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Press Releases

Beth Morrison Projects: Producer Academy Accepting Applications for 8-Week Course

July 5, 2024 | By Unison Media
 

Applications Open Now: 2024 Beth Morrison Projects Producer Academy

Applications will be accepted from July 5 to August 1, 2024 11:59pm ET

25 applicants will be selected to join the 8-week-long 2024 cohort running September 23 through November 14

A driving force behind America’s thriving opera scene.

The Financial Times
 

For Immediate Release - (New York, NY) -  BMP: Producer Academy seeks applicants who aspire to be industry innovators and change-makers to join its 25-member cohort this fall.

Established during the pandemic lockdown to support and mentor the next generation of creative producers and administrations, the BMP: Producer Academy is a tuition-free 8-week all-virtual intensive in creative and tour producing for early-career producers running from September 23 through November 14. The Producer Academy offers mentorship, networking opportunities, and weekly sessions on budgeting, touring, project pitching, and the creative process to build and support the knowledge and personal growth of new and diverse producers for the performing arts. Applications are open now through August 1, 2024, at 11:59 pm ET.

"Supporting and cultivating the next generation of talent, and by extension helping shape and shift the future of the performing arts industry, is at the forefront of BMP's mission." BMP Executive Director Sam Linden says,  "We aim to create a creative ecosystem that is more artist-centric, innovative, and socially relevant, and the Producer Academy identifies and supports the movers and shakers that will bring this change.”

“Over the past two years, the Mellon Foundation has allowed BMP: Producer Academy to equip nearly 50 creative and tour producers with the skills and savvy needed to thrive in the performing arts industry—at absolutely no cost to participants,” says Beth Morrison, BMP President and Creative Producer. “I’ve been so proud to watch their success and see the impact they’ve already had on the field, and am thrilled to be welcoming 25 more to the fold!"

During the 8-week program, participants will meet twice weekly to understand each phase of a production life cycle and hone their concrete skills to develop and produce new performance works. The program also includes:

  • One-on-one mentoring with BMP creative producer and administrative and production staff

  • Networking opportunities with professional producers and presenters in the industry

  • Feedback on pitch materials and projects by high-level level industry presenters

2023 Producer Academy Alumna Carla Chambers describes the impact of the Producer Academy, saying, "The program helped me see how I can situate myself as an innovative, multidisciplinary artist in a global context. The challenges of working in the arts exist in most places—the Producer Academy helped me see new ideas and approaches to the arts and gave me the courage to follow them."

The Producer Academy has served over 1,200 students in 17 countries and is deeply committed to creating a fully accessible and inclusive experience. The Producer Academy encourages applicants of all gender identities, racial and ethnic backgrounds, socioeconomic status, and mental and physical abilities to apply. The Producer Academy can provide accessibility accommodations and additional support as needed at the participant's request.

The BMP: Producer Academy faculty includes Beth Morrison, Sam Linden, Victoria Voketaitis, Roderick Murray, Liz Uchtman, Alexis Peart, and other leading colleagues in the Opera and performance industry. The program is headed by Alexis Peart, BMP Director of Administration: The Producer Academy and Associate Creative Producer for The Slaying of Innocence.

The BMP: Producer Academy is a fully funded scholarship program by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, providing a unique opportunity for early career producers to receive high-quality training without financial barriers.

For more information and to learn more, visit our website
or e-mail us at academy@bethmorrisonprojects.org

 

Alexis Peart named BMP: Producer Academy Director of Administration

 

Alexis Peart (she/her) is a Boston-based multi-hyphenate producer, arts administrator, opera singer, and music educator focused on creating accessible pathways to opera and theatrical arts through mounting cutting-edge narratives on the performance stage and creating innovative and welcoming theatrical experiences. Her produced works have been praised for their “technical marvel” and “commitment to pushing the boundaries of traditional opera…[in] mind-blowing” performances.

Alexis serves as the Director of Administration of the Producer Academy and an Associate Creative Producer with Beth Morrison Projects, the Executive Director of the Boston Opera Collaborative, a Curriculum Writer and Teaching Artist with Castle of Our Skins, and an Education Committee and Steering Committee member for Guerilla Opera.

Alexis is a DEIA consultant, arts advocate, and music educator, and has been featured as a guest lecturer and panelist for Boston University, Longy School of Music, SUNY Fredonia, and the 2020 Gender Equity in Music Conference. She has authored over ten DEIA-centered and trauma-informed curriculum modules for Castle of Our Skins and D-Composed and has worked closely with the Eastman School of Music, Boston University, Sigma Alpha Iota, Washington Concert Opera, and Thompson Street Opera Company on their DEIA practices and community engagement approaches.

Alexis is a New York State certified K-12 music educator, teaching students throughout Rochester, NY, before her relocation to Boston. She holds an M.S. in Arts Administration, a certificate in Fundraising Management, an MM. in Vocal Performance (opera) from Boston University, and a B.M. in Vocal Performance and Music Education from the Eastman School of Music.

Alexis, equally at home on the stage, maintains an active performance career. She is a 2023 Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition New England Region Encouragement Award Winner, Boston District Winner, and a Jane & Steven Akin Emerging Artist with Boston Lyric Opera. Alexis has been praised for her “plush yet robust voice” and “incredible clarity" in roles ranging from baroque operas to world premiere performances.

To learn more about Alexis and her body of work, visit alexispeart.com
 

About Beth Morrison Projects

 

Beth Morrison Projects (BMP) is one of the foremost creators and producers of new opera-theatre and music-theatre, with a fierce commitment to leading the industry into the future, cultivating a new generation of talent, and telling the stories of our time.

Founded by “contemporary opera mastermind” (LA Times) Beth Morrison, who was honored as one of Musical America’s Artists of the Year/Agents of Change in 2020, BMP has grown into “a driving force behind America’s thriving opera scene” (Financial Times), with Opera News declaring that the company, “more than any other… has helped propel the art form into the twenty-first century.”

Operating across the US and internationally, with offices in Brooklyn and Los Angeles, BMP’s unique model offers living composers the support, guidance, and freedom to experiment, allowing them to create singularly innovative and impactful projects. Since forming in 2006, the company has commissioned, developed, produced, and toured over 50 works in 14 countries around the world, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning chamber operas Angel’s Bone (Du Yun/Vavrek) and p r i s m (Reid/Perkins).

In 2013, BMP co-founded the PROTOTYPE Festival with HERE Arts Center, which has been called “utterly essential” (The New York Times), “indispensable” (The New Yorker), and “one of the world’s top festivals of contemporary opera and theater” (Associated Press).
 

About the Mellon Foundation

 
The Mellon Foundation is the nation’s largest supporter of the arts and humanities. Since 1969, the Foundation has been guided by its core belief that the humanities and arts are essential to human understanding. The Foundation believes that the arts and humanities are where we express our complex humanity, and that everyone deserves the beauty, transcendence, and freedom that can be found there. Through our grants, we seek to build just communities enriched by meaning and empowered by critical thinking, where ideas and imagination can thrive. Learn more at mellon.org.
 
 
 

Contact

Andrew Ousley
andrew@unison.media
917.331.2337
 

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