Masi Asare

Asare grew up in Pennsylvania and attended State College Area High School (SCAHS) from which she graduated in 1996. While at SCHAS she was a member of the jazz band and was an active member of the school's drama program. She then studied at Harvard University where she earned a Bachelor of Arts.{{cite news|url=https://www.centredaily.com/news/article42802155.html|title=Local grad's musical opens in New York|first1=Dena|last1= Pauling|first2=Anne|last2=Danahy|work=Centre Daily Times|date= October 6, 2007}} She later attended graduate school at New York University where she earned both a Master of Arts and a Doctor of Philosophy.{{Cite web |title=Masi Asare |url=https://tisch.nyu.edu/performance-studies/alumni/alumni-year/alumni-2018/masi-asare |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=tisch.nyu.edu}} Her doctoral dissertation was titled "Voicing the Possible: Technique, Vocal Sound, and Black Women on the Musical Stage," for which she received an honorable mention in NYU's Outstanding Dissertation Awards.{{Cite web |title=Masi Asare Receives Honorable Mention for Outstanding Dissertation Awards |url=https://tisch.nyu.edu/performance-studies/news/ma-honorable-mention |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=tisch.nyu.edu}}

Asare was a lyricist for the Broadway musical Paradise Square, which initially ran at Berkeley Repertory Theatre{{Cite web |last=Mendel |first=Emily S. |date=January 14, 2019 |title=Ambitious 'Paradise Square' dances into life at Berkeley Rep |url=http://www.berkeleyside.org/2019/01/14/ambitious-paradise-square-dances-into-life-at-berkeley-rep |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=Berkeleyside }} before transferring to Broadway.{{Cite news |last=Paulson |first=Michael |date=June 7, 2021 |title=New Musical About 19th-Century New York Plans Broadway Run |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/07/theater/paradise-square-broadway.html |access-date=June 5, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}

She also wrote lyrics for Monsoon Wedding, which played off-Broadway, at St. Ann's Warehouse, in 2023.{{Cite web |last=McHenry |first=Jackson |date=2023-05-22 |title=Monsoon Wedding Is a Lively Party But a Watery Musical |url=https://www.vulture.com/2023/05/theater-review-monsoon-wedding-musical-nyc.html |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=Vulture |language=en}} Monsoon Wedding "similarly [to Paradise Square] dealt with cultural cross-pollination," pointed out the New York Times.{{Cite news |last=Ramírez |first=Juan A. |date=May 11, 2023 |title=Onstage in Brooklyn, 'Monsoon Wedding' Tries to Capture the Film's Spirit |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/11/theater/monsoon-wedding-musical-mira-nair.html |access-date=June 5, 2024 |work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331}} The show was in the making for 15 years, and the writers worked toward goals of stretching the form of musical theater to create something new{{Cite web |last=Qureshi |first=Bilal |title=You're invited to 'Monsoon Wedding' — a musical nearly 15 years in the making |url=https://www.npr.org/2023/05/09/1175071479/monsoon-wedding-is-taking-to-the-stage-a-musical-a-decade-in-the-making |website=NPR}} and melding different styles and genres.{{Cite news |last=Green |first=Jesse |date=2023-05-23 |title=Review: In 'Monsoon Wedding,' an Arranged Marriage of Musical Styles |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/23/theater/monsoon-wedding-review.html |access-date=2024-06-06 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}} It was called "an Invitation to Feminine and Queer Liberation."{{Cite web |date=2023-06-07 |title=The 'Monsoon Wedding' Musical Adaptation Is an Invitation to Feminine and Queer Liberation |url=https://www.thebody.com/article/monsoon-wedding-musical-invitation-feminine-queer-liberation |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=www.thebody.com}}

