Toby
Singer
theatermaker | musician | music director
sound designer | not-for-profit consulting
educator | hairstyle perpetual motion machine
BIO: Toby Singer is a composer, playwright, and artistic multi-hyphenate originally from Michigan, and now based in Brooklyn, New York.
His theatrical work has been commissioned and produced off-Broadway, regionally, and academically. His projects have been featured in The New York Times and The New Yorker, and have been named Critics Picks by Time Out New York.
As a composer and arranger of Jewish music, his liturgical settings, choral arrangements, and original compositions are in frequent use across the country.
He's also committed to facilitating the work of others, through for-profit and not-for-profit development strategy and consulting, creative producing, and good old fashioned face-to-face counseling.
Toby received his B.A. from the University of Michigan School of Music, and is currently pursuing his M.F.A. in Theatre from Brooklyn College.
alpaca
toby
llama
MUSIC: A short playlist of selections from musicals + pop
DEVELOPMENT CONSULTING:
I work with folks across the broader arts spectrum to help folks plan ambitious arts projects and raise more money for their organizations.
Whether you’re working with dance, creating performance art, writing music, or something utterly and completely undefinable, I can help.
Here are some of the things I can help you with:
-grant strategy and execution
-prospect research and analysis
-event strategy and planning
-crowdfunding campaign planning
-solicitation advice
-big picture fundraising strategy and execution
-talking about not-for-profit status and fiscal sponsorship
For a free consultation/strategy session, send me a short email describing your existing work, and what you’re hoping to get on its feet next, and we can set something up.
PRESS QUOTES:
“Toby Singer is a modern-day Burt Bacharach.” - Emma McMullin (former AD of The Tank Theater)
“…cheery, witty and melodious score…Mr. Singer’s successfully eclectic music is perfectly realized by his arrangements…” - Theaterscene
"South By South Death is the music-festival slasher musical you didn’t know you needed" - Bedford & Bowery (New York Magazine)
“Like an ice capade infused with psychedelic drugs, this musical parody of Wicked and Frozen goes wild to hit every mark a fan could desire.” - Time Out New York
“…it is refreshing when an artist like Toby Singer comes along…his music speaks for him. Nothing else is necessary.” - The Sound Hound
“Instead of menacing, monstrous bridgekeepers, the trolls [in Gruff] are tenderhearted vegetarians, guarding the only green place left on earth.
“ - The New York Times
Wicked Frozen is a witty, fast-paced, and spirited post-modern take-off on the iconic interwoven eponymous stories, seen through the eyes of a contemporary teen. - DC Metro Theater Review
“[Toby] Singer knows how to write songs with strong hooks, complex melodies, and bittersweet harmonies” - Charleston City Paper
"Musical theatre writing duo Toby Singer and Jared Saltiel present this slasher musical that fuses campy comedy with meticulous murder mystery and vicious pop culture satire." - Time Out New York
“The original music by Toby Singer…is tuneful and clever” - New York Daily News
“…some wickedly fresh soul slash crooning slash dancin’ in the kitchen while no one’s watching” – YVINYL
“Give me Amos Lee with a side of Broadway ballad…” – South By South East
“Catchy songs.” - The Morning Call (Allentown, PA)
THEATRICAL WORK:
Wicked Frozen
Composer, Lyricist (with Zoe Farmingdale)
St. Luke’s Theater (Off-Broadway) - Mar to Dec 2018
Second City (Chicago) - Feb 2018
People’s Improv Theater - Feb 2015
People’s Improv Theater - Oct to Nov 2014
West Village Musical Theater Festival - Jul 2014
Gruff
Composer (with Doppelskope)
Long Island Children’s Museum - May to Jun 2018
Vital Theatre Company (Off-Broadway) - Aug 2017
People’s Improv Theater - Apr to June 2017
Indianapolis Children’s Museum - Jun to Aug 2016
Muhlenberg Summer Theatre - May to Jul 2014
The Utopia Of Now
Composer, Lyricist, Bookwriter
2016 Fort Worth Fringe Festival - Jan 2016
South By South Death
Co-Composer/Lyricist/Bookwriter (with Jared Saltiel)
Growl
Composer (with Doppelskope)
Muhlenberg Summer Theatre - May to Jul 2016
Grimm
Composer (with Doppelskope)
Muhlenberg Summer Theatre - May to Jul 2015
Nina In New York
Composer, Lyricist (with Zoe Farmingdale)
Atlas Hugged - Jan 2014
Lysistrata
Composer
College of Charleston Theatre Department - Oct 2007
South Hall
Composer, Lyricist, Bookwriter
Theatre 99 (Charleston, SC) - Mar 2007
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor - Apr 2005
JEWISH MUSIC: I've written dozens of original musical settings and arrangements in use in Jewish communities all over North America. Listen to a few recent recordings here.
Recent highlights include:
-the inclusion of my setting of Shalom Rav in Merri Arian's songbook Leveling The Praying Field.
-the commissioning of original compositions for Touro Synagogue's Jazzfest Shabbat performed by artists including the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, jazz pianist John Cleary, and zydeco artist Sunpie.
-the inclusion of my setting of Sim Shalom in a Union for Reform Judaism compilation album and songbook.
Get in touch if you are interested in commissioning a composition or an arrangement, or setting up a time for me to visit your community.
CONTACT: For all professional inquiries as well as less professional inquiries, please say hi at
For a steady dose of pictures of my wife and dog, go here