Sheet Music Is Here!

I'm very pleased to announce that sheet music for the songs on my album Out of Context: The Songs of Michael Patrick Walker is now available for purchase!  That's right - it's true!  There is a brand new Store section of my web site where you can buy music for twelve of the thirteen songs (the thirteenth song, I Believe, is already sold by Hal Leonard)!

I've wanted to offer the music for sale for some time but you'd be surprised how long it takes to format and clean up sheet music - especially when you're a bit of a procrastinator like me!

On top of that, the music is also for sale via a wonderful web site - NewMusicalTheatre.com - which sells sheet music from practically all of today's young musical theatre writers!  Check out the mpw section on their site to hear sample clips of the songs, watch videos of Broadway and West End stars performing the songs and to buy the sheet music so you can sing it yourself!

I would love to see and hear all of your performances of any of these songs - it's always exciting to see what different performers bring to a song - so I encourage you to video yourself singing and post to YouTube and let me know - maybe I'll share some of my favorites here!  Happy singing and I hope everybody enjoys!

London Is...

Two weeks ago today, I returned from my trip to London and, in one way or another, I've been thinking about it every day since then.  The concert itself - my London debut at the Hippodrome - was wonderful and I can't say enough good things about Simon Greiff and SimG Productions who put together the entire evening.  Not to mention the five fantastic West End actors who performed with such talent, grace, emotion and humor - or, rather, humour.  I looking forward to working with every one of them again as soon as possible!  Here's to Kelly-Anne Gower, Stuart Matthew Price, Lauren Samuels, Caroline Sheen and Simon Thomas - if you ever have the chance to see any of them perform in anything, do it!  Here's a quick sample - Stuart and Simon singing Different Kind of Man:

The reception for the show - featuring my songs as well as songs written by Georgia Stitt and Scott Evan Davis - was better than I could have hoped for.  After all, despite being performed all over the world, Altar Boyz has never played anywhere in the UK - I'm working on it, I swear! And while Out of Context is sold via Amazon, iTunes and is available from Dress Circle's web site, there is no reason the Brits would know me or any of my music.  And yet, they were nothing but welcoming, interested and supportive of what we were doing - it was a really wonderful feeling and experience!  To paraphrase something Simon Greiff is fond of saying, if the theatre community doesn't support new writing, then we're basically done - and yet, that's too often what happens.  More on that in a minute but, first, the amazing Kelly-Anne Gower who opened the show with All About Me:

Don't get me wrong, I'm fully aware that my brief and first trip to London puts me solidly in the honeymoon phase - I'm sure there are non-supportive people there too!  But it was nice to experience a theatre community that is so much like New York, but also quite different.  And before anybody thinks I'm bashing New York or the New York theatre scene, far from it - there are some of the most supportive, creative, wonderful people here and I count myself lucky to know a whole bunch of them!  So, maybe what I've taken away from my trip is that, if I could combine the best parts of New York and London into one city, I would truly be in theatre geek heaven!  

I'm gonna get to work on that - I'll let you know how it goes!  

Next Time: Some exciting news about sheet music sales and what's going on this fall!

Oklahoma...and London?!

Wait, I have a blog on my web site?  I had NO idea!  But rather than a long rambling post about my lack of blogging stick-to-it-ive-ness, let's just move past the eight month gap and embrace August 2012!

As I type this, I find myself in Oklahoma City, OK.  This isn't a surprise - no teleportation was involved in getting me here and two flights on American Airlines from LaGuardia, no matter how on schedule, can't be called "sudden".  So, yes, I knew I was coming here, but there is an element of surprise when I wake up each morning and realize what state I am.  Adding to that is the reason I'm here - as I often do, I'm here with the lovely and talented Chita Rivera performing her concert show - for an entire week, no less!