It was based on the film Monsoon Wedding, which premiered in the 2001 Cannes Film Festival before winning the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival and being nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film.{{Cite web |last=Dimambro |first=Angeline |title='Monsoon Wedding' Hits the Stage as a New Musical Adaptation |url=https://arts.columbia.edu/news/monsoon-wedding-hits-stage-new-musical-adaptation |website=Columbia University}} The story follows two families coming to Delhi for an arranged marriage, then expectations and reality collide. "The groom drifts between searching and belonging, and the bride’s past threatens to destroy her future. Chaos ensues, and as the nuptials draw closer, so do the maid and the wedding planner. Together they find love among the marigolds." "At its core, it’s a story of families: how they love, rejoice, and endure together."{{Cite web |date=2023-04-13 |title=Mira Nair's Monsoon Wedding The Musical on New York City: Get Tickets Now! {{!}} Theatermania - |url=https://www.theatermania.com/shows/new-york-city-theater/mira-nairs-monsoon-wedding-the-musical_1698054/ |access-date=2024-06-06 |language=en-US}}

During her time in the BMI Workshop, Asare wrote a show called Sympathy Jones, which premiered in at the New York Musical Theatre Festival in 2007.{{Cite web |last=Hetrick |first=Adam |date=August 22, 2007 |title=Shindle and Lawrence Headline Sympathy Jones for NYMF |url=https://playbill.com/article/shindle-and-lawrence-headline-sympathy-jones-for-nymf-com-143168 |access-date=June 6, 2024 |website=Playbill.com}} It was "about a receptionist at an intelligence agency who steals secret information in her quest to become a spy." Asare said of the show, "There are some great roles for women, but often they play ingenues whose goal is to get married...I wanted to write something for a woman character who wanted something more.” It has 11 songs available on the cast album.{{Citation |title=Selections from Sympathy Jones (The New Secret Agent Musical) - 2012 Studio Cast |url=https://castalbums.org/recordings/Selections-from-Sympathy-Jones-The-New-Secret-Agent-Musical-2012-Studio-Cast/25978 |access-date=2024-06-06 |language=en}} The show is two hours and ten minutes long with two acts.{{Cite web |title=Sympathy Jones: The New Secret Agent Musical |url=https://broadwaylicensing.com/shows/perfect-for-schools/sympathy-jones/ |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=Broadway Licensing |language=en-US}} Educational rights opened for the show, and now it is played in high schools around the country,{{Cite web |title='Sympathy Jones' at Northwest Cabarrus High School |url=https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/education/article9115346.html |website=The Charlotte Observer}} where "girl power takes center stage."{{Cite web |last=Barnabi |first=Rebecca |date=2024-01-24 |title=Girl power takes center stage in student production of 'Sympathy Jones' at ShenanArts |url=https://augustafreepress.com/news/girl-power-takes-center-stage-in-student-production-of-sympathy-jones-at-shenanarts/ |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=Augusta Free Press |language=en-US}}

Asare teamed up with Marvel to write Mirror of Most Value: A Ms. Marvel Play, a show about accepting one’s imperfections, as part of a series of educational plays for teenagers.{{Cite news |last=Gustines |first=George Gene |date=June 24, 2019 |title=Marvel's Heroes Take Center Stage |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/24/theater/marvel-theater-teenagers.html |access-date=June 5, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}} Asare said, "When I began working on the play, I had only a little knowledge about Kamala Khan as Ms. Marvel... I loved the idea of a superhero who is a brown girl from an immigrant background (like me), someone who wants to do good in the world, but isn’t always sure how to do it. So she’s kind of awkward and not-smooth and has her share of mishaps, but she still persists."{{Cite news |last=Gustines |first=George Gene |date=June 24, 2019 |title=Marvel's Heroes Take Center Stage |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/24/theater/marvel-theater-teenagers.html |access-date=June 5, 2024 |work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331}} "I hope we can take away something about how holding true to who we are and where we come from is the source of our power.”{{Cite web |last1=Lee|first1=Ashley|date=June 24, 2019 |title=Marvel debuts stage plays with teenage Thor, Squirrel Girl and Ms. Marvel |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-et-cm-marvel-spotlight-plays-karen-zacarias-masi-asare-20190624-story.html |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=Los Angeles Times}}

