Benjamin Velez and Madeline Myers chatted about their 2025 Kleban Prize wins.
The Kleban Prize reception was hosted in New York City on February 3rd by ASCAP and BMI, and it honored the winners of the 35th Annual Kleban Prize for the most promising musical theater lyricist and librettist.
Velez was recognized for “Most Promising Musical Theatre Lyricist” while Madeline Myers was honored as the “Most Promising Musical Theatre Librettist.”
Madeline Myers
On winning the 2025 Kleban Prize, Myers expressed, “I am so grateful. I am just overwhelmed and verklempt. I just feel really, really lucky. This award means everything to me; it means that somebody believes in me, and it felt like a much-needed nod from the universe to keep going, and that the work that I am doing is meaningful and that there is a place for it, which is everything.”
When asked what a librettist is, she revealed, “The librettist is the person who writes the script to the musical. We don’t call it a script in musical theatre; we call it a ‘book.’ It is also interchangeable with libretto, which you hear a little bit more in opera.”
Regarding her definition of success, Myers said, “Musicals have changed my life, and I hope that I can write musicals that can change other people’s lives. If I can do that, I will feel pretty successful.”
In the next five years, Myers hopes to have a “commercial production on Broadway” and “writing many other new shows that are in pipeline for future commercial productions.”
Benjamin Velez
On winning the 2025 Kleban Prize, Velez remarked, “That feels amazing. There are a lot of prizes that you apply each year over and over, so when it finally happens, this is a sign from the universe to keep going.”
“This award meant that I proved my mother wrong that I didn’t become a lawyer or a doctor,” Velez said with a sweet laugh. “I think she realized that a while ago. For me, it reaffirms that art is important, and my desire to create it is not silly. It feels like I’m doing the right thing for myself.”
‘Real Women Have Curves’
Velez revealed that he has a new show that will be on Broadway this April.
“I am excited about my new Broadway show but I am also terrified,” he said. “To finally have a Broadway show is pretty insane. It’s something that you dream of your whole career as a writer.”
“I am over the moon about it. I co-wrote it with Joy Huerta. This is her first time writing a musical, and we did most of it over Zoom because she lives in Mexico City, so that was its own challenge,” he elaborated.
Velez’ advice for young and emerging playwrights and creatives
For young and aspiring playwrights, creatives, and actors, he said, “Don’t let the fatigue of trying over and over make you quit because I applied for this award six or seven times, and it finally happened. You just never know. Do this because you love it. If I went in this for the money, I would have quit a long time ago.”
Velez on success
On his definition of the word success, he said, “Success means that a high school in Oklahoma is doing a production of my show., or high schools anywhere. I just love telling stories, and I want to tell them on the biggest canvas possible.”