I realize I'm straying dangerously close to stereotypes here, but I just didn't expect Oklahoma City to be able to support 6 performances in a very large theatre.  Rodgers' and Hammerstein's work aside, one does not often equate OKC with musical theatre!  But, the Lyric Theatre here has done an entire season of shows that Chita performed in - ranging from Sweet Charity to Call Me Madam and beyond. All culminating with the woman herself for six shows.  We've only done two thus far, but the audiences have been wonderful and, while I'm not sure I could ever enjoy the 108 degree heat they get a great deal of here, I must say that we're having fun and looking forward to the rest of the shows!

I return home to New York City on Sunday and then, only a few days later, I'm off to London!  And this trip is to make my London concert debut as a composer/lyricist - actually, it's the first time I've been to London for any reason, and I'm really looking forward to it!  A wonderful producer named Simon Greiff - who specializes in supporting writers - contacted me a few months back about doing An Evening with the Composers at the newly re-opened Hippodrome in London's West End.  On Sunday August 19th, Myself, Georgia Stitt and Scott Evan Davis will each be playing our own songs which will be sung by an amazing group of Brits - Kelly-Anne Gower, Lauren Samuels, Caroline Sheen, Stuart Matthew Price and Simon Thomas!  Not to mention a mini-choir from the Musical Theatre Academy in London!  It's going to be a great night and a wonderful introduction to London!

They'll be performing songs from Out of Context as well as a few old favorites -

On top of all of that, my album is now available at Dress Circle in the UK!  Although, sadly, the physical shop will be closing soon, their web site will live on and continue to be the place to get musical theatre albums in the UK - and I'm so thrilled that, in addition to carrying the Altar Boyz album and vocal selections, they now carry Out of Context!

I'll be taking my video camera to London and should have some fun footage of my adventures there - and if you're in London, please come see me at the Hippodrome on August 19th!  Get your tickets here!  And I swear I'm going to redouble my efforts to keep you updated on what's going on!  Next time, it's time to talk about a brand new show I wrote with the amazing Rick Elice! Stay tuned!

2011 Draws To A Close

I’ve never been a fan of the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day.  It always seems that the world stops spinning – or at least slows down – for the entire time.  While that’s not so bad for a little bit, I’m usually ready for the world to “start spinning” again well before it actually does.  Some of that has to do with my own version of “Buddy’s Blues”.  I’ve never been great at simply relaxing and doing nothing for long – except, of course, when I can’t relax or do nothing, in which case it’s all I can think about doing!

As luck would have it, I’ve had plenty to occupy me this year – rewrites, meetings, putting songs I’ve written down on paper – not to mention things like errands and bill paying and other all the other glamorous parts of being in show business.  But, to keep myself from having too much relaxation, I thought I’d take this time to look back on 2011 here in the old web site blog. 

It has been a busy year for me – the reading of my musical The Distant Bells at the Roundabout in March, continued writing of my new dance number for Radio City throughout the year, all of the work from start to finish on my Out of Context: The Songs of Michael Patrick Walker, and my first meetings up to the completion of the first draft of the new original musical I’m writing with Rick Elice. 

When I put it all in one block like that, it sounds like a very busy year – and it was.  But I’m struck by the fact that, before I wrote this blog, I was thinking I wished I had done more in 2011.  Funny how our perception of things can be different when we’re in the midst of them as opposed to being “outside” them.  Which, really, is my thought for the end of 2011 and the start of 2012.  It’s hard to appreciate things or to keep them in perspective while you’re in the midst of them.  I’m very fortunate in the opportunities I have and, while I – like most of us – want more opportunities and most success, I look back on 2011 with gratitude and excitement for what has been and what is yet to come. 

As we all go into 2012, I hope we all experience happiness, joy and fulfillment.  And, most of all, I hope that the Mayans were wrong…Happy New Year!

Video from Birdland #1

Just a quick post - I've started to upload some videos from my Birdland show last week to my brand new You Tube channel.  More to come but, for now, enjoy Andy Karl performing Never Added Up live!

Out of Context is finally here!

