York Theatre Company’s Developmental Reading Series

Each year, York’s Developmental Reading Series presents approximately 40 readings and workshops of new musicals by emerging and established authors, all free of charge to the public.

Dillinger (Music & Lyrics by Paul Aleman, Book by Joel Gross) – A young reporter goes undercover with gangster John Dillinger, succumbs to his corrupting influence, and falls in love with Dillinger’s girl – never realizing that he is part of a deadly plan.
Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 7:30 PM

The Black Dahlia (Book & Lyrics by Carol Crittenden and Richard Sabellico, Music by John T. Prestianni) – A beautiful young woman is brutally murdered and left, in a grotesque display on a street in Los Angles, giving her a fame in death that was elusive in her starry eyed, lost-soul life. The ever and always unsolved case of the Black Dahlia.
Monday, April 28, 2008 at 7:30 PM

The Hollywood Backers Audition (Music, Book & Lyrics by Dick Vosburgh and Frank Lazarus) – A wry look at the Boradway piranha pool and a recreation of a backers audition for the award winning musical A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine, performed by its composer.
Thursday, May 1, 2008 at 7:30 PM

The Toymaker (Book, Music & Lyrics by Bryan Putnam) – A disillusioned young woman, hearing tales of a childless toymaker of the past, sets on a desperate search for the last toy made by this man. A haunting tale of enduring passion and hope.
Friday, May 2, 2008 at 3:00 PM

Villa Diodati or Mary Shelley – Scenes From a Life (Music by Mira J. Spektor, Lyrics by Colette Inez) – At the beautiful lakeside Villa Diodati, which housed the Shelley’s last happy summer, Mary Shelley, the poets Shelley and Lord Byron, Byron’s mistress, Mary’s mother’s ghost, Dr. Frankenstein’s Monster and six American tourists sing about summer rentals, death, love and premonitions in 1998, 1996 and 1816!
Thursday, May 8, 2008 at 7:30 PM

Appalachian Fling (Book by Ben Tarver, Music & Lyrics By John Clifton) –
It’s corruption, blackmail and adultery — gone bad — when the Judge turns the whole town into one big guilty party! What old letch was up in Tina Fay’s room after midnight? It was the Judge himself (!) — but will he be found out? Something definitely goes bump in the night in this tuneful romp, only to land up in court the next day. And, oh yes, it just happens that’s the day the Court Inspector pays his official visit. Adapted from the hilarious classic “The Broken Jug” by Heinrich von Kleist.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008 at 7:30 PM

Lift (Book & Lyrics By Daryl Lisa Fazio, Music by Aaron Mcallister) – In a small Ohio town, 8-year old Ethan Hale falls through the ice and is miraculously saved. But no one sees the rescue. No one steps forward as the hero. And when Ethan insists that a “birdman” pulled him from the water, the townspeople embark on a journey into their individual faith, their collective hope, and what it means to be extraordinary.
Thursday, May 15, 2008 at 7:30 PM