Katy Lipson to host Aria Entertainment’s first Open Pitching Day for writers of new stage musicals

On 13 and 14 March 2023, Aria Entertainment’s Katy Lipson will be hosting an open pitching day in central London to give writers the chance to present their new musicals.

This will be the first of a twice-yearly opportunity for writers to directly connect with the team (including Lipson and Aria’s literary manager Tom Ramsay) and share their work. Writers are encouraged to present their new musicals, at whatever stage of development they may be.

Fifteen-minute slots can be found at bit.ly/ariapitchingday and will operate on a first-come, first-served basis. On the pitching day, writers can have as much or as little of the show written as possible, as long as they can share at least one original song.

There is no need to bring performers – the producers request that writers perform themselves or play demos in the room. Pitches should be a maximum of 10 minutes long to allow for at least five minutes of feedback and conversation.

Aria Entertainment was founded in 2012 by producer Katy Lipson and over 10 years she has produced more than 80 productions in the West End, Off-West End and across the UK.

Aria Entertainment was founded in 2012 by producer Katy Lipson. In 10 years, she has produced over 80 productions in the West End, Off-West End and across the UK. Her most recent credits have included Cruise, which received an Olivier nomination for Best New Play and is now being developed as a film after two sell-out runs at the Duchess Theatre and Apollo Theatre, and the critically acclaimed transfer of The Last Five Years to the West End. She is also a producer of several major UK tours including The Osmonds, The Cher Show, Hair, The Rise and Fall of Little Voice and The Addams Family.

For several years, Katy was the producing artistic director of the renowned Hope Mill Theatre in Manchester, creating and producing productions, many of which transferred to London. During her  tenure she worked with Stephen Schwartz on creating a re-imagined version of Rags and presented the first production of Jerry Herman’s Mame in the UK for over 50 years.

In 2017, Lipson was awarded the Best Producer award by the Off-West End Awards and in 2019 was nominated for International Producer of the Year by the League of Professional Theatre Women in New York. She is a recipient of the Stage One Bursary and Start Up Award and works as a mentor on their Bursary and Bridge the Gap programmes. In 2018 she was included in The Stage 100 list and in 2019 and 2020 for her work at Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester and again in 2021 for her work as a solo producer.

Lipson is at the forefront of new musical development in the UK, having set up the From Page to Stage festival to support new musicals at all difference stages of development. In six years, From Page to Stage has given a platform to over 100 new musicals; many of which have gone on to have full productions and be licensed worldwide. It is a keen passion of hers to cultivate new musicals that can have a long lasting legacy in the West End, on Broadway and all around the world.