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Michael Kooman is an Emmy nominated composer writing for the stage and screen. His television work includes songs on the Disney Junior animated series, Vampirina and the Netflix series Ridley Jones.* He is most known for his musical Romantics Anonymous (written with Emma Rice), which premiered in 2017 at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre in London. He is half of the writing team of Kooman and Dimond.
Kooman and Dimond are the primary songwriters for the Disney Junior series Vampirina, and were nominated for a 2020 Emmy for their work on the show. Following the story of a family of vampires as they move from Transylvania to Pennsylvania, the series features Isabella Crovetti, James Van Der Beek, Lauren Graham, Wanda Sykes, Patti Lupone, and Brian Stokes Mitchell. Notable Broadway guest stars include Andrew Rannells and Christian Borle. By the end of the show's thirds season he's written over 150 songs for the series.
With a book by acclaimed British writer/director Emma Rice, Romantics Anonymous was adapted from the 2010 French-Belgian film of the same name. The show premiered to great acclaim in 2017 at Shakespeare's Globe. The Guardian hailed it as "A multifaceted gem, chic-full of love, generosity and joy" and Variety raved "Kooman's score and Dimond's lyrics soar to emotional heights". The show planned to tour internationally in 2020.
Continuing his collaboration with creator and executive producer Chris Nee, he began work writing songs for the Netflix series Ridley Jones.
The Noteworthy Life of Howard Barnes, a musical comedy which chronicles the tale of an average man who wakes up one morning to discover that his life has become a musical, was first workshopped at the prestigious Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in 2013, followed by workshops at the Human Race Theatre Company and Village Theatre. In 2014 Village Theatre produced a workshop production of the piece.
The show received its world premiere at Village Theatre in the fall of 2018, with the Seattle Times giving it a rave, calling it "uproariously funny". A world premiere recording was released in 2019. *
Kooman and Dimond's first book musical, Dani Girl, has been work-shopped at Carnegie Mellon University, Pennsylvania State University, the American Conservatory Theater, The Kennedy Center, The ASCAP/Disney Musical Theater Workshop, and CAP-21. The piece is licensed by Samuel French. Its professional premiere was produced in Barrie, Ontario by Talk is Free Theatre, directed by Richard Ouzounian, and subsequently was remounted in 2012.Harvest Rain Theatre Company debuted the show internationally in Brisbane, Australia in 2010. The show was presented at the 2011 National Alliance for Musical Theater Festival of New Musicals and by Maryland's Unexpected Stage Company (Summer 2014). Dani Girl made its UK amateur premiere in Glasgow, Scotland by Epilogue Theatre.
Orphie and the Book of Heroes was commissioned by The Kennedy Center and premiered in 2014. The Washington Post gave the show 5 stars and called it "An Epic Success". It has subsequently been produced at Orlando Repertory Theatre, Front Porch Theatre, and Interlochen Arts Academy. An album of the score was released in 2018.
Judge Jackie: Disorder in the Court is an audience participation based musical commissioned by the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera which ran for 14 weeks at their cabaret space in downtown Pittsburgh in 2014. Reviews were positive, and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette raved "Musical comedy justice is served in a new CLO Cabaret show featuring catchy tunes, clever lyrics, juicy characters and important roles for audience members throughout the proceedings.”
Golden Gate premiered at the Williamstown Theater Festival Aug 12, 2009. It has subsequently been workshopped as part of Millikin University's New Musicals Workshop, culminating in a production of the latest incarnation of the show, which occurred in the spring of 2011.
In 2012, Kooman and Dimond collaborated with director Alberto Belli to create the musical short film Someday Soon, which was subsequently featured on Funny or Die.
Their first collaboration was the song cycle Homemade Fusion in March 2006. Since the premiere, Homemade Fusion has been performed across the country as well as internationally. The show debuted at Carnegie Mellon University in 2006, with a subsequent production at the Pittsburgh CLO Cabaret Theater. This production featured Tony Award winner Patina Miller, Kara Lindsay, Anderson Davis, Andrew Kober, and many other Carnegie Mellon Drama School Alumni. In 2010, the show was performed at the Ambassadors theater in London. Songs from "Homemade Fusion" have amassed more than a million views on their YouTube channel. Part of the show was performed by the writers in 2009 at The Kennedy Center's "Next Generation of Musical Theater" series.
Along with Christopher Dimond, he received the $50,000 2013 Fred Ebb Award as well as the 2010 Jonathan Larson Grant. In 2011, they were awarded the first Lorenz Hart Award, given by the ASCAP Foundation. In 2009, he received the Burton Lane Award from the American Theatre Hall of Fame, and received a fellowship from both the Dramatists Guild of America as well as the O'neill Musical Theatre Festival. [1] [2] [3]
He has completed the advanced BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Workshop and is currently a member of the Dramatists Guild of America.
On June 28, 2011, Kooman released "Out of Our Heads: The Music of Kooman and Dimond". The album features several Tony nominated performers including Patina Miller, Kerry Butler, and Christopher Sieber. The album release party was held at Birdland on July 18, 2011 featuring performances by Laura Osnes, Julia Murney, Jeremy Jordan, Kyle Dean Massey, and Jose Llana.
