The UK’s industry showcase for new musical theatre is coming to Birmingham!

£150 Standard ticket (£85 Student concession) 

All tickets are valid for Thu 15 May through to Fri 16 May and provide access to both days of content.

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Members of Mercury Musical Developments or Musical Theatre Network will receive a 25% discount on tickets. Members should enter their discount code when booking. If you have any queries on member discounts please contact info@mercurymusicals.com

Over two exhilarating days, 28 musicals will be presented through excerpts – celebrating an extraordinary tapestry of stories that traverse cultures, genres, and eras.

All My Heart  

Book, Music & Lyrics by Vicky Arlidge 

All My Heart is a musical about the World Transplant Games; a paralympics for donor organ recipients. Inspired by true stories, it’s a verbatim piece exploring the incredible friendships forged between the donor families and the recipients. The donor families are hoping that a connection will help comfort them in their grief whilst the recipient athletes simply want the chance to say thank you for the ultimate gift – the gift of life. 

Blocks Falling: The Tetris Musical  

Book by Eleanor Cobb 

Book & Music by Ned Sanders 

Blocks Falling is a comedy epic about capitalism, video games and the inescapable relationship between money and art. In 1984, a Soviet engineer called Alexey Pajitnov creates a video game in his free time. When it’s discovered by a foreign salesman who attempts to distribute it worldwide, the door is kicked open between the communist USSR and the international market, putting Alexey’s life in danger and setting in motion a series of complex legal disputes, outrageous corporate espionage and an all-out war between titans of industry. 

Bog Bodies  

Book, Music & Lyrics by Colm Molloy 

Bog Bodies is a dark – and slightly absurd – musical tragicomedy, loosely based on the Irish language novel, Cré na Cille by Máirtín Ó Cadhain. It’s about corpses in coffins in a graveyard in Connemara in Ireland. It’s Follies meets The Real Housewives of New York City but set in an Irish graveyard and everyone’s dead. It’s full of corpses struggling to come to terms with being dead amidst the petty gossip from an insular community. It’s irreverent and funny but packs a punch about what it means to not achieve your ambitions. 

Chasing Icarus  

Book, Music & Lyrics by Carlo Bosticco 

Music by Matt Randall 

Costumes: period. Language: TikTok. Burgundy velvets drip down on a baroque theatre. A rapt audience. Waiting… Suddenly, an electronic beat thunders above bitcrushed samples. A figure steps on stage, neither man nor woman. They open their mouth. The crowd goes wild… Chasing Icarus is a soaring drama about castrati singers in 1700 Rome, performed by a gender-non-conforming company. Meet two friends vying for the role of a lifetime: Nero, a young eunuch struggling with stage fright, and Violante, a non-binary individual disguised as a castrato to sing at a time where women aren’t allowed. Chasing Icarus tells a story of struggling for self-acceptance in an oppressive world. 

Clara at the Door with a Revolver  

Book by Susan Wokoma 

Music & Lyrics by Ayanna Witter-Johnson 

Clara at the Door with a Revolver is an inspiring true crime story, adapted from a book of the same title. It’s murder mystery meets courtroom drama, with a complex protagonist who goes on one hell of a hero’s journey. Clara Ford, a mixed-race, working-class, gender non-conforming, half Scottish, pipe-smoking, probably lesbian, 19th century single mother, gets arrested for the murder of a young wealthy white man. In police custody she confesses but once in court, pleads not guilty. If convicted, she will hang. Before a Jury of 12 white men, Clara must give the performance of her life. 

Composer Ayanna takes inspiration from the ragtime traditions of Clara’s time, along with her signature blend of modern musical styles. 

Cricket & The Freebugs  

Book, Music & Lyrics by Johan Ribbing 

Book by Milo Maris 

In 1972 in an apple tree in Central Park, one band changed music forever. The only reason you may not have heard of them is – they were all insects. This is the true story of a Cricket who left his home in the fields with nothing but his trumpet and a dream of hitting the bug time. How did he beat the odds and assemble the eclectic band of insects now known all over the world as The Freebugs? Tune in your antennae to the funky, soul filled music of The Freebugs as they reveal how they wriggle through disappointment, big egos, and an early winter frost to find out what it really means to follow your dreams. 

Duppy Quadrille  

Book, Music & Lyrics by Tim Sutton 

The ghost folklore of the Caribbean is amongst the world’s most terrifying. Picture, if you dare, the douen, an unbaptised child with no face, feet on backwards, who lures children out into the forest… In 1977, schoolteacher Claudine is struggling to make a life for herself in Nottingham. Her father perished in a rail disaster in Jamaica twenty years earlier. She bonds with friends through ghost stories and folk songs, but some of the stories begin to seem all too real. Duppy Quadrille weaves a tale of trauma, terror and redemption, as Claudine grapples, quite literally, with her demons. 

