NYMF’s Academy Wins Best Musical Award at South Korea’s Daegu International Musical Festival
Alex Wyse, Matthew Johnson, Antonio Addeo,
and Andy Mientus in Academy
(© Jeff Larkin)
Academy, the 2009 New York Musical Theatre (NYMF) selection to The 2010 Daegu International Musical Festival (DIMF) in Daegu, South Korea has been awarded The Best Musical Prize at The Festival.
The musical features book, music, and lyrics by John Mercurio, and was conceived and developed by Andrew Kato. John Carrafa directed the musical, with musical direction by Alexander Rovang. The story takes place at St. Edward’s Academy where two senior boys make a harmless bet on whether they can influence an unsuspecting freshman to break a few rules in order to succeed. However, when the deal goes recklessly out of control, the boys become entangled in a fight for their own academic and personal survival.
The cast featured Alex Wyse (Benji), Corey Boardman (Amory), Wilson Bridges (Michael), Antonio Addeo (Gert), Matthew F. Johnson (Regan), Andy Mientus (Conrad) and Aaron Riesebeck (Pete).
The award, which came with a $2500 cash prize, was presented by Chief Chairman of DIMF and Korean film star Sung Yill Shin and was accepted by NYMF Executive Director and Producer Isaac Robert Hurwitz. In addition to this top prize, Boardman won the award for the festival’s Best Supporting Actor.
The Korean run of Academy was the second part of NYMF’s inaugural production exchange with DIMF, which will continue with Korea’s homegrown musical Special Letter at the 2010 New York Musical Theater Festival. Written by Book and Lyrics by In Seon Park, Music by Chang Wook Ma, Special Letter is a rambunctious comedy about a soldier whose pen pal is not who she seem.
This year’s 2010 New York Musical Theater Festival will take place from September 27 – October 17.
For more information, visit www.nymf.org.
