Benjamin Till: The Open Fund for Music Creators
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Em, A New Musical: From Page to Stage
Benjamin Till‘s new musical Em is set in Liverpool in 1965 and tells the story of a young, unmarried mother’s plight to keep the baby the authorities want to take away. Imagine a musical version of Cathy Come Home. Em is actually the story of the composer’s own mother, so expect hugely personal writing. It’s a dark, gritty musical; a story of friendship, family and love set against the backdrop of a vibrant city which was bursting into color in 1965. The show is being work-shopped and performed by 3rd year students at Central School and recorded as a concept album later in the year.
BAFTA-nominated composer and filmmaker, Benjamin Till is a pioneer in the field of TV documentary musicals. His musical films include the Grierson-nominated A1: The Road Musical (Channel 4) and the multi-award winning A Symphony for Yorkshire (BBC). He is perhaps best known as conceiver, writer and one of the grooms from Channel 4‘s Our Gay Wedding: The Musical, which was nominated for 12 major awards including GuardianTV Moment of the Year. The show won a Grierson, A Prix Italia and a Rose D’or.
Benjamin has written several stage musicals including Letter To a Daughter (Royal Court) with playwright Sir Arnold Wesker, Brass (Leeds City Varieties/ Hackney Empire, winner UK Theatre Award for Best Musical Production 2014) and Beyond The Fence (Arts Theatre), the world’s first “computer-written” musical. CD releases include The Pepys Motet, Four Colors and the London Requiem, a setting of gravestone inscriptions!