Elbow Deep  

Book, Music & Lyrics by Elinor Peregrin 

City girl Agnes moves to a remote Scottish island when her husband James inherits the struggling family farm. Leaving behind stressful jobs and the pain of successive baby losses, they now face a close-knit community, a wild landscape, and a hundred sheep who are constantly looking for inventive ways to die. As a crucial lambing season approaches, Agnes and James must face their grief. Will Agnes learn to trust her body again, and can James bring the once-treasured farm back from the brink? Elbow Deep is a funny, heartfelt folk musical about what it takes to build a new life. 

EXOTIC! – A Queer Wrestling Fantasia 

Book, Music & Lyrics by Seiriol Davies 

“But I don’t want to be a wrestler!” says Gruff Dryll: “I’m a super-serious gayboy poet: I care about gayness, community and truth, whereas wrestling is all fake and SUPER-heterosexual.”Exotic! is the rags-to-spandex story of a tender queer soul climbing the ranks of an industry where selling your persona is everything. Well, that and punching people, obviously. Fusing the brilliant artforms of musical theatre and pro-wrestling (yes, with ACTUAL wrestling in an ACTUAL ring!) it’s a laugh-out-loud thrill ride that asks: in a polarised world, what happens when your need for community solidarity conflicts with your urge to WIN? 

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close 

Music & Lyrics by Stuart Matthew Price 

Book & Lyrics by Victoria Gimby 

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is adapted from Jonathan Safran Foer’s novel of the same name. The story is narrated by a young boy named Oskar Schell, who embarks on a quest through New York after losing his father in the 9/11 attacks. Oskar finds a key in a vase in his dad’s closet, that he believes holds a clue to a final message from his father, but which of New York’s 162 million locks does it unlock? As Oskar searches for the answer, he encounters a diverse group of characters, and unknowingly uncovers a 50 year old family secret. 

Fairlight  

Lyrics by Alexandra Taylor 

Music by Michael Wolters 

Fairlight is an electro-pop musical, performed on a tennis court, telling the origin story of lawn tennis through a queer lens. Songs inspired by the iconic Fairlight sampler tell an imagined romance between the two men who invented lawn tennis at a house called Fairlight in 1865. Their story is contextualised by accounts of prosecutions of gay men in the Victorian era, extracts from the laws of tennis, and personal testimonies from current tennis professionals. Fairlight shines a light on the absence of any openly LGBT+ professional male players in 160 years of tennis history. 

Flat Earth: The Musical  

Book by Billy Carswell 

Music & Lyrics by Calum Pearce 

Flat Earth: The Musical is a fast-paced comedy about the South Boddington Flat Earth society, an idiosyncratic group of misfits on the brink of extinction. To save their beloved society they must prove once and for all that the Earth is flat. This musical weaves break-neck comedy with pop-rock songs. Action on stage is high-functioning, multi-rolling and increasingly surreal, as our ensemble has to face up to their beliefs. What if the Earth really is flat? How far should they tow the line? And once they’re in on the secret can they ever get out? 

HONG KONG AFTER MIDNIGHT: The Disco Disco Musical 

Music by Amos Wong  

Book & lyrics by Trevor K. Band 

In 1970s British Hong Kong, Gordon Huthart opened legendary gay club Disco Disco—at the height of police crackdowns on gay men. Based on firsthand accounts, HONG KONG AFTER MIDNIGHT follows Gordon’s battle against police, triad gangs, and addiction as he and his community fight for a place to get together and dance in the city they call home. With a rollicking disco score that will send you dancing into tomorrow, HONG KONG AFTER MIDNIGHT captures the highs and lows of parties and progress in a colonial city fast approaching its Handover to China. 

Layla & Captain Doom  

Book, Music & Lyrics by Taiyo Yoshida & Dominic Varney 

10-year-old Layla is obsessed with her favourite superhero TV show: “Hurricane Jane”. She’s never missed an episode. One day, Layla finds Hurricane Jane’s arch-nemesis, Captain Doom, has been transported into her world! She has to get him back before next week’s episode, otherwise the show will be cancelled forever. To do so, Layla must help Captain Doom, a truly evil villain, to do something good. Layla & Captain Doom is a fantastical one act family musical about our childhood obsessions, what it means to do and be “good”, and understanding that our parents are superheroes. 

