2025-26 SEASON SUBMISSIONS NOW OPEN

Thank you for your interest in putting on a show with MTP! We are an entirely volunteer-driven organization dedicated to creating musical theatre performance, production, and viewing opportunities for members of the London Ontario community and surrounding areas. All our productions from the past 36 years have been driven by community members like yourself, and we're glad you want to help build our future!

You can participate in our 2025-26 season planning process by:

• Submitting a proposal for a show you'd like to mount

• Applying as a free agent to be matched with a proposal in need of additional team members

• Joining the Season Planning Committee to help review the proposals and make recommendations to the MTP board

For all applicants, please review our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) statement below to ensure you are aligned with our goals. Should you have any questions regarding EDI, please email our EDI Director at dei@musicaltheatreproductions.ca. For all other questions pertaining to the season planning proccess, please contact the Season Planning Director at seasonplanning@musicaltheatreproductions.ca .

EQUITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION STATEMENT

MTP is committed to ongoing work surrounding Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI). It is our utmost priority that our stages reflect our diverse city, and all participants feel safe and supported. MTP is currently reviewing its 2025-26 EDI priorities and practices, and we will expect the artistic teams of selected productions to participate in EDI initiatives. In the past this has included:

• Diverse recruitment practices (i.e. being thoughtful in the communities we invite to audition);

• Inclusive audition and rehearsal practices (i.e. ensuring the physical space is accessible to all, looking at non-traditional casting, methods to report and resolve challenges);

• Relaxed performances (i.e. reducing volume and special effects, leaving house lights on, etc); and/or

• ASL (American Sign Language) interpreted performances.

This is not an exhaustive list, and it’s possible that not everything on this list is part of our 2025-26 initiatives. You will be expected to participate in EDI initiatives and the MTP Board will work with you to ensure you have the support and resources to achieve these initiatives (you won't be alone!). We expect these values and priorities to be reflected in any successful season applicant. We encourage you to speak on your ongoing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion work in your application.

2025-26 SEASON STRUCTURE

MTP generally programs three shows in a season; one in the fall (around November), one in the winter (around February), and one in the spring (around May). The exact dates are determined by venue and creative team availability.

For our 2025-26 season, we are looking to program three different kinds of shows, in no particular order:

1. A "FLAGSHIP" SHOW -- a large-scale, popular, crowd-pleasing musical with lots of roles for performers and crew. This is meant to be the headlining show of the season, casting a wide net to bring together numerous members of the MTP community, new and old, and an audience to match. Think "Broadway!" Examples from MTP's past seasons include:

   • The Little Mermaid (2016)

   • Sweeney Todd (2019), co-production with Allswell Productions

   • Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (2022)

   • Grease (2024), Silver Spotlight Theatre

2. A "STUDIO" SHOW -- a leaner production that focuses on strong performances and unique artistic choices. This is the place for offbeat shows and/or ideas! This production will have a smaller budget than our flagship, so we encourage you to think proactively about a "less is more" approach to the work and using it to discover unexpected creative opportunities. Examples from past MTP seasons include:

   • Bat Boy (2013), a show with cult/horror/musical/comedy appeal

   • Songs For A New World (2014), a production that expanded the cast from four actors to an ensemble of 21, built around strong musical storytelling

   • Jesus Christ Superstar (2015), a classic with a twist, theming the characters on the comic book superhero pantheon

   • Light in the Piazza (2018), an intimate scale production with a rich score, soaring romance, and complex characterization

   • Babes In Arms (2023), a rocket launchpad for Silver Spotlight Theatre that accommodated an enormous cast by limiting onstage facilities to a piano, bass, and projector

3. A "PRESENTATION" -- something other than a fully-staged book musical, to contrast with the rest of the season. Examples would be a concert performance, a themed cabaret/revue, a workshop of new work, a staged reading, or something else musical-theatre-adjacent. This production is intended to be more relaxed than a standard book musical on production/budget requirements, as well as on rehearsal commitments, to help provide opportunities for folks who may have obstacles to participation in a fully staged show. Examples:

   • Lovelash (2018) was an original work by Terence Vince, who directed and mounted it at the TAP Centre's theatre.

   • The Confidential Musical Theatre Project (2024), an experimental theatre format that acts as a staged reading with no group rehearsals and very few technical requirements.

