SoC Grads take control of their destiny with Night of New Work

School of Communication grads Maddie Mazzella, Olivia Whitmer, and Martina Cavard Blanco decided to take control of their destiny.

The class of 2022 theatre grads were living in New York City, and their 9-to-5 jobs paid the bills, but they missed the creativity of being a part of shows, sets, and productions like they were at Northwestern. They wanted to feel like artists again.

So, they met with their former theatre professor about their desire to get back into performing, and he suggested they look into “new work”—or a brand-new production that is created without using a script.

Inspired, the friends put their heads together and created “Night of New Work,” a musical theatre concert and showcase. They developed the idea, found the performers, and this past November it went up at The Green Room 42 in New York City for the second year in a row.

“New work was such an integral part of our Northwestern education,” Cavard Blanco said. “Not just because we were all a part of the SoC’s American Music Theatre Project, but because we would also contribute to the new work our peers were creating. There was always an opportunity to help develop a character or a story.”

They parlayed the skills they acquired from their day jobs—skills like event planning, production, and financial technology—and combined them with their Northwestern experiences, like leading the Arts Alliance and performing with Tonik Tap or Thunk acapella, to create the event. They even messaged and cold-called the writers, venues, musicians, and performers with whom they dreamed of collaborating.

They pitched the concert as an opportunity to celebrate new musical theatre work and artists with a wide range of experience. This year’s show featured 28 performers and writers including fellow NU alumni from the classes of 2020 to 2023.

“The process of creating this show hit every side of our brains,” Whitmer said. “We got to be on the production side of something. We got to understand how outreach works in this new community. We performed and we got to create and connect our own New York Northwestern circle too.”

Now the all-female production team is excited about what the success of this event could mean for themselves, their peers, and their careers.

“This widened our perspective on the field of entertainment, but it also definitely widened the scope of what we feel like we can do too,” Whitmer said. “Things that maybe weren't a concentration before we have honed in on; like writing is now something I would personally like to pursue now.”  

“It was so fun to have an idea and see it come to life. Being in charge of our own reality and destiny has been huge,” Mazzella said. “We’re excited and so grateful for the generosity of Northwestern people who wanted to work with us for the love of performance and art. We can’t wait to see what happens next.”

If you want to get involved with Night of New Work or submit a writing sample for their next show, check them out at @nightofnewworknyc or email them at teamnonw@gmail.com.