Well, it’s been two days since the official release of Out of Context: The Songs of Michael Patrick Walker.  I would’ve blogged about this on the actual day, but it’s taken me 48 hours to recover from the amazing release concert at Birdland!  I was definitely stressed out putting the show together – there were a lot of moving parts to manage and I had to handle pretty much all of them!  But, in the end, it was a huge success, it was all worth it and a fantastic crowd was on hand to help celebrate the release. 

Me at Birdland

I’ve performed at Birdland a number of times over the last few years – but always as a part of somebody else’s show and almost never with a show that had even one song that I wrote in it.  So to suddenly find myself on stage doing my own show of all my own material – and hosting and playing piano for it – was a big old jump in the deep end of the pool. 

Noah Galvin

It was made even better by being on stage with a group of amazing musicians and singers – all there to make me look better than I could ever look on my own!  I have to say a huge thank you to the singers who sang their hearts (and lungs!) out for me – Andy Karl, Betsy Wolfe, Jim Stanek, Kenita Miller, Julie Foldesi, Noah Galvin, Peter Friedman, John Tartaglia, Andy Mientus and Lauren Kennedy. 

Andy Mientus & John Tartaglia

And an equally huge thank you to the musicians who played every song with artistry and skill – Claudia Chopek, Clay Ruede, Mary Ann McSweeney, Brian Koonin and Michael Croiter.  And an extra special thank you to Michael Croiter and Yellow Sound Label for having faith in me and the album and being so amazing at every step of the process from day one.  I’m honored to have the album released on the Michael’s and Bill Sherman’s label. 

Kelli O'Hara records "Moonflower"

While the Birdland show was a huge project for the last month or so, it would not have happened without the album so I also need to thank the wonderful people who sang my songs on the CD itself – Anne L. Nathan, Kate Wetherhead, Andy Karl, Lisa Howard, Telly Leung, Michael Arden, Andy Mientus, Kelli O’Hara, Noah Galvin, Jim Stanek, Rachel York, Peter Friedman, Kerry O’Malley, Natalie Venetia Belcon and Cheyenne Jackson.

Finishing the album and doing the launch concert gives me a wonderful sense of accomplishment, but it’s also just the finish line on one project, so as much as I’d like to relax and kick back, it’s on to the next thing.  Right now, I’m in Costa Mesa, CA for a few days performing with Chita, then it’s back home to NYC for the opening night of the Radio City Christmas Spectacular and the premiere of my brand new Rockette number – I’ll be talking about that in an upcoming blog post. 

For now, though, jump on over to the Albums page and check out Out of Context – and don’t forget to buy your copy on Amazon or iTunes!

Out of Context #2

Well, things are really rolling now!  The physical CDs arrived yesterday and, while I've been looking forward to that moment for months, I was surprised how holding one in my hand actually hit me.  I've seen and heard everything about the CD a million times, so none of it is "new" to me, but there's something different about it actually existing in its final form that is very, very cool!

The press stuff is starting to ramp up both for the Birdland concert I'm doing on Monday November 7th at 7pm and for the release of the actual album the next day.  I've been doing some interviews which and polishing the orchestrations for the concert and it's coming down the line like a freight train, so we better be ready!  I've mentioned the amazing people singing on the album and doing he concert before, but the here is the track list for the CD:

1. All About Me - Anne L. Nathan
2. Weird Little Man - Kate Wetherhead
3. Never Added Up - Andy Karl
4. Irene - Lisa Howard
5. Different Kind of Man - Telly Leung and Michael Arden
6. More - Andy Mientus
7. Moonflower - Kelli O'Hara
8. Sometimes - Noah Galvin
9. Finding Me - Jim Stanek
10. Pour Poor Me - Rachel York
11. The Wall - Peter Friedman
12. Sometimes - Kerry O'Malley and Natalie Venetia Belcon
13. I Believe - Cheyenne Jackson

For the concert, Andy Karl, Peter Friedman, Andy Mientus, Jim Stanek and Noah Galvin will be there from the album as well as Ann Harada, Kenita Miller, Julie Foldesi, Betsy Wolfe, Lauren Kennedy, John Tartaglia and Tyler Maynard.  I'll be playing piano with Michael Croiter on drums, Brian Koonin on guitar, Mary Ann McSweeney on bass, Claudia Chopek on violin and Clay Ruede on cello.

