One, two, check, check, fuzzy check.
Hey! Two! Two! Three! Loud VOLUME!
Three blind jellyfish sitting on a rock.
Is there fuzzy? I think a little bit!
There’s no easy way to show people an original musical. People can read it, listen to recordings, look at storyboards…but to actually show someone what you’ve done is an uphill climb that gets steep quick.
A friend and colleague of mine, playwright and author RC Staab, once showed me some tough love when I was writing my first musical. I brought him the script and a bunch of demos to get some feedback and see if he was interested in helping me make some connections. He looked at the script and read the first and last page. Then he asked me if I was singing on every demo. “….yes?” He didn’t want to hear them. His point was that at the end of the day, anyone who you want to produce your musical needs the writer to have done a lot more than just write a show. (Ultimately, RC did read and listen and came to see the show when it went up at Town Stages in 2018. He’s got two books out about New Jersey tourism that are must reads- look him up).
You have to hold your own readings of the material with trusted (and talented) artists who are willing to work for free. You need to call in favors to singers and musicians to help you make demos (and you need to be there for their projects in return). You need an infusion of cash to get your first public reading together. You’ll want to do it right (realistically, anywhere between $500 and $5,000 depending on your goals). Get a venue, a lighting designer, sound designer, stage manager, director, actors, musicians- and pay as many of them as you can if the venue costs don’t clean you out. Put a guest list together and invite institutions over individuals. Invite them personally.
Tap into your inner, younger theatre lover. You want to put up a show. Do everything you can to elevate each aspect of the event. Can you get creative with costumes, sets, and concepts within the scope of your budget? Can you customize and personalize the venue? How can the audience engage with the piece (a survey, a QR code to some dramaturgy about the piece, a context room, etc)? Can you find a way to make yourself excited about your own show? If you’re not excited, why should we be?
By the time you’re ready to show your musical (not your script, demos, score, or ideas- your actual musical), you’re showing them the art in its present form and- it’s cliche but true- the whole experience of seeing it. It’s an act of community building and culture creation. You wrote a musical- it’s a huge responsibility.
Tonight is the last rehearsal before we combine cast, band, lights, and sound for 12 hours tomorrow. I know from experience that a moment(s) will come tomorrow where I get frustrated. I will actively remind myself that as proud as I am of what I’ve written, I need to take pride in everything that’s come after clicking Print. I won’t weigh which is more difficult, writing or producing. Both make me crazy sometimes. But I am going to work through the frustration because I’m showing people a new musical and I have a director, stage manager, lighting, and a sound designer who is testing mics that will, in a few short minutes, go over the ears of actors who have given their talents to my work alongside musicians who are turning my dreams to reality.
Hey TWO TWO!
Emotion, Emotion
Sad, quiet moment…
LOUD MOMENT!