   • MTP has produced many themed cabaret/revues over the past decade, including:

   • Dare To Dream (musical theatre songs about hopes and aspirations)

   • Night of Noir (jazz/noir-themed)

   • Defying Gravity (songs from mega-musicals)

   • Time Warp (rock musicals)

   • Broadway To The Max (a revival of another MTP revue from 1992)

   • Show Off (30th anniversary show featuring songs from all past MTP productions)

   • The Beauty Underneath (Halloween-themed)

SHOW PROPOSALS

To submit a show proposal for our 2025-26 season, please complete the application form linked below. All submissions are due by December 31, 2024.

At the January MTP board meeting, the board will vote to decide which proposals will proceed to the next stage. These applicants will meet with the season planning committee to pitch their show, discuss their plans in more detail, and respond to questions from the committee. They will also meet with the MTP Treasurer to discuss their show's budget needs. The board will then vote on which shows to accept for the season at the February board meeting.

“FREE AGENT” APPLICATIONS

If you are interested in joining an artistic team in our 2025-26 season, but do not have a particular show to propose, we invite you to apply as a "free agent".

Each MTP production has its own artistic team, generally comprising five members:

• The Producer, who oversees the entire production

• The Director, who delivers the creative vision of the show    

• The Music Director, responsible for all musical aspects of the show, including teaching vocals and managing the band

• The Choreographer, responsible for dance and movement

• The Stage Manager, who manages scheduling and rehearsals, and leads the show once it moves into the venue

To submit your interest in assuming one of these roles on a production in our next season, please review and complete the application below. Please note that availability of these roles is dependent on the show proposals received for the season, and while there may not be an open position available in your desired role(s), we still strongly encourage you to register your interest.

Following the January board meeting, we will start trying to match free agents with proposals that need production team roles filled. This may continue throughout the duration of the season planning process.

Free agent applications are due by December 31, 2024.

SEASON PLANNING COMMITTEE

The Season Planning Committee (SPC) is formed of local community members like yourself, who serve to represent the voice and opinion of the community in our deliberation process.

The SPC meets in person twice: once to discuss the received proposals and suggest who should advance to the second round; and again to hear presentations from the second-round teams and render final season recommendations to the board. These meetings are tentatively scheduled for the evenings of January 17 2025 and February 20 2025 respectively (though these may change if SPC and applicant availability significantly favors another date). SPC members that cannot attend a meeting are still welcome to submit feedback via email that will be given full consideration.

To apply to join the SPC, please complete the following form by December 31, 2024.

SILVER SPOTLIGHT PROPOSALS

Proposals may be made for Silver Spotlight shows (our branch that focuses on providing theatre opportunities for seniors age 55+). These proposals will first be reviewed by the Silver Spotlight leadership committee, to be discussed among the branch's membership, and the committee will then put forward the proposals to consider directly to the SPC.

For the 2025-26 season, we are looking to fit Silver Spotlight within the season structure discussed above, ie. either the Flagship, Studio, or Presentation show would be an SST production.

To make a proposal for a Silver Spotlight show, please complete the show proposal form above, selecting the Silver Spotlight option when asked. Once complete, your proposal will be directed to Silver Spotlight leadership, who may reach out to you directly to discuss your proposal further. For those reasons, we advise submitting Silver Spotlight proposals well ahead of the stated December 31 deadline.

2025-26 season PLANNING Timeline

NOTE: The dates listed below are tentative, and may change according to the availability of the persons involved. Should your application conflict with one of the relevant dates listed here, we still encourage you to apply, and we will work out alternative timing with you and the other applicants.

October 27, 2024 - Submissions open for show proposals, free agent applications, and Season Planning Committee applications.

December 31, 2024 - All submissions are due.

January 17, 2025 - Season Planning Committee (SPC) meets to review and discuss all show proposals, and make recommendations to the board.

Early February 2025 - The MTP board votes which proposals should advance to the next round. Shortly following this meeting, all show applicants are notified of their status, and the teams with continuing proposals will receive instructions on preparing for the presentation stage. The teams will also work with the MTP Treasurer to build basic budgets for their productions. We will also start coordinating with the teams about completing their artistic teams with the free agents who applied.

