Beth Morrison’s Prototype Festival Returns Under Her Control

Beth Morrison, the founder of Beth Morrison Projects and a leading producer of new American opera, will present the Prototype festival on Jan. 7, fully under her control for the first time. Over the past 20 years she has shepherded dozens of new works and helped build a community of artists around experimental, contemporary music theater.

Morrison started Beth Morrison Projects after moving to New York in 2005 with about $200 and a fellowship, and vowed to produce multiple shows each year. She expanded the organization to include programs for emerging composers and producers, and 13 years ago was a founder of Prototype with the arts center HERE.

Her collaborators have included Missy Mazzoli, David T. Little and Paola Prestini; works associated with her projects, including Du Yun and Vavrek’s Angel’s Bone and Ellen Reid and Roxie Perkins’s prism, went on to win the Pulitzer Prize for music. Beth Morrison Projects, like many arts organisations, suffered during the pandemic and is still rebuilding.

Morrison took sole leadership of Prototype after Kristin Marting departed in 2024 and has signalled an interest in reviving past works and maintaining partnerships with larger houses. Funding will be a challenge: the Mellon Foundation’s support for Prototype expires after the 2028 edition, which Morrison and her team are working to replace.

Key Topics

Culture, Beth Morrison, Prototype Festival, Beth Morrison Projects, Mellon Foundation, Missy Mazzoli