Maury Yeston is an American composer, lyricist and music theorist.
Frank Wildhorn is an American composer of both musicals and popular songs. His musical Jekyll & Hyde ran for four years on Broadway. He also wrote the #1 International hit song "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" for Whitney Houston.
The Carnegie Mellon School of Drama is the first degree-granting drama institution in the United States. Founded in 1914, it is one of five schools within the Carnegie Mellon College of Fine Arts.
Scotch'n'Soda is a student-run theatre organization that resides on the campus of Carnegie Mellon University. Its initial dedication was the creation and production of original musicals, but has now taken to performing both professionally published and student-written materials. Students are welcome to write, compose, design, direct, perform in, and otherwise become involved with every aspect of each production. The organization is open to all Carnegie Mellon students from all backgrounds who are interested, and all performances are public with varying ticket prices.
Natalie Venetia Belcon is a Trinidadian-born American actress and singer. She is best known for originating the role of former child television star Gary Coleman in the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Avenue Q. Her other Broadway credits include the role of Joanne Jefferson in Rent and Erzulie in Once on This Island.
Emily Skinner, also known as Emily Scott Skinner, is a Tony-nominated American stage actor and singer. She has played leading roles in such Broadway productions as Prince of Broadway, The Cher Show, Side Show, Jekyll & Hyde, James Joyce's The Dead, The Full Monty, Dinner at Eight, Billy Elliot, as well as the Actor's Fund Broadway concerts of Dreamgirls and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. She has sung on concert stages around the world and on numerous recordings.
Mel Shapiro is an American theatre director and writer, college professor, and author.
Laura Ann Osnes is an American actress and singer known for her work on the Broadway stage. She has played starring roles in Grease as Sandy, South Pacific as Nellie Forbush, Anything Goes as Hope Harcourt, and Bonnie and Clyde as Bonnie Parker, for which she received a Tony Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical. She also starred in the title role of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella on Broadway, for which she received a Drama Desk Award and her second Tony Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical.
Marcy Heisler is a musical theater lyricist and performer. As a performer, she has performed at Carnegie Hall, Birdland, and numerous other venues throughout the United States and Canada. Heisler was nominated for the 2009 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics for Dear Edwina.
Zina Goldrich is an American composer known for her work in musical theatre in collaboration with the lyricist Marcy Heisler. Her best-known works as composer include "Ever After The Musical", "Taylor The Latte Boy" and "Alto's Lament".
Kim Oler is an American television and theatrical composer. He is a member of the BMI and Dramatists Guild.
Patina Renea Miller is an American actress and singer. Miller's breakout role was as originating the role of disco diva wannabe Deloris Van Cartier in the 2009 West End and 2011 Broadway productions of Sister Act for which she earned a Laurence Olivier Award and Tony Award nominations respectively. She also starred as the Leading Player in the 2013 Broadway revival of Pippin, for which she won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical. She is currently starring as the Witch in the 2022 Broadway revival of the Stephen Sondheim musical Into the Woods.
Bonnie & Clyde is a musical with music by Frank Wildhorn, lyrics by Don Black and a book by Ivan Menchell. The world premiere took place in San Diego, CA in November 2009. The musical centers on Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, the ill-fated lovers and outlaws whose story has been infamous since they achieved folk hero status during the Great Depression. Wildhorn described the music as a "non-traditional score, combining rockabilly, blues and gospel music". The San Diego run was followed by a Sarasota, Florida engagement in 2010.
Christopher Dimond is an American playwright, librettist, and lyricist currently living in New York City. He is most known for his work on the musical Dani Girl and the song cycle "Homemade Fusion", both of which were written with composer Michael Kooman.
Kooman and Dimond are Emmy nominated songwriters for the stage and screen.* Their television work includes the Disney Junior series Vampirina and the Netflix series Ridley Jones.* Their stage musicals include Romantics Anonymous, The Noteworthy Life of Howard Barnes, Dani Girl, Judge Jackie: Disorder in the Court, and Orphie & The Book of Heroes. They are also known for their cabaret material ; and their album Out of Our Heads, released in 2011.
John William McDaniel is an American theatre producer, composer, conductor, and pianist. He is known as the lead composer and producer of the daytime television talk show The Rosie O'Donnell Show, for which he received six Daytime Emmy Award nominations, winning two.
Corey Michael Cott is an American actor and singer. He is best known for playing Jack Kelly in the Broadway musical Newsies, replacing Jeremy Jordan, and for originating the role of Donny Novitski in the Broadway musical Bandstand.
Leslie Lloyd Odom Jr. is an American actor and singer. He made his acting debut on Broadway in 1998 and first gained recognition for his portrayal of Aaron Burr in the musical Hamilton, which earned him a 2016 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical and a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album in the same year.
Casey Morton Cott is an American actor, known for his role as Kevin Keller on The CW series Riverdale.
Jamie Gruber, better known by her stage name Jamie deRoy, is an American producer of Broadway plays, and a cabaret, stage, film and TV performer. She has co-produced 60 Broadway shows and 46 off-Broadway shows. deRoy has won eight Tony Awards for her theatre work and was one of the New York Friars Club's first eight female members.
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