film, High School Musical 2, is available for adaptation as well. MTI also has a Social website for youth called MTI ShowSpace
MTI ShowSpace
MTI SHOWSPACE is a non-profit social networking site for people involved in musical youth theatre and putting on live Broadway shows – like HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL, THE MUSIC MAN, ALADDIN, JR, GUYS AND DOLLS and ANNIE – can go to find out anything they need to know...
.
Musical types
MTI currently holds seven types of musicals one can license.- MTI Show: These are shows from various types of theater such as Broadway. These include musicals as RagtimeRagtime (musical)Ragtime is a musical with a book by Terrence McNally, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and music by Stephen Flaherty.Based on the 1975 novel by E. L. Doctorow, Ragtime tells the story of three groups in America, represented by Coalhouse Walker Jr., a Harlem musician; Mother, the matriarch of a WASP family in...
, Ain't Misbehavin'Ain't Misbehavin'Ain't Misbehavin' is a musical revue with a book by Murray Horwitz and Richard Maltby, Jr., music by Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller, and lyrics by various writers...
, and SeussicalSeussicalis a musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty based on the books of Dr. Seuss that debuted on Broadway in 2000. The play's story is a rather complex amalgamation of many of Seuss's most famous books. After a Broadway run, the production spawned two US national tours and a UK tour...
. - Broadway Junior: These sixty minute musicals have been adapted for middle school kids to perform. Any subject matter deemed inappropriate have been cut. It also is reduced to one act. These include junior versions of AnnieAnnie (musical)Annie is a Broadway musical based upon the popular Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie, with music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and the book by Thomas Meehan. The original Broadway production opened in 1977 and ran for nearly six years with a blonde Annie as the poster...
, Fiddler On The RoofFiddler on the RoofFiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem...
, and The Music ManThe Music ManThe Music Man is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and uniforms to naive townsfolk before skipping town with...
. - Broadway Kids: These thirty minute musicals have been specially adapted for elementary kids to perform. These musicals have been made exclusively for the Kids Collection. Such musicals include Winnie The Pooh, Alice in Wonderland, and 101 Dalmatians101 Dalmatians101 Dalmatians is a 1996 American family comedy film produced by Walt Disney Pictures, and a remake of the Disney animated film One Hundred and One Dalmatians , which in turn was based on Dodie Smith's 1956 novel The Hundred and One Dalmatians. It stars Glenn Close as the villainous Cruella de Vil,...
. - Musicals From The Disney Collection: These musicals include musicals from Disney. All the musicals in this section are from a Disney show except for AidaAida (musical)Aida is a musical with music by Elton John, lyrics by Tim Rice, and book by Linda Woolverton, Robert Falls, and David Henry Hwang, and produced by Walt Disney Theatrical....
. - School Editions: These are Broadway musicals that have been adapted for high school kids to perform. These musicals have reduced certain subject matter, orchestration, and more. A School Edition of the Broadway hit Avenue QAvenue QAvenue Q is a musical in two acts, conceived by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx, who wrote the music and lyrics. The book was written by Jeff Whitty and the show was directed by Jason Moore and produced by Kevin McCollum, Robyn Goodman, and Jeffrey Seller...
is currently in the making. Such School Editions include RentRent (musical)Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...
and Sweeny Todd. - Theatre For Young Audiences: These seventy minute musicals have been adapted for adults to perform for children. The difference is that the cast requirement is small (usually 6-12).
- Concert Library: This collection has Broadway songs adapted for concerts.
- Theatre on the Edge: These are musicals that "move audiences to the edge of their seats with excitement and anticipation". These musicals tend to have adult themes. These musicals include Bloody Bloody Andrew JacksonBloody Bloody Andrew JacksonBloody Bloody Andrew Jackson is a rock musical with music and lyrics written by Michael Friedman, and a book by its director Alex Timbers.The show is a comedic Wild West rock musical about the founding of the Democratic Party...
, Caroline, Or ChangeCaroline, or ChangeCaroline, or Change is a through-composed musical with book and lyrics by Tony Kushner and score by Jeanine Tesori that combines spirituals, blues, Motown, classical music, and Jewish klezmer and folk music....
, and Next to Normal.
Key Executives
Freddie GershonFreddie Gershon
Freddie Gershon was an entertainment attorney, lecturer in entertainment law, published author of Sweetie, Baby, Cookie, Honey, a hugely successful roman a clef novel about the music industry of 1960s thru 1980s, and former COO of the Stigwood Group of companies and current co-owner of and CEO...
, Chairman
Drew Cohen, President
John Prignano, Senior Operations Officer
Carol Edelson, Sr. VP., Licensing
Peter Gerstheimer, Chief Financial Officer
Brian O'Sullivan, Director of Amateur Licensing
Larry Lees, Director of Music, Materials and Product Development
Jason Cocovinis, Director of Marketing
Deborah Hartnett, Director of Business and Legal Affairs
Rating System
MTI uses a rating system that determines the content in the musical and it is shown on their website. The ratings are as follows:| Rating | Description |
|---|---|
| G | Contains no subject matter that would offend anyone. This includes the Junior versions of musicals, Fiddler on the Roof Fiddler on the Roof Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem... , and Seussical Seussical is a musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty based on the books of Dr. Seuss that debuted on Broadway in 2000. The play's story is a rather complex amalgamation of many of Seuss's most famous books. After a Broadway run, the production spawned two US national tours and a UK tour... . |
| PG | Contains some subject matter that would be offensive. This includes Les Misérables Les Misérables (musical) Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo.... and Into the Woods Into the Woods Into the Woods is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. It debuted in San Diego at the Old Globe Theatre in 1986, and premiered on Broadway in 1987. Bernadette Peters' performance as the Witch and Joanna Gleason's portrayal of the Baker's Wife brought acclaim... . |
| R | Contains subject matter that would greatly offend people. This includes Avenue Q Avenue Q Avenue Q is a musical in two acts, conceived by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx, who wrote the music and lyrics. The book was written by Jeff Whitty and the show was directed by Jason Moore and produced by Kevin McCollum, Robyn Goodman, and Jeffrey Seller... and Miss Saigon Miss Saigon Miss Saigon is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby, Jr.. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly, and similarly tells the tragic tale of a doomed romance involving an Asian woman abandoned by her American lover... |