You can't hear the CD quite yet, but if you go to amazon.com you can hear snippets and whet your appetite for the full album.  And come on down to Birdland (315 West 44th Street, NYC) this coming Monday November 7th and be the first to hear it all and get your own copy of Out of Context: The Songs of...well, me!

Out of Context #1

It's been far too long since I've updated things here - especially with all of the things I've been up to since my last post. Where to start, where to start...? How about here - I've spent much of the spring and summer planning for, recording and completing my first album, Out of Context: The Songs of Michael Patrick Walker. It's a collection of thirteen songs, pulled out of context from the shows they were written for and sung by an incredible group of Broadway singers. Make no mistake, putting together an album like this is a lot of work - both for me and the other people involved - but it's also a lot of fun to do!

Picking which songs to include, figuring out who best to sing them, arranging and orchestrating the songs, recording the band, the vocals, the overdubs, figuring out the cover art, mixing, re-mixing, etc, etc and on and on! It's a lot of work but I couldn't be happier with how it's all come out and I can't wait for everybody to hear the finished product. The official release date is Tuesday November 8th, 2011 and the album is being released on the Yellow Sound Label. It will be available on Amazon.com and iTunes as well as out of the trunk of my car...if had a car.

The album itself features a few songs from The Distant Bells, a few songs from my trunk, a song from being theo and maybe even a re-imagined version of an old favorite. I'll be talking alot about the album in the coming weeks but for now I want to share two things with you all. First, the cover which hasn't been widely released yet - and here it is:

I kind of love it and big thanks to Asaf Shakham, the graphic designer on the album who did a wonderful job bringing my concept for the cover to life. By the way, you haven't lived until you've spent a half hour "picking a penguin"...

The other thing I want to share right now is that I'll be doing a live concert at Birdland here in NYC on Monday November 7, 2011 at 7pm. Featuring live performances of many songs from the album, it will also be the first place you can buy a copy of the album - so I know you'll want to check that out! Info for the show is here:

Monday November 7th and 7pm

Broadway at Birdland, 315 West 44th Street

For reservations call 212-581-3080 or visit http://www.birdlandjazz.com/event/71183/

Broadway at Birdland Presented by Jim Caruso

I hope to see everybody there and check back often (must more often than every six months!) for updates on this and several other exciting projects I've got in the works!

29 Hours?! That's Crazy!

Yesterday afternoon was the reading of my new musical, The Distant Bells and, first and foremost I have to say that it went very well. But for those of you unfamiliar with these kinds of things, it was a 29-hour reading. That means it was a very basic reading of the show. The actors stand - most often at music stands - with a binder holding their script and score. There are no costumes, props, set or lights. There is no staging aside from standing up and moving to your music stand when you're in the scene and sitting down in your chair when you aren't. A stage direction reader helps to fill in anything the audience needs to know and wouldn't get from just a reading and the music is played by, in this case, a skeleton orchestra of piano and drums.

The 29-hour part comes from the fact that each actor is limited to 29 hours of rehearsal. Now, that might sound like a lot of hours per person, but it most definitely is not. When you consider how much music has to be taught, learned, worked and polished along with character and scene work, those 29 hours fly by like a monkey in Wicked. On top of that, the creative team is usually (as we were) making changes every day to improve and hone the piece. It's a crazy week and, frankly, it is a minor miracle that any 29-hour reading ever comes together - and yet, most of them do.

Finally, on the last day of the reading, people arrive - producers, actors, agents, friends, etc - to sit in metal chairs flat on the floor under the florescent lights and see the show. It's not anything close to what the show could/would ultimately be but, in many ways, it is the purest form the show will ever take. It is about the show, the story, the characters, the music, the lyrics, the dialogue and that's really about it. It is about the actors and their portrayal of the characters to an extent, but, even that is secondary because, in such a short rehearsal period, nobody expects fully realized performances.

