David Sisco is a multi-hyphenate artist whose life work centers around exploring music, drama, writing, and teaching, finding great inspiration and commonalities in each. David received his BA in Vocal Performance and Composition Honors from Syracuse University, and a MM in Vocal Performance from Boston University School for the Arts.
A member of the esteemed BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Workshop (Advanced), David is a passionate writer for the stage. He is the author of Here I Am: A Musical Personal Ad, for which he received the Alex Libby Award for Best Musical Performance at the 2002 Columbus National Gay & Lesbian Theatre Festival. Other musicals include Variations on a Theme of You, Sopranos (featured at the 2002 NYC International Fringe Festival), and a one-act opera called The Catbird Seat. With collaborator Tom Gualtieri, David has written Falling to Earth, which received a five-week workshop at Syracuse University in January 2009 and was part of The Developmental Reading Series at the York Theatre the following Fall. Tom and David are the creators of the video series about equity in the theatre industry entitled “Draw the Circle Wide” and are working with book writer Michael Zam (“Feud”) on a musical adaptation of Henry James’ The Wings of the Dove. For more information about their collaboration, or to hear their work, please visit their website.
David is also a playwright. His first play, BAIT, premiered at the 2006 Columbus Theatre Festival, winning six awards including Best Comedy and Best of the Festival. Directed by Laura Josespher, starring Gualtieri and Sisco, the show has since been featured at the Inaugural Left Out Festival in New York. It extended three times after critical acclaim and sold out houses. BAIT was also part of the 2008 Philadelphia Gay & Lesbian Theater Festival and has been featured entertainment on several Atlantis Cruises. BAIT was later developed into two one-act comedies called BAIT n’ SWISH. BAIT n’ SWISH ran at Stage Left in New York in the Fall of 2011 and extended into 2012 with rave reviews. For more information, click here.
Sisco is a prolific art song composer, receiving a stipend from the National Endowment for the Advancement of Arts to present a recital of his music at the prestigious Liederkranz Club in New York. A winner of the 2010 NATS (National Association of Teachers of Singing) Composition Award, David’s songs have been heard at concerts produced by Friends & Enemies of New Music, Joy in Singing, Lyricfest, and Songfest, and in venues including Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. Additionally, he has written several commissions, including pieces for Cayuga Vocal Ensemble, Manhattan Girls Chorus, and Minnesota State University Moorhead Concert Choir.
As a singer, David feels at home as a recitalist, musical theater performer, and chorister. The Boston Herald praised his performance of the AIDS Quilt Song Book, saying he sang with “heart-breaking sincerity.” For over 12 years, David was a frequent soloist and member of the professional sanctuary choir at Marble Collegiate Church, recording three albums with the premier ensemble. He formed a cabaret duo with Alexandra Foucard called Comes Love. The duo regularly performed at Tin Pan Alley in Provincetown and were featured artists in the Inaugural International Cabaret Festival in New York. Every once in a while, you can catch David performing live on Facebook or see his performances on social media.
Having been raised by two teachers, Sisco has a deep love of teaching. He has served on the faculties at Northeastern and Suffolk University, teaching voice and musical theater performance. He taught private voice at Marymount Manhattan College for over ten years. He currently is an adjunct professor at Wagner College. David also maintains an active private studio and has taught around the country and internationally. He was a keynote speaker for the 2018 ANATS (Australian National Association of Teachers of Singing) National Conference in Leura, Australia, and served on the faculty of Taipei Performing Arts Center’s Musical Theatre Workshop. In addition, David has been a guest teacher at Dean College, Five Towns College, SUNY New Paltz, ANATS Victoria, The Street Theatre (Canberra), Ingraham High School, West Genesee High School, and Reversal Children’s Theatre.
In 2012, David co-founded ContemporaryMusicalTheatre.com, which he now runs with business partner Laura Josepher. The site is the largest database of contemporary musical theatre writers and songs, searchable by voice and song type. In 2016, they built an online sheet music platform, allowing subscribers to purchase full songs and audition cuts directly from the writers. Given that the site is a subscription model, writers receive 100% of their sheet music sale. ContemporaryMusicalTheatre.com is the only company to do this. Out of the website, Laura have created other work, including a masterclass and workshop series on learning contemporary musical theatre, and a book entitled “Mastering College Musical Theatre Auditions,” now in its second edition (available on Amazon).
David thanks his family and friends for their unwavering support and belief in him as he continues to expand his understanding and use of the gifts God gave him.