what else i do

in addition to my own writing, i work as a music and vocal director, teaching artist, private music instructor, and new-work dramaturg. i love being in the room while something is still taking shape, whether that means helping performers feel confident in a score, teaching someone to make the music they want to make, or talking through a new piece with its writers.

music & vocal direction

teaching artistry

private lessons

dramaturgy

performing

i’ve music directed new musicals, readings, and youth productions, and vocal direction is the part of the process i’m most drawn to. i focus on teaching scores clearly, building confident ensemble singing, and finding the vocal style, blend, and storytelling that each production needs.

selected new work & professional productions

  • the stripper index (new york public library’s across a crowded room, 2025)

  • monster developmental table reading (nyu graduate musical theatre writing program, 2024)

  • oh, hi johnny! (chicago musical theatre festival, 2019)

selected youth theatre

  • moana jr. (riverdale children’s theatre, 2026)

  • chicago: teen edition (helen hayes youth theatre, 2025)

  • selected productions with wilmette children’s theatre (2019–2022)

music & vocal direction

teaching artistry

i teach musical theatre performance, songwriting, dramatic writing, devising, and collaborative storytelling through school residencies and youth theatre programs. as an educator, i want to foster joy and agency in artistic creation while strengthening my students’ skills and abilities to make the art they want to make.

selected teaching work

  • 92ny broadway spotlight - teaching artist 2025–present
    (selected residencies: fiorello h. laguardia high school, performing arts & technology high school, and edward r. murrow high school)

  • 92ny lyrics & lyricists jr. - teaching artist 2026
    (selected residencies: meyer levin school for the performing arts and academy of collaborative exploration)

  • nexgen youth theatre - teaching artist & music director 2026

  • florida repertory theatre - teaching artist 2017

private lessons

i offer in-home private lessons in new york city in voice, piano, guitar, ukulele, songwriting, and musical audition preparation. lessons are built around each student’s goals, learning style, and the music they actually want to make.

voice lessons
lessons focus on healthy vocal technique, consistency, musicianship, and interpretation. we usually divide the time between vocal exercises and applying those skills to one or two pieces of repertoire.

piano lessons
lessons build technique, music reading, aural skills, and musicianship while making space for improvisation, composition, and music outside of a traditional method book.

guitar & ukulele lessons
students develop technique, chords, tablature, improvisation, and composition through music they are excited to play.

musical audition preparation
audition coaching can include choosing material, learning and interpreting a song, creating an effective cut, marking sheet music, and making an accompaniment track when needed.

songwriting lessons
students explore melody, harmony, lyric, form, and notation while developing original songs. lessons can also support individuals or writing teams working toward a longer musical or dramatic project.

i currently offer in-home lessons in new york city. contact me to ask about availability, scheduling, and current rates.

dramaturgy

much of my dramaturgical work has happened informally, through conversations with other writers and within larger new-work development processes. i work with writers to understand what a piece is trying to do, identify what may be getting in its way, and ask questions that can help them decide what comes next.

through sandboxmusicals, i help guide new musicals through playspace, a series of 90-minute microworkshops centered on a scene and song. writers work with a director, music director, and performers to hear their material aloud, explore specific questions, and discover the piece in practice.

selected dramaturgy

• sandboxmusicals’ playspace (2025–present)
• i name you (one egg no batter productions, 2021)

i am a member of literary managers and dramaturgs of the americas.

performing

i trained and worked as a musical theatre performer before shifting my primary focus to writing, music direction, and teaching. my training also included extensive work in stage combat through the society of american fight directors. those experiences continues to shape how i write for performers and how i work in rehearsal rooms.

selected press

“Benjamin Walton as young Greg provides much of the show’s humor.”
- Reno Lovison, Chicago Theater and Arts

“The energetic charisma, and sweetness of rising stars Will Fulginiti and Benjamin Walton instantly invest the audience in the couple’s legendary love, full of first-date flirtation, puppydog confessions, and stomachs filled with butterflies. And their voices are even better to behold.”
- Ian Rigg, ChicagolandMusicalTheatre

"The comic numbers come off the best.... Kander and Ebb's ill-fated "The Act" provides two silly songs, both delivered with an appealing light touch. Benjamin Walton croons an ode to the maker of packaged desserts in "Sara Lee." 
- Matt Palm, Orlando Sentinel