Maison Mac  

Music by Rudy Percival 

Music, Book & Lyrics by Sam Woof 

Macbeth with Michelin stars; Maison Mac is a deliciously dark new musical set in the cut-throat world of fine dining. With a sharply contemporary script and a score that blends pop and musical theatre, Shakespeare’s classic becomes a kitchen thriller about two twenty-somethings who sacrifice everything to get to the top. Will anyone make it out unscathed? Can anyone stand the heat of the kitchen? 

Others 

Writer & Director Sarah Chew 

Composer & Musical Director Colum Findlay 

Out back of a launderette, a 90 year old lesbian ex-terrorist is hiding five teenagers. They’re all a bit different (think electric fingers, tentacles: superpowers, but crap). There’s always been suspicion around folk like them – but, as a new Mayor ratchets up propaganda spreading hatred of anyone different, they have to decide: stay in hiding, or go out and challenge him? It’s a funny, camp adventure story, with a fresh approach to vocal orchestration. It poses the question: how to respond when you are deemed too different to be allowed a place in society? Activism? Separatism? Terrorism? Compliance? 

Paradise Road 

Book by Johan Amatsakio & Maryhee Yoon 

Music by Naomi Livingston 

Lyrics by Hugo Chiarella 

Paradise Road is a bold, contemporary reimagining of Bruce Beresford’s 1997 film, brought to life with a folk/pop/rock score. Set in a Japanese internment camp during WWII, it tells the story of a diverse group of women who form a secret vocal orchestra, risking their lives to turn music and friendship into acts of revolution and survival. Performed by an ensemble of 10, this is an urgent, high-impact theatrical event that reframes history through marginalised voices, championing community as a force of defiance. More than a survival story, Paradise Road is a celebration of the enduring power of art to overcome and unite. 

Pit Stop and Wash  

Book by Gaby Songui 

Lyrics by Kristal Malin 

Music by Tyriq Baker 

Pit Stop and Wash is a romantic comedy musical written by book writer Gaby Songui, lyricist Kristal Malin, and composer Tyriq Baker. It is set in a small, run-down laundrette in the middle of rural Brazil, with one exceptional feature: a magical washing machine. Bruna, our protagonist, is desperate to use the washing machine to find the woman of her dreams. Will her impulsive journey to the remote laundrette have what she is looking for? 

Ready to Wear 

Book, Music & Lyrics by Rachel Garnet 
Ready to Wear is a one-man musical following the great fashion designer Yves Saint-Laurent as he embarks on the daring act of opening his eponymous fashion house. Having being fired from Dior, abused in the military, and hospitalized after a suicide attempt, Yves seeks to build back a life from the wreckage around him. Ready to Wear is an exploration of the act of creation, and comes face to face with the heartbreak that occurs when we are ridiculed and punished for creating. Through whimsy and sincerity the audience watches in real time as Yves dares to make art again, forging in front of their eyes his first revolutionary ready to wear line. 

Sheltered  

Music & Lyrics by Scott Hayes 

Book by Laura Bay 

Sheltered is a bold, unapologetic, and extremely realistic working-class musical. 

Set in a seaside town, we tell the story of an average family, coming from an area that’s riddled with dysfunction, unemployment, and a lack of opportunity. We meet Ali, Craig, and their daughter Sophie. Who having just turned 15, is at a prime age for not only rebelling, but also thinking for herself. This is a story of female empowerment, strength and how courage and humour are required to overcome hardship. The original score, made of rap, pop and garage music, supports the story in a uniquely honest way. 

The Orchard 

Book, Music & Lyrics by Andrew Armfield 

Book & Lyrics by Jodie Micciché 

A new folk storytelling musical about cider, resilience, and loving where you come from. When Bea finds out her Grandfer is ill, she leaves the city and moves back to her family’s cider farm in Devon. She learns the ways of the Orchard and falls back in love with her roots. With property developers trying to take over the land, can Bea save her home and family from being torn apart? Influenced by traditional folk music, the show will be performed in pubs and communal spaces where the performers sit with the audience and share The Orchard’s story with them. 

The Rivals of Pinner  

Book, Music & Lyrics by Yasmin Wilde 

A rakish trust fund kid, a curry sauce heiress-turned woke justice warrior and her social climber Aunt collide in a fast faced whirl of false identities, romantic longing and fake online profiles, all quietly orchestrated by seemingly demure dogsbody Lakshmi. But Lakshmi, who has come over from India to marry the spoilt son of the house, has a secret agenda: to reclaim the curry sauce empire built on her father’s stolen recipe. As she waits in the wings she will rinse these romantic fools for everything they’re worth, until everyone is unmasked. A sassy, deși retelling of Sheridan’s “The Rivals”. 