More changes?! The cast of the

reading of The Distant Bells

So, in the end, we do these readings to "see if there's anything there". To learn from the living portrayal of the characters as embodied by the actors. To learn from the audience response. To learn from just hearing the material come alive. In some cases, the material proves weaker than you thought on the page. In some cases, the talent of the actors elevates the material and makes it seem better than it is. Figuring out which is which is a major challenge to a good creative team.

In the end, it remains to be seen if The Distant Bells will have a future life and, if it does, what form it will take and how it will all unfold. But, I do know that, yesterday, the amazingly talented cast did me very proud! I am so grateful and indebted to Chita Rivera, Ana Gasteyer, Rachel York, Andy Mientus, James Snyder, Chris Sieber and Jason Tam! The entire creative team and staff of course has my heartfelt thanks as well, but I must single out two people that I first worked with on Altar Boyz so many years ago - my music director, Lynne Shankel (who is brilliant and wonderful in so many ways) and my director, Stafford Arima (without whose tireless insight and talent I would never have survived!). Also, a big thank you to Todd Haimes, Jill Rafson, Stephen Kopel and the Roundabout Theatre for allowing us to do this reading under their auspices.

As I relax today I find myself torn between quoting two things from the show. The first one is the last lyric in the show: "Okay, time to see what happens next". And the second is the first spoken line of the show: "Men are like Picassos - most of them are fucked up". I wrote them both and, even though the second one doesn't apply to this moment, I just like it, so I'm gonna keep them both in my head for now!

GLAAD Spirit Day - 10/20/10

My intent in having a blog on my website was to talk about my life as a composer/lyricist/writer and update people on my projects - in other words, self-promotion.

But today I'm writing for a much, much more important reason. I'm writing in honor of GLAAD's Spirit Day - a national day to help bring an end to anti-GLBT bullying.

This topic has gotten a fair amount of attention lately due to a number of tragic suicides of college, high school and junior high school students - all of whom were bullied for being, or "seeming" to be, gay. The stories of these young people have been told - for the most part with the respect they deserve - and the details of the anguish and despair they felt has affected millions of people. It is horribly sad that we can no longer do anything for those who felt they had no other option but to take their own lives. Even sadder that there were people who could've done something, but didn't.

Then, there are the "villains" of the stories - the bullies who pushed them to the brink and beyond. These bullies did a variety of things - ranging from "bad" to "despicable" - and they should be held responsible for their actions. But my thoughts have been running a different direction. Specifically, where did these bullies learn that it was "okay" to do what they did. Oh sure, there are bad apples in every barrel as the more folksy among you might say, but ever bully isn't a psychopath. In fact, almost none of them are.

The big problem with anti-GLBT bullying in this country today is NOT that rogue bullies are doing something society finds universally unacceptable. The problem is that too many people still regard this kind of bullying as perfectly acceptable. When I say that, I am, of course, talking about teachers, other adults and fellow students who look the other way when one kid calls another "faggot", but it goes much deeper than that.

We, as a country and a society are sending a message to children and to each other. When we deny gay men and women the same rights as straight men and women we are sending a message - the message that being gay means you are "less than" and, therefore, worthy of mistreatment or even contempt. When gay men and women are refused equal treatment in the eyes of the law, what else are we saying other than "not worthy" or, at the very least, "not AS worthy"?

A significant problem has been brought to the forefront in these last tragic weeks, but it isn't WHAT the bullies did. It is WHY they did it. And the answer is - they were told it was acceptable.

I - along with many, many others - am wearing purple today as suggested by GLAAD to bring attention to this issue. But when everyone goes back to wearing whatever color they want tomorrow, I hope we don't lose site of the real problem and how we all need to work to fix it.

What Have We Learned?

