Theatre Royal Stratford East is one step closer to finding the winner of a £12,000 prize fund.

In June, the theatre teamed up with Perfect Pitch to introduce the Perfect Pitch Award for Musical Theatre Writing in a bid to find the best new writing talent.

Both theatre companies have now announced the names of the four finalist teams and this includes: Zara McFarlane and May Sumbawanyame, Ashton Moore and Ben Fensome, Craig Adams and Daniel York as well as Gavin Whitworth, Shireen Mula and Joe von Malachowski.

Kerry Michael, artistic director at Theatre Royal Stratford East said: “I am delighted with the finalists we have chosen.

“As a theatre we pride ourselves in nurturing new writers of musicals and plays, this process is another way for us to do this, which is exciting.

“I’m looking forward to seeing what the finalists will come up with and what we can help them develop further.”

The scheme, which is managed by both theatres, encouraged writers to apply as individuals. Successful candidates were then paired up with a collaborator to work on a 10 minute pitch of a new musical.

The final pitching event will take place at St James’ Theatre in February next year.

The winning team will be awarded the £12,000 prize fund to write a full draft of a new show in a 12-month period, with a view to having the piece presented in a professional staged reading or production of the piece.

Andy Barnes, Executive Director at Perfect Pitch said: “It’s been a really rewarding process in identifying the teams we wanted to put together.

“The quality of the applications was excellent but most exciting was the range of styles, ideas, and experience all of which left us with some very difficult decisions to make.

“There were many talented writers and composers who didn’t make the final teams so these guys should all be incredibly proud of what they’ve achieved so far.”