The Snare & Feral  

Book, Music & Lyrics by Jonathan Ip 

Beyond the land of the living, four souls find themselves trapped as the house band in a tavern between death and wherever we go next. Through original folk music they seek to understand who they were when they were alive. When another soul arrives, chaos ensues, leaving them asking, who was I really? It unfolds that the characters plotted to bring about the demise of one person, Josephine, who ran a musical tavern called ‘The Snare and Feral’ in the English Wilderness. 

This Actor-Musician show explores the value of music, atonement and the natural world. It is mystical, playful and otherworldly. 

The Swansong  

Conceived and Adapted by Eve Nicol 

Music and Lyrics by Finn Anderson 

Based on the original script by David Greig 

Lydia is on the brink, ready to drink herself to death in the park pond. But a chance encounter with a fast-talking, hard-drinking swan sweeps her away on a wild final ride across starlit city skies and pulsing basement piano bars. A magical, soul-nourishing story about facing your demons, dancing until you drop, and living life with all you’ve got. Featuring an integrated gin joint band playing a seductive score of sensuous piano and wild jazz saxophone to lift your spirits and steal your heart. A transformative flight to the edge and back inspired by classic movies, epic mythology and life-changing nights out. 

Time-bomb  

Book & Lyrics by Ian Grant 

Additional lyrics by Kitch  

Music by Candida Caldicot, Kitch, Charlie Turner, Chris Walker 

Maria, climate activist, is arrested, tried for closing a vital motorway for two days. Furious Gen Z activists are eloquent and tangle with the court. They’re also jokey and fun, sorry for the disruption but the climate is bigger – and there is a way out, if only ‘they’ would concentrate, act. Jason loves Maria but tries to persuade her of a different way. Baby boomers worry they should have done more, sooner. Maria and Jason try to resolve. Activists face the Law. Audience are the Jury. Is Maria guilty or a hero? The planet heats. 

VAMP  

Book & Lyrics by Sarah Middleton 

Music by Eleanor Isherwood 

Co-Created with Hannah Stone  

When angelic teenager Babygirl is forbidden from joining a local rock band, she takes matters into her own hands, drinking genetically-modified blood and transforming into an unbeatable rockstar. But when she discovers that she’s also become a vampire, she must decide whether to stay powerful and monstrous, or return to being powerless and good. 

Featuring a face-melting rock score inspired by Paramore, Avril Lavigne and Blink182, Vamp is perfect for anyone who ever felt like an outsider, and for everyone who has ever wondered what the world would look like if women held the power. 

Y Pentref (The Village)  

Book, Music & Lyrics by Mared Williams 

The beloved village primary school is closing. A community of quirky misfits (think Schitt’s Creek meets The Band’s Visit) rallies to save it. Beca, newly returned to her hometown, finds herself fighting for more than she bargained for. As she clings to tradition, she must face how it has shaped her brother’s fears. With laughter, romance, rediscovery, and defiance against authority, it’s the village’s young people who ultimately offer a way forward. Y Pentref is a bilingual musical set in rural North Wales and through stirring pop/folk music, explores whether a divided community can heal and thrive. 

73 Seconds 

Writer & Composer Jordan Li-Smith 

On a cold January morning in 1986, millions watched as the NASA Shuttle Challenger soared skyward—only to explode 73 seconds after lift-off. Among the stunned was Barbara Morgan, backup to Christa McAuliffe, the “teacher-in-space” aboard that fateful flight. It could have been her. Years later, as Barbara receives an offer from NASA to become a full-time astronaut, memories of Christa and the post-accident investigation resurface. She’s forced to confront her deepest trauma as she decides whether to take the risk and fly. 73 Seconds is a gripping musical about resilience, loss, and the courage to step forward after tragedy, based on true events. 

Artist Spotlights will feature 12 of the most exciting new writers discovered during the pitching process, including:

·         Annabelle Lee Revak  

·         Evie Press  

·         Hayley Canham  

·         Leo Simpe-Asante  

·         Lewis Cornay  

·         Mahlon Prince  

·         Matt Thorpe  

·         Max Welton 

·         Michelle-Kim Vacciana  

·         Parisa Shahmir  

·         Rev Ben Cahill-Nicholls  

·         Tennick and Ramsay 

Pre-order your lunch bag for each day by choosing from the options below when purchasing your ticket. 

Please note menu details are subject to change.