Her show, The Family Resemblance, was workshopped in the Live & In Color Incubator.{{Cite web |title=Masi Asare |url=https://liveandincolor.org/masiasare |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=LIVE & IN COLOR |language=en-US}} Additionally, it was commissioned by Theatre Royal Stratford East in London after being further developed at the Bingham Camp Theatre Retreat.{{Cite web |title=Masi Asare |url=https://www.concordtheatricals.com/a/119140/masi-asare |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=Concord Theatricals |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Cristi |first=A. A. |title=Bingham Camp Theatre Retreat Announces 3rd Season |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/connecticut/article/Bingham-Camp-Theatre-Retreat-Announces-3rd-Season-20170531 |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=BroadwayWorld.com}} Some excerpts of the show were played at a concert put on by the National Alliance for Musical Theatre.{{Cite web |title=NAMT program |url=https://namt.org/app/uploads/Final_Festival16_Program.pdf |website=National Alliance of Musical Theatre}} The show was presented at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, where Asare won the Paulette Haupt Composition Prize.{{Cite web |last=Yumpu.com |title=The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center's 2018 Summer Season Playbill |url=https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/read/60790570/the-eugene-oneill-theater-centers-2018-summer-season-playbill |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=yumpu.com}}

Asare's musical Delta Blue was workshopped at the Goodspeed Opera House as part of Goodspeed Musicals 2024 Johnny Mercer Foundation Writers Grove.{{cite web|url=https://www.goodspeed.org/2024-writers-grove|title=Goodspeed Musicals: 2024 Writers Grove|access-date=June 6, 2024}}{{cite news|url=https://patch.com/connecticut/thehaddams-killingworth/goodspeed-musicals-hosts-39-writers|title=Goodspeed Musicals Hosts 39 Writers|first1=Nancy Sasso |last1=Janis|first2=Patch |last2=Mayor |work=Patch Media|date=January 18, 2024}}

Asare was a co-writer for Marian, or the True Tale of Robin Hood, commissioned by the International Thespian Festival.{{Cite web |title=Commissioned Musical |url=https://itf.schooltheatre.org/commisioned-musical.cfm |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=itf.schooltheatre.org}} She has also been featured at 54 Below multiple times.{{Cite web |title=Masi Asare & Friends |url=https://54below.org/events/masi-asare-friends/ |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=54 Below}}{{Cite web |last=Rabinowitz |first=Chloe |title=The Music of Masi Asare To Be Featured in Women of the Wings Volume III at Feinstein's/54 Below |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/cabaret/article/The-Music-of-Masi-Asare-To-Be-Featured-in-WOMEN-OF-THE-WINGS-VOLUME-III-at-Feinsteins54-Below-20211004 |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=BroadwayWorld.com}}

Asare was a panelist at the Revolutions in Sound Symposium, meant to "bring together scholars from across the Americas examining how black and brown, LGBTQ+, indigenous, and crip communities instrumentalize sound in service of resistance, survivance, and radical world making."{{Cite web |title=Revolutions in Sound Symposium {{!}} School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies |url=https://tdps.umd.edu/events/revolutions-sound-symposium |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=tdps.umd.edu}} She is on the committee of the American Society for Theatre Research.{{Cite web |title=Membership Committee - ASTR |url=https://www.astr.org/page/membership-committee |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=www.astr.org}} She has also spoken on the "Phrases of Womanhood" panel, made up of female playwrights of color.{{Cite web |title=beyond the rainbow: Court Community Conversations |url=https://www.courttheatre.org/season-tickets/special-event/beyond-the-rainbow-court-community-conversations/ |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=Court Theatre |language=en-US}}