February 20, 2025 - The SPC meets to hear presentations from all teams and ask questions, after which additional discussions are had, and the final recommendations to the board are determined.

March 2025 board meeting - The MTP board votes to confirm which shows have been selected for the season. Following this, all teams will be notified of their status. If the season remains incomplete at this point, the Season Planning Director will begin actively sourcing productions to fill the gaps.

Once the season selection is complete, all unassigned free agent applicants will be notified. MTP will then begin coordinating preliminary graphics designs for each production in a lead-up to the public season announcement (expected to be in April).

March 27, 2025 - We will hold a Season Overview meeting, bringing together representatives from every production in the season to coordinate strategies for the season as a whole.

Auditions

Auditions for our 2024/25 season are now closed. Check back in the spring to learn more about our auditions for our next season!

Follow us on our social media channels for audition updates and other opportunities to be involved in our future productions and special events!

You can also subscribe to our e-Newsletter here.

MEMBERSHIP

Musical Theatre Productions welcomes anyone who is interested in musical theatre or a supporter of the local arts community. We encourage you to become a member in order to receive advance and up to date notice of all MTP auditions, shows, partner news and special events. Memberships are $25 and are valid for one year.

All participants in our productions (artistic team, production team, cast) are required to be members of MTP. There are four simple ways to obtain or renew your MTP membership:

1. By Interac e-transfer.  Email $25 to treasurer@mtplondon.ca with the following information
Password Hint: Membership Payment
Password: mtplondon
Comments: Your email address
2. Mail a cheque to Musical Theatre Productions, 1170 York St., London, ON, N5W 6C9
3. Contact treasurer@mtplondon.ca  to make arrangements to pay in person.

lifetime membership award

Each year, the MTP Board of Directors selects one or two members of the MTP community to honour with our Lifetime Membership Award, in recognition of their service and involvement both with MTP and the London community at large. These awards are presented at a special performance of one of our season shows and includes a reception in honour of the inductee. Our lifetime members are granted all of the rights and privileges of MTP membership for life to ensure that they will always be acknowledged as a member of the MTP family.

LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP AWARD RECIPIENTS

Art Fidler (2015)

Liz Van Doorne (2015)

Stephen and Deborah Mitchell (2016)

Chris Wood (2017)

Kevin Bice (2018)

Anne Cuthbert (2018)

John Gerry (2019)

Ross Davidson (2023)

Laura Wood (2023)

Angela Southern (2024)

Tom Smyth (2024)

Bob Gerow (2024)

Board of Directors

The Board of Directors is elected by the members of Musical Theatre Productions at the Annual General Meeting held each year in September. Although the Board’s complement is a minimum of seven (7) and a maximum of thirteen (13), presently consisting of its maximum members. The terms are staggered with each newly elected member serving a three-year term unless he/she is simply completing the balance of the term of a member who has left office.

The Executive is chosen by the Board at its first meeting following the Annual General Meeting. The President, Vice-President and Secretary are each appointed for a one year term while the Treasurer is appointed indefinitely and continues to serve at the pleasure of the Board.

Meetings of the Board are held on the third Saturday morning of each month with additional meetings called as required. Board members who are not in attendance at three consecutive meetings, without good reason, may be removed from the Board.

For any comments and questions, please feel free to contact us.

Current Board Members

President
Mike Jewison

Vice President
Rick Smith

Treasurer
Chris Harrington

Secretary
Lisa Cardinal

Season Planning Director
Henry Truong

Publicity Director
Jacob Wiley

Fundraising Director
Dylan Borshell

Facilities Director
Jensen Caughlin

Volunteer & Membership Engagement
Brittney-Lee Lowey

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) Director
Haley Gelinas

Silver Spotlight Liaison
Tracey Andrus

Board Liaisons
Tracey Andrus (Big Fish)
Laura Curiale (Blood Brothers)

Founding Members (1988)

The following persons were responsible for the formation of ‘London Musical Theatre’, in 1988 and for producing our first show – ‘Evita’:

Kevin Bice, Suzan Bingemann, Noreen DeShane, Eleanor Ender, Art Fidler, Vicky Fuss, John Gerry, John Hart, James Hill, Roger Macaulay, Ann MacMillan, Deborah Mitchell, Stephen Mitchell, Alec Richmond.