Well, here I am - it's my birthday and, as tends to happen on my birthday, I'm another year older. According to conventional thought, age brings you wisdom - though, if you read the fine print, there is no guarantee! So I thought I'd crack open the old brain and see if that's true in my case.

So, what have we learned...?

Well...I can't speak for you all, but I have learned...

1. that a 4-hour drive will always seem longer one direction than the other

2. that drilling into drywall can work out okay - but not often

3. that writing a song can be a wonderful thing

4. that not getting a return phone call always means something - but not always what you think it means

5. that writing a song can be a pain in the ass

6. that grabbing the bull by the horns is usually better than grabbing it by the tail

7. that collaboration is a two-way street, but a few lanes are usually closed for construction

8. that cereal is an awesome way to start your day

9. that you have to be your own advocate

10. that, in some ways, high school never ends

11. that midtown is great but so is "not midtown"

12. that some idiot will always stop right at the top of the escalator to look around

13. that friends can surprise you

14. that surprises can be good or bad

15. that telling stories is hard, but it still beats the hell out of most other jobs

16. that support is something you really only get from good underwear

17. that owning a bike is not the same as riding a bike

18. that a good view and sunlight is not to be underestimated

19. that shaving is annoying

20. that nothing - NOTHING - beats a sleep number bed

21. that actions speak louder than words, but screaming nut jobs speak louder than actions

22. that healthy is a relative thing

23. that I need to read more

24. that we all need to read more

25. that Quizno's kicks Subway's ass

26. that I can sort of cook

27. that I know the score, but not always the game

28. that imagination is often in short supply

29. that you should always hire professional painters and movers

30. that I can write more than one show at once

31. that I still know lyrics to songs I haven't heard in 20 years

32. that little things mean a lot (thanks Edith Lindeman and Carl Stutz)

33. that I am impatient

34. that it's annoying it took so long to get to #34 - sheesh!

35. that a drink with friends is the perfect evening

36. that I have a lot

37. that I want more

38. that that's a good thing

39. that the best is yet to come (thanks Carolyn Leigh and Cy Coleman)

Finished! Let's get started...

Back in February, I did a table read of my latest musical, The Distant Bells. I hate table reads. I love table reads. I love-hate table reads. I love them because it's an invaluable way to gain insight into a show I'm writing. Nothing helps me take a step back and focus on all pictures (big, little and everywhere in between) than sitting in a room and hearing actors read through the show. On top of that, it is the least difficult type of reading - rent a studio, call up some actors you know and away you go.

Which is why I hate table reads. Actors can easily sit down and read a part in a script without much preparation - well, many actors can. It won't be a nuanced and fully realized performance of course, but that's not the point of a table read. They can get through the show, bring something to it and help you see the characters in a different way - all by cold-reading the script with other actors. What actors can't do - even the most amazing, professional, talented and wonderful ones - is "cold-sing" a score they've never heard before. It would be...let's say "unfortunate" to try and most likely depressing to me, the actors and any passers-by in the hallway outside the studio.

But, love 'em or hate 'em, a table read is valuable - especially when the show is just not ready yet for a week-long reading or workshop.

So, after the table read in February, I suggested we set a self-imposed deadline of June 1st for another draft of the show incorporating all we learned from the table read and the things we already knew before it. A lot of things changed - and I mean a LOT of things! - between February and June 1st. It wasn't always easy nor did it always move forward quickly, but, we got to June 1st and we now have a draft which took us several significant steps forward from February.

Great! Finished! Crack open the champagne, get your suit tailored for opening night, kick back and enjoy! Right? right...?

Not quite.

Though I've been working on, outlining, plotting, writing and rewriting The Distant Bells off and on for just under two years now, the June 1st draft is really the "first draft" of the show. Oh, there have been many, many drafts before this one. But none that successfully realized the two separate but complimentary ideas for a musical (one mine, one the book writer's) which became the show I hope you'll all see on stage someday soon!

So, what DO I do when a draft is finished...well, a few days after this draft was done I did a reboot on the third song in the show. I didn't write a completely new song, but made big lyrical, tonal and musical changes to an existing one to set up the relationships between the characters better.

