The Hermitage Artist Retreat, led by Artistic Director and CEO Andy Sandberg, just announced a partnership with Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC), one of New York’s top nonprofit theaters. The goal is clear: give MTC’s new musical commissions space, time, and a boost of fresh inspiration down at the Hermitage campus in Florida. For artists working on these projects, that’s a chance to really dig in and move their visions from concept into sharper focus.
This new collaboration isn’t just talk about supporting artists. Through residency programs tailored to each commissioned musical, MTC and the Hermitage are backing writers and composers who push boundaries, the kinds of creators who reflect the energy and complexity that defines today’s theater. They’re putting resources behind original voices and imaginative storytelling.
The first two musicals getting this treatment are The Orange Grove by playwright Lindsey Ferrentino and musician Sam Beam, and It’s All Relative by Sofya Levitsky-Weitz and Benjamin Velez.
The Orange Grove pairs Ferrentino’s book with original music from Sam Beam, best known as Iron & Wine, and reimagines Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard, setting it in a Florida orange grove on the verge of collapse. The story becomes one of family, land, and survival, but through the lens of American history as the country and its people wrestle with change. Ferrentino and Beam already brought a preview of their work to Florida audiences for free, performing on the beach to a crowd of hundreds under the banner of the Hermitage-MTC Fellowship.
As for It’s All Relative, Levitsky-Weitz and Velez ask what parts of ourselves we lose or find in the pursuit of love. The musical features Albert Einstein and his wife and collaborator, Mileva Mari, hosting friends for jam sessions where they ponder the universe and humanity’s role in it. The Hermitage will soon announce their residency and public event.
“We’re excited to launch this collaboration with MTC,” Sandberg said. “The Hermitage has developed a whole range of new works on Manasota Key, including plenty of notable musicals. As MTC leans further into supporting new musicals, this partnership gives leading writers and composers exactly the kind of environment they need to take risks and move their art forward.”
MTC Artistic Director Nicki Hunter added, “Partnering with the Hermitage is a powerful way to give our commissioned musicals the development muscle they need. I hope, as MTC’s future unfolds, that the same energy we’ve given to new plays will go into world-premiere musicals as well. Sending these artists down to the Hermitage, where they have time to create, feels significant.”
MTC’s commitment to new work is deep; they recently presented a new version of Queens by Martyna Majok, whose Pulitzer Prize-winner Cost of Living ran on Broadway with MTC. There’s a web of shared alumni between MTC and the Hermitage: writers like Lynn Nottage, David Auburn, Donald Margulies, Paula Vogel, Rajiv Joseph, and Ruben Santiago-Hudson. Bess Wohl, whose Hermitage-born play Liberation just won the 2026 Pulitzer and Tony Awards, is this year’s MTC Judith Champion Playwrighting Fellow. The two organizations have also both commissioned work from artists such as Chris Bush, Madeleine George, Aleshea Harris, Craig Lucas, and Anne Washburn.
Sandberg recalls his own connection to MTC: he worked as assistant director to Harold Prince on LoveMusik, the first world premiere musical in MTC Broadway’s history.
The artists involved here are serious contenders. Sam Beam, aka Iron & Wine, is a five-time Grammy nominee. Lindsey Ferrentino had two shows on Broadway this spring, including The Fear of 13 with Adrien Brody. Sofya Levitsky-Weitz has written for hit series like FX’s The Bear and Hulu’s The Dropout. Benjamin Velez, Tony-nominated composer and lyricist, counts Real Women Have Curves and Kiss My Aztec among his credits.
The Hermitage sets itself apart on the Gulf Coast, exclusively hosting residencies for artists developing fresh work in theater, music, visual art, literature, dance, and film. These residencies lead to community events, almost always free, where local audiences get a behind-the-scenes look at creative processes before the rest of the world sees the finished work. The programs take many shapes, with concerts, readings, open studios, discussions, student workshops, giving thousands each year a chance to connect directly with top artists.
You can find details on the Hermitage’s upcoming events and initiatives at HermitageArtistRetreat.org.
