The Young People's Teen Musical Theatre Company is a performing arts company located in San Francisco, California. Its mission is to provide exposure to and training in musical theatre and other forms of live performance. Founded in 1984, the group is sponsored by the San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department and supported by a 501(c)(3) non-profit, Friends of the Company.
History As funding for arts in the public schools was being cut in the early '80s, Diane Price, who taught tap dance at neighborhood playgrounds for the Recreation and Parks Department, realized that children in the city needed an affordable and accessible opportunity to explore the world of musical theatre and the performing arts. She convinced her superiors to let her start a theatre company for teens.
The company offers training in drama, dance, and voice. The group puts on three to four shows per year.
As part of the 30th anniversary celebration, a photo exhibit featuring images of company members and productions through the years was compiled and put on display at the Recreation and Parks department headquarters at McLaren Lodge in Golden Gate Park. In addition, an alumni show featuring former company members who have gone on to have successful careers in the performing arts is planned for December 2015.
Notable alumni Several members of YPTMTC have won or been finalists in the annual Beach Blanket Babylon Scholarship Competition including Cecilia Foecke (2002, Voice), Philip Ngo (2003, Acting), and Angela Travins (2007, Voice). Many have gone on to have successful careers on Broadway and in Hollywood.
Alumni include 2014 Tony Award Winner Lena Hall (Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Cats), Amir Talai (Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay, What to Expect When You're Expecting), Jaime Rosenstein (Wicked), Anderson Lim (Awesome 80s Prom), Dominic Nolfi (Jersey Boys, Motown: The Musical), Rodney Jackson Jr. (Book of Mormon, Motown), Justin Mendoza (Book of Mormon, Wicked, In The Heights), Vincent Rodriguez III (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend), Melissa Hutchison (The Walking Dead).
Directors The founder and original director of YPTMTC was Diane Price. Mrs. Price (née Berman) was herself an actress who performed at The Purple Onion, the Opera Ring, Bimbo's 365 Club, The Hungry i, and the Sea Witch, all in San Francisco. She was director of the group from 1984 to her retirement in 2009.
Anne Marie Ullman (née Bookwalter), an alumnus of the YPTMTC, was the director from 2005 through 2007. Anne Marie is currently the theatre director and drama teacher at San Francisco's Jewish Community High School.
Nicola Bosco-Alvarez took over as Director & Choreographer in 2007 after 12 years as an Artist in-Residence and Choreographer with the San Francisco Arts Education Project. Nicola has an Associate Credential of the Cecchetti ISTD (Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing) and has studied professionally in Florence, Italy.
Performance history YPTMTC has produced more than 120 shows ranging from classics like West Side Story, A Chorus Line, and South Pacific to more controversial works such as Rent, Spring Awakening, and the Rocky Horror Picture Show, as well as multiple original revues.
In the summer of 2019, the Company joined with three other performing arts organizations, the SF Bay Area Theatre Company (SFBATCO), the San Francisco Arts Education Project Players (SFArtsEd), and the UC Berkeley Summer Symphony in a production of West Side Story. In February 2020, the Company produced the musical The Little Mermaid as a zero-waste, eco-friendly production in which nothing was purchased and little to no waste was produced. The sets and costumes were made from recycled materials.
In addition, the company has performed regularly at Halloween events such as Rec and Parks' Scaregrove and as part of the Fear Oaks Haunt. The company also regularly performs at the tree lighting ceremony in front of the Recreation and Parks Department's headquarters at McLaren Lodge in Golden Gate Park.