Among her publications{{Cite web |title=Masi Asare |url=https://scholar.google.lt/citations?user=-3iBaCgAAAAJ&hl=ja |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=scholar.google.lt}} was an article in the Journal of Popular Music Studies,{{Cite journal |title=Divided by a Common Language: Musical Theater and Popular Music Studies |url=https://online.ucpress.edu/jpms/article-abstract/31/4/32/109343/Divided-by-a-Common-LanguageMusical-Theater-and?redirectedFrom=fulltext |journal=Journal of Popular Music Studies| date=December 2019 | volume=31 | issue=4 | pages=32–50 | doi=10.1525/jpms.2019.31.4.32 | last1=Johnson | first1=Jake | last2=Asare | first2=Masi | last3=Coddington | first3=Amy | last4=Goldmark | first4=Daniel | last5=Knapp | first5=Raymond | last6=Wang | first6=Oliver | last7=Wollman | first7=Elizabeth }} and papers that she has presented at conferences include "Voice at the Limits of Hearing" (NYU Music Department, 2014) and "From a Whisper to a Scream: The Voice in Music" (EMP Pop, 2016).{{Cite web |title=Masi Asare |url=https://tisch.nyu.edu/performance-studies/alumni/alumni-year/alumni-2018/masi-asare |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=tisch.nyu.edu |language=en}}

She is an assistant professor at Northwestern University, with areas of expertise in Black Studies, Musical Theatre, Sound Cultures, and Voice.{{Cite web |title=Masi Asare: School of Communication - Northwestern University |url=https://communication.northwestern.edu/faculty/masi-asare.html |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=communication.northwestern.edu}} She was a guest lecturer for the New York Youth Symphony Musical Theater Songwriting Program.{{Cite web |last=Rabinowitz |first=Chloe |title=New York Youth Symphony Musical Theater Songwriting Program Announces 2022/23 Season |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/New-York-Youth-Symphony-Musical-Theater-Songwriting-Program-Announces-202223-Season-20220824 |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=BroadwayWorld.com |language=en}} She taught the first craft session, Making the Contemporary Musical, at the Dramatists Guild Institutute's Musical Theatre Intensive in Evanston, cohosted by the American Musical Theatre Project).{{Cite web |title=On Writing for Young Audiences, Part Two {{!}} Dramatists Guild |url=https://www.dramatistsguild.com/thedramatist/writing-young-audiences-part-two |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=www.dramatistsguild.com}}{{Cite web |title=DGI Musical Theatre Intensive in Evanston {{!}} Dramatists Guild |url=https://www.dramatistsguild.com/news/dgi-musical-theatre-intensive-evanston |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=www.dramatistsguild.com |language=en}}

• Tony Award nomination, Best Original Score
• Outer Critics Circle Award nomination, Outstanding Score{{Cite web |title=Nominees for 71st Annual Outer Critics Circle Awards Announced |url=https://playbill.com/article/nominees-for-71st-annual-outer-critics-circle-awards-announced |website=Playbill}}
• The inaugural{{Cite web |title=Winning Female Composer of Billie Burke Ziegfeld Award Announced |url=https://playbill.com/article/winning-female-composer-of-billie-burke-ziegfeld-award-announced |website=Playbill}} Billie Burke Ziegfeld Award, which provides a $10,000 grant{{Cite web |date=October 6, 2020 |title=1621The Billie Burke Ziegfeld Award |url=https://theziegfeldclubinc.com/the-billie-burke-ziegfeld-award/ |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=The Ziegfeld Club Inc.}} and honors women creators in musical theater.{{Cite web |title=Masi Asare Wins Billie Burke Ziegfeld Award |url=https://tisch.nyu.edu/performance-studies/news/billie-burke-ziegfeld-award |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=tisch.nyu.edu}}
• The Stacey Mindich “Go Write A Musical” Lilly Award{{Cite web |title=2019 Lilly Awards |url=https://the-lillys.org/2019-awards |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=The Lillys}}
• Theater Hall of Fame Emerging Artist Grant
• Paulette Haupt Composition Prize, Eugene O’Neill Theater Center

{{reflist}}

• [http://masiasare.com/ Official Website of Masi Asare]
• [https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/masi-asare-531773 Masi Asare on the International Broadway Database]

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Category:Living people

Category:21st-century American women writers

Category:21st-century American women composers

Category:21st-century American dramatists and playwrights

Category:American musical theatre composers

Category:American musical theatre lyricists

Category:Broadway composers and lyricists

Category:Harvard University alumni

Category:New York University alumni

Category:Northwestern University faculty

Category:Women musical theatre composers

Category:Year of birth missing (living people)