Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Living the Dream

I've talked about my first few days in New York City many times before and one of them was spent sitting in the Laurie Beechman Theater feeling incredibly overwhelmed learning about the theater industry here on the east coast. Yesterday felt different. I walked into that theater with confidence and familiarity.  I thought - oh, I've seen some great work done here and yesterday was no exception.

I was lucky enough to see Fiction In Photographs - The Musical, and it was such a special experience and show. Just a little background: during the two years at CAP21, one of the projects the students must complete is a "Pop/Rock" concert/night. In the past, it had been set up like a cabaret/ pop concert type of show with maybe a thin through line. When our class got to the pop/rock project, our inspiring director - Randy Redd, had the idea to put a show together based on the music of the extremely talented Dan Mills. If you haven't had the chance to listen to his music - go. do. it. now. 

Anyway, in February 2012 the students in my class at CAP21 put on the show using the original music by Dan Mills and it was a complete success. Then Randy Redd and Dan Mills revised that show and created Fiction In Photographs - The Musical, which I got to see yesterday at the Laurie Beechman Theater. While it may seem that my love for this show is only based on my involvement in the very beginning stages of the project, that was six months ago and the show is very different now. I just had the luxury of knowing the music when I saw the show, just like any other fan of Dan Mills would.

I don't want to give the plot away, but I will tell you that I laughed and cried throughout. I saw a concert version and it was very enjoyable. I can't wait to see the full production version coming later this fall. It was clear that the cast really loved the material, and they sounded fantastic. The music allows the audience to go on a journey with the characters and they are people we care about - we want to know what happens to them. Cast included: David Mizzoni, Lauren Pritchard, Cole Burden, Alysha Deslorieux, and Adam Day. Take a moment listen to the music and then "Like" it

Everyone involved in this project should be very proud because it was an amazing show. 

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