2026 뉴포트 신작 뮤지컬 페스티벌(Newport NewWorks Musical Festival, 8/2-16)에 세편이 초대됐다. 벤자민 슈어와 사이먼 슈어의 '스튜피드(STUPID)', 샘 노만과 엘리자 랜달의 '데뷰탕트(THE DEBUTANTES)', 제프리 첸의 '가치있는 삶(A LIFE WORTH LIVING)'이 공연된다. 한인 배우 그레이스 유(Grace Yoo, 사진 왼쪽)가 '데뷰탕트', 조쉬 훈 리(Josh Hoon Lee, 사진 오른쪽)는 '가치있는 삶'에 출연할 예정이다. 

 

 

Newport NewWorks Unveils Lineup for Summer 2026 Musical Theater Festival

 

This year’s festival will feature three new musicals: 

STUPID. A genius new musical by Benjamin Scheuer and Simon Scheuer

THE DEBUTANTES by Sam Norman and Eliza Randall

A LIFE WORTH LIVING by Jeffery Chen

 

Academy Award-nominated producer Peilin Chou and theater and film producer Jeanne Hagerty have announced the return of Newport NewWorks Musical Theater Festival, the vital new festival they co-founded and serve as Co-Artistic Directors. Held in Newport, RI, which has long been a global destination for jazz, folk, and film, the festival further establishes the city as an incubator of the next generation of musical theater artists and works. The 2026 festival takes place August 2 - 16, 2026 and features three new musicals announced today.

 

Building on the success of its 2025 festival, Newport NewWorks returns this August to once again ignite Newport, RI with rehearsals, workshops, and public presentations of new musicals by emerging and award-winning artists. They will have the opportunity to develop and evolve their work with the support of Broadway-level actors, musicians, and industry professionals. All festival artists will reside in Newport for the duration of the festival, during which they will write, work, play, and be inspired by the idyllic and culturally rich surroundings of Newport. 

 

Each musical will undergo an intensive two-week residency development process, culminating in public presentations that invite audiences into the heart of the creative process. This year’s public presentations will take place in the 300-seat Casino Theatre, a larger venue due to the popularity of last year’s inaugural season. 

 

The inaugural Newport NewWorks Festival, in August 2025, showcased two dynamic new musicals, one of which was Ink & Paint by Danielle Moore and Marjorie Duffield, a sweeping documusical illuminating the overlooked women artists of Disney’s golden age. Following last summer’s festival and public presentation, Ink & Paint went on to have an invitation-only industry reading in NYC in January 2026 at Roundabout Theater Company’s Black Box Theatre at the Steinberg Center, headlined by celebrated actors Sierra Boggess, Jason Gotay, Gizel Jiménez, and Ashley Spencer.

 

 

STUPID

Book, music and lyrics by Benjamin Scheuer and Simon Scheuer

 

Agnes and Ferdinand are geniuses. But when they meet one another, things get stupid. Benjamin Scheuer’s musical The Lion won a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Solo Performance and an Off-West End Award for Best New Musical, and has had over 20 productions worldwide. His album Songs from The Lion has four accompanying videos (directed by Academy Award-winner Peter Baynton) which have won prizes including Best Commissioned Film at the Annecy Film Festival, and two consecutive Public Choice for Best Music Video at the British Animation Awards. His musical Hundred Feet Tall, written with Melis Aker, was produced by The Old Vic in London. For the Birmingham Royal Ballet, Benjamin wrote and produced the music for Empty Stage, “the best dance film of the year” (The Guardian). He is the author of two children’s books: “Hibernate With Me” and “Hundred Feet Tall” (translated into five languages).

 

Forthcoming: A Mountain For Elodie (Signature Theatre, DC; 2027.) The Dung Beetle’s Deli, with Simon Scheuer (Little Angel Theatre, London.) Treasure, with bookwriter Rick Elice. Recipient of the Kleban Prize for Lyrics. 

Simon Scheuer is a humourist and songwriter. He co-wrote the original verse poem “The Dung Beetle’s Deli,” which he adapted for the stage with his brother Benjamin and Melis Aker, on commission by Little Angel Theatre, London. Simon contributed songs to the films A Street Cat Named Bob (Sony Pictures), The Real Thing (Parkville Pictures), and the album/theatre project Cover My Tracks (The Old Vic). He has been part of the Harry Chapin ASCAP Songwriters Workshop and the Johnny Mercer Songwriters Workshop. He has written and released several albums with The Surfboard Six.

 

 

THE DEBUTANTES

Book and Lyrics by Sam Norman

Music by Eliza Randall

 

Set in war-torn Britain in 1940, The Debutantes tracks the meteoric rise — and quiet erasure —of the improbable female codebreakers of Bletchley Park. Sam Norman is a librettist and lyricist for musicals and operas. His work has been called “well-paced and keenly sharpened” (The Washington Post), “delightfully funny” (Buzzfeed), and “genius writing” (StagetoPage). Recent projects include THE DEBUTANTES (Manhattan Musical Theatre Lab, Newport NewWorks Award), ECHOLOCATION (Stiles + Drewe Mentorship Award 2025–6) and COME DINE WITH ME: THE MUSICAL (Norwich Playhouse, Edinburgh Fringe, off-West End Turbine Theatre). He is a resident artist at the American Lyric Theater and member of the Experiments in Opera Writers’ Room 4.0, as well as a Johnny Mercer Foundation Songwriter, an American Opera Initiative Fellow, a winner of the Stephen Spender Prize for Poetry in Translation, a Broadway Future Songbook writer, and a four-time finalist for the Stiles & Drewe Best New Song Prize. His screenplay GAMESTOP won the ScreenCraft TV Pilot Fellowship 2024, and his book of comic poems, A Teen’s Guide to Modern Manners, was published by Little, Brown. Sam is a proud member of Mercury Musical Developments, the Dramatists Guild and the BMI Librettists Workshop. BA, Oxford University; MFA, New York University. www.samuelnorman.com

