Isabella Nguyen and Maya Johnson
2024 Musical Theater Songwriting Challenge winners Isabella Nguyen and Maya Johnson. Photo by Rebecca J. Michelson
About Isabella Nguyen
Isabella Nguyen is a junior at Mount St. Mary Academy in Little Rock, Arkansas. She loves performing and writing, and she is currently working on an original musical with her best friend Maya Johnson called Less Than Perfect. She has been performing in musicals since she was eight years old, and some of her favorite roles include Patrice in 13 the Musical, Alicia in American Idiot, Skylar in Bring It On, and Jane Seymour in SIX the Musical the Teen Edition. She has written several one act plays and is so excited to start sharing her work with the world.
About Maya Johnson
Maya Johnson is a junior at Mount Saint Mary Academy in Little Rock, Arkansas. She shares a love for performance and writing with her best friend, Isabella Nguyen, who is currently her co-writer working on their original musical, Less Than Perfect. She recently discovered her love for all things theater since starting high school and some of her favorite roles include Katherine Howard in SIX the Musical the Teen Edition, Annie in Annie, and Sebastian in The Little Mermaid. She is so excited to see where the future takes her and so thankful for everyone who has supported her along the way.
Maya Johnson and Isabella Nguyen providing feedback during rehearsals of their original song, "Live Before Life’s Gone." Photo by Rebecca J. Michelson
“Live Before Life’s Gone”
Music & Lyrics by Isabella Nguyen & Maya Johnson
Program Mentor: Joey Contreras
Orchestrator: Teresa Lotz
Featuring Amy Keum & Katryna Marttala
The opening song to the new musical Less Than Perfect, this is a prologue introducing the two main characters, Jazz and Char. Meeting early in the morning at a coffee shop before school, “Live Before Life’s Gone” reveals the differences in how they view the world while also showing how and why they value each other.