The Nautilus Composer-Librettist Studio is designed to provide an opportunity for five writers and five composers to work with five professional performers, exploring the possibilities and basic elements of music-theater. The studio focuses on the process of collaboration through a series of brief exploratory assignments for the writers and composers. The exercises are then sight-read by the performers in brief working sessions. The participants rotate partners, and the process is repeated four more times. Within the two-week period, all composers work with all writers and all performers. Toward the end of the studio, an informal reading of all the compositions is held, and selections are presented in our Rough Cuts series.
The studio is co-directed by Ben Krywosz (Artistic Director of Nautilus Music-Theater) and music director Jill Dawe. All working sessions will be held at the Nautilus Studio in Lowertown Saint Paul. It is not intended as a developmental session for existing pieces, but concentrates more on the collaborative process, nurturing relationships and suggesting ways that writers, composers, and performers can work together. The collaborative atmosphere of the studio is relatively free from the performance pressures usually associated with the commercial musical theater or opera field. First created in 1984, Krywosz has conducted 66 studios around the country in such cities as New York (through New Dramatists), San Francisco, Washington, Chicago, Portland, Los Angeles, and Miami. All the studios have nurtured collaborative teams that have gone on to develop and produce new work.
This Composer-Librettist Studio is open to Minnesota residents only. Although no previous experience with opera or music-theater is required, this program is intended primarily for writers and composers who have some professional standing. Applications from graduate students may be considered in rare circumstances, but it is unlikely that undergraduate students will be considered.
Time Commitment:
The studio is an intensive two-week program with sessions scheduled primarily during afternoons, along with a few mornings and evenings. It will begin Saturday, April 29 and continue daily through Sunday, May 14, 2023. Selected pieces will be presented in Nautilus' Rough Cuts series on the evenings of May 15 and 16. It has been strongly recommended by past participants that we require writers and composers not to work on any other projects during the studio, since most outside time is spent writing and composing.
Compensation:
Because we see this studio as a long-term investment program in the professional development of creative and performing artists, each composer, writer, and performer will receive a $800 honorarium for participating in this program. Additional travel stipends are available for participants who live beyond the Twin Cities. Participants are chosen by a panel including program directors and selected past participants. This activity is made possible, in part, by a generous grant from the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, along with individual donors.
Application:
Composers and writers are selected through a highly competitive application process, and must be current residents of Minnesota. No previous experience creating opera or musical theater is necessary. Artists creating in all genres and styles are invited to apply.
In order to fill out this form and submit your application online, you must have a Gmail account (which is free and easy to set up). Alternatively, you can send us an email us at
and we can send you a PDF, which you can then fill out by hand and return to us via snail mail, or by dropping it off at our Studio in Lowertown St Paul. Questions may also be sent to this email address; no phone calls please. Applications materials (forms, resumes, scripts, scores, and recordings) must be submitted by March 20, 2023.
Past Participants Comments:
“Do it! / I offer an unhesitating, enthusiastic, urgent recommendation / This Studio cultivates strong, mindful, ambitious, brave artists; it trains us in risk-taking and fidelity to our own voices, and turns us loose on the world wilder, stronger, more passionate, more open, more daring and more alive / It will change your life, not just as a writer or composer, but as a human being dealing with others in this vast, unruly world / Nautilus takes participants into their orb, shakes them to their cores, and sends them back into the world empowered to contribute their work / The potential for artistic and personal growth is formidable / The design and implementation of this studio is world-class; the quality of the instruction and facilitation (and the quality of the work created) is extraordinary / It's one of the few experiences in my life where the considerable hype still didn’t accurately describe the brilliance of the program / The scope of Nautilus’ contribution to the Twin Cities is often missed or unnoticed, yet virtually every significant artist working in the area has passed thru some experience here to positive effect; Nautilus’s presence and role are crucial to our thriving MN arts scene / prepare to be amazed by all you can learn and do; it’s a transformative, singular experience.”
Nautilus Music-Theater:
Since 1986, Nautilus Music-Theater has provided opportunities for the artistic growth of writers, composers, and performers who create, develop, and produce new operas and other forms of music-theater that are emotionally expansive, dramatically engaging, and spiritually stimulating. Recent productions by Nautilus artists include Moonlit Walk Home, Stations of the Heart, Twisted Apples: Stories from Winesburg, Ohio, and Ordinary Days.