 

Eliza Randall is a composer, pianist, and serial hobbyist originally from the Las Vegas Valley. Her compositional works include ECHOLOCATION (Stiles + Drewe Mentorship Award 2025–6, Arts Council England Grant Recipient), THE DEBUTANTES (Manhattan Musical Theatre Lab, Newport NewWorks Award), BLACK HOLES LIKE DONUTS (Symphony Space), and THE YELLOW WALLPAPER (Alleyway Theatre, finalist for Mazumdar Prize). She is a Johnny Mercer Foundation Songwriter and Broadway Future Songbook writer, and has had compositions performed at Lincoln Center, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, The Other Palace, and Hackney Empire. As a pianist, recent productions include A New Brain at Barrington Stage (Associate MD) and the National Tour of Wicked (Keys 3).

 

 

A LIFE WORTH LIVING

Book, music and lyrics by Jeffery Chen

 

When high school senior Gavin Zhou involuntarily lands himself in a residential treatment facility, he must confront the grief, guilt, and broken relationships he’s been running from—all while navigating an unexpectedly colorful community of patients and staff. 

 

Jeffery Chen is an Asian American filmmaker, comedian, and songwriter from New York City and San Francisco. A recent Princeton graduate in Neuroscience and Musical Theatre, he creates original work that explores mental health through humor and emotional honesty. His musical A Life Worth Living, inspired by his experience in adolescent treatment, premiered at Princeton in 2024. As a stand-up comedian, he has opened for The Daily Show’s Roy Wood Jr. and SNL’s James Austin Johnson. He is a proud member of ASCAP and the Dramatists Guild of America. 

 

 

About the Festival’s Co-Founders and Co-Artistic Directors

Peilin Chou (Co-founder & Co-Artistic Director) is an Academy Award-nominated filmmaker. Her producer credits include DreamWorks Animation’s Abominable directed by Jill Culton, Netflix Animation’s The Monkey King executive produced by Stephen Chow, and Over the Moon, directed by Glen Keane—which was nominated for an Oscar, Golden Globe, and Children’s BAFTA for Best Animated Feature. Peilin is the director of “Awakening,” a #StopAsianHate PSA which shined a light on the achievements of Asian-Americans in storytelling & art. Peilin’s 20+ year career in content creation encompasses creative leadership roles in film, television and theater, including Chief Creative Officer of Pearl Studio (formerly Oriental DreamWorks), Director of Development at Nickelodeon, Vice President of Original Series at Spike TV, and Senior Vice President of Programming & Production at AZN Television (Comcast). In the theater arena, Peilin served as the Artistic Associate & Company Manager of the Roundabout Theatre and during her tenure was part of a leadership team that managed over a dozen different revivals and new works, including the Tony Award-winning productions of Cabaret and Sideman.

 

Peilin also served as the Director of Development at Livent, Inc. where she helped to launch the Tony Award-winning musical Fosse. Peilin started her career at the Walt Disney Studios as a Creative Executive at Walt Disney Feature Animation and Touchstone Pictures, where she developed and oversaw dozens of feature film projects, including two of her favorites: Mulan and Romy & Michele’s High School Reunion. There she also oversaw the Disney/ASCAP Songwriter Development program. Peilin is the recipient of Animation Magazine’s “Producer of the Year” Award. She has been named to the Gold House A100 List of “Top 100 Most Influential and Impactful Asians & Pacific Islanders.” She is also a proud member of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences (AMPAS), Producers Guild of America (PGA), the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS) and serves as a mentor for Women in Animation (WIA).

 

Jeanne Hagerty (Co-founder & Co-Artistic Director) is a Boston-based theater and film producer with over three decades of experience. She founded Hot Coffey Productions, where she facilitates the production of new films. With a passion for theater, Jeanne brings a lifetime of expertise in stage production to her role. Previously, she worked with Livent Inc. on Broadway, producing Tony Award-winning plays such as Fosse, Ragtime, Seussical, and Parade. For over a decade, as a dedicated member of the Roundabout Theatre Company’s Board of Directors, she has championed Broadway and Off-Broadway productions, including numerous Tony Award-winning shows, including: A Soldier’s Play, She Loves Me, Long Day’s Journey Into Night, The Humans, Anything Goes and Assassins. With a deep commitment to new work, Jeanne has long been a supporter of Roundabout’s New Play Development initiatives, helping to foster creative spaces where artists and their work can thrive. With her husband Tom, Jeanne is also actively involved in multiple Boston and Aquidneck Island non-profits, including Berklee College of Music, The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Via Art Fund, The Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, Newport Preservation Society, the Boys and Girls Club of Newport, RI, The Redwood Library and Hope Funds for Cancer Research, contributing her time and resources to support local communities in the arts and beyond. Through her work, Jeanne aims to make a lasting impact through the transformative power of the arts. She cares deeply about supporting projects that might not otherwise be developed, encouraging creativity, and promoting emerging talent within the community.

https://newportnewworks.org/festival-info-2026