MTI Celebrates 70th Anniversary!
Bringing Theatre to the World for Over 70 Years.
For the past 70 years, Music Theatre International (MTI) has been bringing theatre to the world by encouraging, nurturing and sustaining the licensing, production and performance of musical theatre.
From its humble beginnings representing the rights to approximately 40 shows in the US and a handful of countries around the world, MTI quickly became a driving force in cultivating and licensing new works, offering solutions to common challenges through a host of innovative resources and expanding the theatre audience for generations to come.
1952
In 1952, legendary composer/lyricist, Frank Loesser, and celebrated orchestrator, Don Walker, transformed a fledgling business into what is now known throughout the world as MTI.
CAPTION: Original orchestration for Frank Loesser’s “A Bushel and a Peck”.
MTI began by representing a small but mighty roster of authors and shows including The Music Man (Meredith Willson), West Side Story (Arthur Laurents, Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim), Guys and Dolls (Frank Loesser, Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows), The Pajama Game (George Abbot, Richard Bissell, Richard Adler and Jerry Ross), The Boy Friend (Sandy Wilson) and The Fantasticks (Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt).
CAPTION: MTI’s logo, which features a left-handed conductor, was adapted from an illustration by legendary artist, Al Hirschfeld, that was commissioned by Music Theatre International.
1988
In 1988, Freddie Gershon became MTI's principal owner, joined as co-owner in the early 1990s by Sir Cameron Mackintosh. Today, Mackintosh is MTI's Chairman and Owner, while Gershon continues to serve as MTI's Co-Chairman.
1996
In 1996, Gershon conceived MTI’s Broadway Junior musicals introducing musical theatre in 60-minute versions of Broadway works to elementary and middle schools adapted for performance by students. Launching with Annie JR., these musicals are re-thought with musical keys designed for age-appropriate vocal range and materials abbreviated with cross-curricula guides to tie the musicals into their academic subjects and into the entire school community.
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2002
MTI’s School Editions which launched in 2002 are musicals annotated for performance by high school students.
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2004
A few years after the positive reception in the market to MTI’s Broadway Junior musicals, MTI expanded the collection by launching 30-minute KIDS versions of popular musicals including Disney’s The Jungle Book KIDS and Disney’s 101 Dalmatians.
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2012
May 29th, 2012 marked the 60th anniversary of Music Theatre International, which New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg officially proclaimed “Music Theatre International Day”. Read more.
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2012 also saw Freddie Gershon receiving a Tony Honor for creating the Broadway Junior Collection. Tony Honors are given annually for theatre accomplishments not eligible in established Tony Award categories. Read more.
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2015
In 2015, having represented MTI in Europe for 25+ years, Josef Weinberger UK's musicals arm became MT's London Office, serving the UK, EU, and neighboring countries. Concurrently, MTI opened a Melbourne Office to best serve Australasia customers.
2022
Still independently owned after 70 years, MTI is honored to represent over 600 shows and 300 award-winning composers, bookwriters, and lyricists including Stephen Sondheim, Jerry Bock, Sheldon Harnick, Alan Jay Lerner, Frederick Loewe, Stephen Schwartz, Alan Menken, Lynn Ahrens, Stephen Flaherty and modern innovators Jonathan Larson, Benj Pasek, Justin Paul, Robert Lopez, Jeanine Tesori, Lin Manuel-Miranda, Sara Bareilles, Green Day, and many more.
The MTI catalog also features properties from all the major motion picture studios including Warner Brothers, Disney, DreamWorks, MGM, Sony Pictures, and New Line.
MTI currently serves over 100,000 professional, community and school theatres in the US and in over 150 countries worldwide, with over 100 foreign language translations of our shows.
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The Next 70 Years
As we look ahead to the next 70 years, will we do so guided by our mission of bringing theatre to the world and continuing to…
Encourage the global licensing of our catalog of shows while protecting the intellectual property of our authors.
Nurture the development of new works; promote arts education, particularly in underserved communities; and deliver innovative ways to create and produce theatre.
Sustain existing shows and the artform of musical theatre by supporting the creativity and talents of our authors, customers and employees.
Catalog Covers Through the Years
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