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Workshops for nurturing musical theatre writers ‘at risk of closure’

The organisation is aiming to raise £50,000 to secure the next 12 months of its running costs.

Jonathan Knott
2 min read

A programme of weekly workshops that supports the professional development of composers, lyricists and librettists working in musical theatre has warned it is at risk of closure.

Book, Music & Lyrics (BML) says that the loss of its London venue, which closed in December, and an “increasingly difficult fundraising climate” have put its future in jeopardy.

The organisation is appealing for support to raise £50,000. It says this will secure the next 12 months of its running costs, including venue hire, to enable it to continue to support its current writers and secure long-term funding.

BML, which was set up in 2010, offers weekly collaborative workshops led by established professionals, as well as “essential peer support and encouragement”.

It currently provides four separate workshop programmes – each holding 34 sessions a year – and mentors 85 participants, having “grown every year of its existence”.

Until its closure, these were held at the Central YMCA in London.

‘Incredible tutelage’

Many attendees have gone on to create successful work: two musicals which transferred to the West End last year had writers who attended BML workshops.

One of these, Darren Clark – who co-wrote The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, which opened at Ambassadors Theatre in October – recalled the “incredible tutelage and mentorship” that he received on the BML course. 

“Having a musical in the West End has long been a dream of mine and I can almost guarantee that it would never have happened without the skills, craft, support and community I gained from the BML course,” he said.  

The organisation says that its course fees cover less than half of its running costs, with the remainder supported by fundraising.

Its accounts show income of £64,705 in the year to 31 July 2024, down from £82,716 the previous year. Meanwhile, its expenditure was £66,946.. The organisation held cash funds of just under £30,000.

BML founder David James said that it was “ultimately the writers of tomorrow that are going to suffer as programmes like ours cease to be viable”.

“That would be a tragedy for the future of British musical theatre,” he added. “We are a relatively small charity providing unique and exceptional services to the arts, and we desperately need help to get us through this difficult period.”