Projects
In Development
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Saint-Ex
Book and lyrics by Sean Barry
Development history:
- 2008 Writers’ Retreat at TheatreWorks/Palo Alto
- 2008 Sundance Theatre Institute White Oak Residency
- 2008 Workshop at TheatreWorks/Palo Alto
Synopsis:
“Saint-Ex” is a musical journey through the life of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, the French author and aviator perhaps best known throughout the world as the author of the children’s classic, The Little Prince. In the 1920s, Saint-Exupéry was one of the pioneering members of the Aéropostale, the air-mail company that opened delivery from France to Dakar. In their open-cockpit planes and without the benefit of radar or weather reports, the pilots of the Aéropostale overflew the Pyrenees and the Sahara, risking their lives for the mail and for one another. Over the following decade, they would conquer the skies of South America and establish the first trans-Atlantic mail delivery service. Saint-Exupéry became famous in the 1930s for his books about this heroic era of flight, garnering literary awards both in France and America and earning the title of one of “the eternals” of the Académie Française. Yet his most famous book,
The Little Prince, was written on Long Island, where Saint-Exupéry found himself in exile during the Nazi occupation of France. A pilot at heart, Saint-Exupéry used his influence and fame to earn himself the right to fly reconnaissance for the U.S. Air Force, returning to the war over the protests of his admirers, friends, and family, all of whom wished to keep him out of harm’s way. On July 31, 1944, only weeks before the end of the war in France, Saint-Exupéry flew from Sardinia on a mission to photograph the Nazi positions near Annecy and was never heard from again.
Saint-Ex is a magical and evocative exploration of Saint-Exupéry’s adventures and romances; of his tempestuous marriage to Consuelo de Saint-Exupéry, his Salvadorean wife, and his delight in the brotherhood of the Aéropostale; of the fierce intellect and profound sensitivity of a soul who gave his life fighting for his home and beliefs, but who left behind that eternal character, The Little Prince.
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Princess Caraboo
Book by Marsha Norman, lyrics by Beth Blatt and Marsha Norman
Directed by Gary Griffin
Development history:
- 2003 Writers’ Retreat at TheatreWorks/Palo Alto
- 2003 New Works Festival at TheatreWorks/Palo Alto
- 2003 National Musical Theatre Conference at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center
- 2005 National Alliance for Musical Theatre’s Festival of New Musicals
- 2006 Workshop at Goodspeed Opera House, Norma Terrace Theatre
- 2008 29-hour staged reading at The Roundabout Theatre Studios
Synopsis:
In 1817 outside Bristol, England, a girl appeared in a field. She was wearing a turban, foreign clothes and speaking a language that no one could understand. With the unsolicited aid of a con man, she becomes an overnight sensation and for a period of months has everyone from scientists to royalty convinced she is a kidnapped princess from an island called Javasu. Only Matthew Gutch, a reporter at the local paper, sees through her ruse, relentlessly pursuing the truth until he uncovers her as Mary Baker, an unemployed serving girl. Based on one of the great hoaxes of history,
Princess Caraboo, tells the story of a poor girl who would do just about anything to be free of her circumstances and how, in realizing her own dream, she allows everyone around her the possibility of escape.
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Crossing Brooklyn
Book and lyrics by Laura Harrington
- Commissioned by the Boston Music Theatre Project (Marilyn Plotkins, Artistic Director)
- Winner of the 2008 Kleban Prize for the Book of a Musical
Development history:
- 2006 Workshop/Production at Suffolk University
- 2007 ASCAP/Disney Musical Theatre Workshop
Production history:
Transport Group, October-November 2007 (Directed by Jack Cummings III, Orchestrated by Mary-Mitchell Campbell)
Synopsis:
Set in New York City in 2002,
Crossing Brooklyn tells the story of Des and AJ, young, idealistic public school teachers bent on changing the world, one kid at a time. Life is full of promise and endless possibility until Des begins to unravel under the weight of her fears, ignited that fateful September day. Splitting apart under the strain, Des and AJ struggle to find their way back to each other.
Past Projects
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Alice Unwrapped (music and lyrics)
Book and lyrics by Laura Harrington
- Commissioned by Premieres, Inc., Paulette Haupt, Artistic Director as part of “Inner Voices: Solo Musicals 2008”
Productions:
- The Zipper Theatre, New York, May 2008
- Rough Cuts Series, Nautilus Music Theatre, Minneapolis, MN, July 2008
- Spirit in the House Festival, Nautilus Music Theatre, Minneapolis, MN, March 2009
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The Mistress Cycle
Book and lyrics by Beth Blatt
- National Art Song Award, January 1995
- National Music Theatre Network Director’s Choice Award, September 2005
- 3 Nominations 2008 Jeff Awards (Best Director, Revue - Kurt Johns; Best Production, Revue; Best Actress, Revue – Angela Ingersoll)
Productions:
- New York Musical Theater Festival, September 2005
- Apple Tree Theatre Company, Highland Park, IL, December 2007
- Harvard Community Players, Harvard, MA, June 2008
- Minnesota Fringe Festival, July/August 2008
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Songs from an Unmade Bed
Lyrics by Mark Campbell
- Drama Desk Nomination for Best Musical
Productions:
- New York Theatre Workshop, June 2005
- Celebration Theatre, Los Angeles, June 2008
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The Hotel Carter
Book and lyrics by Stephanie Fleischmann
- Frederick Loewe Award and Workshop, May 2000
- Cameron Mackintosh Development Award (New Dramatists’), May 2000
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Still Life (one act)
Book and lyrics by David Javerbaum
- Special Adjudicator’s Award for New Work, New England Regional Community Theater Festival, August 1996
- Special Adjudicator’s Award for Excellence in Music and Lyrics, Eastern Massachusetts Association of Community Theaters, March 1996
Productions:
- Harvard Community Theatre, Harvard, MA, Summer 1996
- Bridewell Theatre Lunchbox Series, London, Spring 2003
- Henlopen Theater Project, Rehoboth Beach, DE, July 2004
- Barrington Stage Company, Pittsfield, MA, August 2005
- Blue Spruce Theatre Company, Watertown, MA, November 2008
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Arthur’s War (incidental music and songs)
Play by Catherine Filloux
- Commissioned by Theatreworks USA
- Workshopped at Theatreworks USA, April 2002
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Island of the Blue Dolphins
Book and lyrics by Beth Blatt
- Commissioned by Theatreworks USA
Productions:
- Toured for two sold-out seasons, 2001-2003
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