Carner and Gregor

Derek Gregor received his BA from Skidmore College in 2000 and his MFA from the NYU Tisch Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program in 2003. He composed the music for Unlock’d, which received a Richard Rodgers Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and was a Finalist in the National Musical Theatre Networks’ Director’s Choice Award. Unlock’d was produced at the New York Musical Theatre Festival in 2007, where it won the Best of the Fest audience award and received two Talkin’ Broadway Summer Theatre Festival Citations for "Outstanding New Musical" and "Outstanding Original Theatrical Score." In 2008, Unlock’d was part of the New Works Festival in Palo Alto and went on to receive a developmental workshop at the Ravinia Festival outside Chicago. Sing, But Don’t Tell, a cabaret of Derek’s songs in collaboration with Sam Carner, premiered at the New York Musical Theatre Festival in the fall of 2009. Sam’s and Derek’s songs “After Hours” and “Sing, But Don’t Tell” received 2011 MAC Award Nominations for “Best Song” and “Best Special Musical Material” respectively. He was in residence at Yaddo in 2005. Derek writes country music with Laura Bell Bundy, and one of their songs was recently featured on her CD, Longing for a Place Already Gone. In 2001, he founded the rock band, M-Lab. Their new CD, A Bold and Hopeful Spark, is now available.

Sam Carner received his BA from Yale University in 2001 and received his MFA from NYU’s Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program in 2003 on a Departmental Fellowship. He won the Children’s Theatre of Maine’s Young Playwrights Contest in 1992 with his political satire musical, The Rise of FTR. In 1995, his children’s musical, What a Cat! was performed on the mainstage at SUNY Plattsburgh and was later performed at the Children’s Theatre of Maine, who also commissioned and produced his 2000 children’s musical, Barnyard Follies. His one-act play, Brady, was performed at the University of Southern Maine in 1997, and his 1920′s-style college musical, Just Call Me Eli! won the John Golden Prize for Best Original Musical by a Yale Undergraduate in 2000. He wrote the book and lyrics for Unlock’d, which received a Richard Rodgers Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Unlock’d was produced at the New York Musical Theatre Festival in 2007, where it won the "Best of Fest" audience award and received Talkin’ Broadway Summer Theatre Festival Citations for "Outstanding New Musical" and "Outstanding Original Theatrical Score." Sing, But Don’t Tell, a cabaret of Sam’s songs in collaboration with Derek Gregor, was presented at the New York Musical Theatre Festival in 2009. Their songs “After Hours” and “Sing, But Don’t Tell” received 2011 MAC Nominations for “Best Song” and “Best Special Musical Material” respectively. Sam was in residence at Yaddo in December of 2005. Over the past several years, Sam has lectured regularly on various musical-theatre-related topics at Yale. Sam has taught Musical Theatre History and Analysis at NYU and Yale.