Production listing
1984: Bit's & Pieces, A Revue 1985: Bits & Pieces II, A Revue 1985: Once Upon A Mattress 1986: Bits & Pieces III, A Revue 1986: Guys and Dolls 1986: Summer Stock '86, A Revue 1987: How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying 1987: The Fantasticks 1987: West Side Story 1988: Bits & Pieces 80's Style, A Revue 1988: Damn Yankees 1988: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat 1988: Snoopy! 1989: Archy and Mehitable 1989: Bits & Pieces, The Rock Musicals 1989: Hooray for Hollywood 1989: Little Shop of Horrors 1989: The Pajama Game 1990: Bits & Pieces, A Look To The 90's 1990: Showstoppers (7th Anniv. Reunion Revue) 1990: Smile 1990: Stop The World I Want To Get Off (First Alumni Show) 1990: The Boy Friend 1991: Horrorific Broadway 1991: Into The Woods 1991: Shakespeare, Soliloquys, Songs & Such 1991: Sugar 1992: 42nd Street 1992: Comic Strip Broadway 1992: South Pacific 1992: Tribute (to Andrew Lloyd Webber) 1993: A Chorus Line 1993: Carousel 1993: Gypsy 1993: Onstage, A Kander & Ebb Revue 1993: Tribute II (to Stephen Sondheim) 1993: West Side Story 1994: Assassins 1994: It's A Bird, It's A Plane, It's Superman 1994: Jesus Christ Superstar 1994: Once Upon A Mattress 1994: Showstoppers (10th Anniv. Gala) 1994: To Be A Performer 1995: British Invasions, a Musical Review 1995: Rainbow, a Musical Review 1995: Two Gentlemen of Verona 1996: Bye Bye Birdie 1996: Hot & Cole, a Musical Review 1996: The American Clock 1997: Blood Brothers 1997: By George! 1997: More or Loesser 1997: On the Town 1998: Black on Broadway 1998: Kiss Me, Kate 1998: Plain and Fancy 1998: Ya Gotta Have Hart 1999: City of Angels 1999: Smile 1999: The 90's on Broadway 1999: Yip, Yip Hooray! 2000: 2000 On Broadway 2000: A Tribute To Charles Schulz 2000: Company 2000: Fiddler on the Roof 2000: Into the Woods 2000: Tell Me on a Sunday 2001: A Chorus Line 2001: Bells Are Ringing 2001: Side Show 2001: The Shakespeare Revue 2002: Dames at Sea 2002: Fame 2002: Sweeney Todd 2002: Teens on Broadway 2003: "Big" The Musical 2003: Damn Yankees 2003: On Broadway, the Rock Musicals 2003: On the Town 2003: Rags (musical) 2003: Showstoppers 20 (20th Anniversary Reunion Gala) 2004: Strictly Sondheim 2004: Wiz-O-Mania 2004: The Musical Theater Project 2005: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum 2005: British Invasions 2005: Ragtime 2005: The Pajama Game 2006: Cole 2006: Seussical 2006: The Most Happy Fella 2006: Ya Gotta Have Hart 2007: Blood Brothers 2007: By George 2007: Gypsy 2007: History of Musical Theatre 2007: Into The Woods 2008: Bat Boy 2008: Broadway Rocks 2008: Pippin 2008: The Shakespeare Revue 2009: And the World Goes ‘Round 2009: Grease 2009: HAIR 2010: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee 2010: Once Upon A Broadway 2010: Once Upon A Mattress 2010: RENT – The School Edition 2011: Assassins 2011: Into the Woods 2011: Saturday Night 2012: Cabaret 2012: Godspell 2012: Spring Awakening 2013: Disco Inferno 2013: Little Shop of Horrors 2014: Cats 2014: The Apple Tree 2014: The Rocky Horror Show 2015: Fiddler on the Roof 2015: The Fantasticks 2015: Thoroughly Modern Millie 2016: American Idiot 2016: Big Fish 2016: Not Your Mama’s Shakespeare, An Original Revue 2017: The Addams Family 2017: Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson 2018: Bat Boy 2018: Snoopy! 2019: Carrie 2019: Sister Act 2019: West Side Story 2020: The Little Mermaid
Friends of the Company The Friends of the Company is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting the company, both financially and operationally. It was founded in 2003 to ensure the continuation of the company should the founding director, Diane Price retire.
Related organizations SF ArtsEd Players SFBATCO
References
External links Young People's Teen Musical Theatre Company