Brussels Musical Creatives is a group of people creating all things musical theatre in the heart of Europe.
We are the creators of the new musical KNOCKED! - a show spanning a hundred years in Brussels.
Founded in 2024, this collective seeks to champion and showcase new musical theatre writing and talent. Focusing on collaboration and connection, the team writes individually and collectively as part of the creative process.
Our group is first and foremost a coming-together of creative minds and musical fans. We meet regularly to discuss our projects and challenges and share an evening/afternoon of musical theatre trivia.
In April 2024, as part of our meetings, we started our first co-creation session with the objective of staging a show in the summer and we almost succeeded. KNOCKED! is coming in November 2024.
The founders of the Brussels Musical Creatives are…
Finola Southgate
Event logistics by day. Musician and composer by night.
Finola was born in Reading, England and moved to Brussels in 2022. Her musical education has involved years of classical choirs, Irish folk, soul band and musical theatre. Highlights include vocals and keys in The Monroes for their 2017 eponymous album, Sister Sessions in Wargrave 2021 and performing a solo set in Sportspaleis 2022. Within the Musical Theatre space, she wrote the Actor-Musician musical ‘We’ll Have Nun of It’ which played at Underbelly at Edinburgh Fringe 2023 and The Other Palace London 2024 with Sister Sister Productions. Finola is excited to work on such a collaborative project, expanding her songwriting experience and exploring such different musical genres.
Gabriel Pinto Monteiro
Film director and screenwriter by day. Performer by night.
Gabriel was born in Luxembourg as part of a Portuguese immigrant family. He got very early into music, starting in choirs and playing 2 different instruments, until he started a rock band at 18. Gabriel put music on hold as he came to Brussels to study film, yet those same studies inspired him to go after the genre he has always loved: musicals. To be ready as both a creator and a performer, he took an intensive year of singing courses at AICOM’s Brussels campus, while writing his own musicals - both on stage and on the silver screen.
Zoe de York
Digital content producer by day. Songwriter by night.
Zoe hails from Brussels in Belgium and has been writing songs since she was 13 - though they weren’t show-worthy then. In the last 5 years, Zoe has taken a keen interest in songwriting for musical theatre and has been working on a show called Upstairs, coming… one day. Since July 2023, Zoe has been studying songwriting with Brett Boles’ Transformational Songwriting online programme to elevate her songwriting skills.
Eliza Popper
Changemaker by day. Community builder by night.
The daughter of a musician and granddaughter of an actor and theatre director, Eliza grew up with a calling for the performing arts. She has been a soloist in various choirs in Hungary, Belgium and the United States. Trained as a dancer in musical theatre, Eliza also gained experience as one of the leaders and choreographers of Budapest Show Choir. Pursuing her passion for musical theatre, Eliza has played various roles, including Inga in Young Frankenstein and Belle in A Christmas Carol, amongst others. Eliza trained at the Brussels Acting Studio and is currently studying vocal performance at AICOM Bruxelles. This is Eliza’s first time writing and composing, but certainly not her last. Eliza loves bringing communities together and was the initiator of the Brussels Musical Creatives. She’s excited to see where the project will lead.
Claire Rumery
Music teacher by day. Sally Bowles by night.
Claire has lived in Belgium for 17 years, she is honoured to be part of Knocked by bringing the history of Brussels to life through musical theatre. Notable roles include Katisha in The Mikado (BLOC, 2024), Sally Bowles in Cabaret (SHAPE Players, 2023), Dragon and the Sugar Plum Fairy/Gingy in Shrek (Greeley Stampede Troupe, 2019). Claire has also had the pleasure of musical directing shows such as Mamma Mia, The Music Man, and Legally Blonde in Colorado! Writing and directing a brand new musical was not in the original BINGO card, but she’s grateful for the opportunity and thankful for her newfound family with the Brussels Musical Creatives.