Yup - that's right, I'm finished with the first draft of The Distant Bells...which means it's time to get to work on the next draft...and the next draft...and the next draft...

Creative North

I suppose it was inevitable - if you start a blog, you end up writing at least a few entries that start with an apology for how long it's been since the last time you blogged. But, really, my blog (and website for that matter) are still in their infancy, so at least I only need to apologize to a relatively small group of people.

So, sorry it's been so long since I...you get the idea.

As I write this, I'm sitting in Key West, Florida - a very odd place from what I've seen. Sort of an odd mix of nature and white trash and gays and alcohol and palm trees and birds that sound like owls but, apparently, are not. You see why that isn't their tourism slogan, but it's pretty accurate. By the way, if you didn't know - and there's not real reason you should - Key West is home to the southernmost point in the continental United States. A location that is marked with a large...painted...thing:

So, upon arriving last night, I dutifully went there and took some pictures, squinted my eyes to see if I could see Cuba (no way in hell) and then made my way, well, north. It may seem a bit of a leap (or perhaps just overly poetic) that, as I walked, I started thinking about something I've often believed in and which I've termed the Creative Compass. Simply put, the Creative Compass (or CC) is the internal sense I try to maintain when I'm writing - a show, a song, a lyric, etc.

Tricky part about the CC is that, unlike a normal compass, North on the CC can sometimes move - and, sometimes, that is a good thing. The tricky part is figuring out when that movement is true and right and when it is a symptom of losing your direction - whether through inside or outside sources.

Believe me, there are many good reasons that things change - as you write, a show or a song or a character morphs naturally and clinging to an "old" version of any of those things can ultimately hurt the show. But so can moving to a "new" version for the wrong reason. North on the CC can't be determined by outside factors...but it also can be.

Kind of a pain, right? At least when I walked north from the southernmost point last night, I knew where I was going - of course, thousands and thousands of people had walked that path before so it was pretty easy.

I suppose finding a new path is always more of a challenge - and, generally, much, much more worth it. Long live the Creative Compass! Here ends the reading for today.

Closer or Farther Away...?

As some of you know, I did a table read of my new show, The Distant Bells, about a week and a half ago. My frequent collaborator and director of the show, Stafford Arima, assembled a wonderfully talented group of actors - Nancy Opel, Kate Baldwin, Michelle Ragusa, Matt Doyle, Andy Karl, Kasey Marino and Christopher Williams - to read the script and I made a "quick and dirty" recording of me singing through the score. No audience - just the actors, writers and director. The idea being, we get to hear the piece, basically start to finish, and assess where we are. Does the story work? Are the characters well-drawn? How does the book integrate with the score? Are the songs landing? And a hundred other questions...

I almost always learn a lot from these kinds of readings. They can be very exciting and encouraging or very upsetting and discouraging - or almost anywhere in between! So, where did this reading fall in the continuum? Well...

In the "big picture world", as opposed to the last reading we did - about 9 months ago - this time, the basic story and characters are working. Both will continue to evolve and change as the writing process continues, but it's a positive step forward that our 4 principal characters and plot/story are heading in the right direction.

Looking at the "small picture" things - ie, everything else! - there are also many positive things in both the score and book. It's not a surprise that the second half of the show has more problems than the first half - To quote Mrs. Potts, that's a tale as old as time! Not to say that the first half of the show is ready for opening night - we've got a long list of things to rewrite, tighten, focus, etc, etc, etc.

Writing is hard, but rewriting is where I think most shows ultimately live or die. Does that song work or not? Is that scene overwritten? It can be as "simple" as a line or two or as complicated as having the guts to throw out 10 pages and start over. And the choices you make will have a domino effect that might not be obvious for months down the line.

Sounds fun, right?

Funny thing is, it really can be! Frustrating too, but, if you want to tell a story, it's all part of it. And, remember, The Distant Bells is a totally original musical, not based on any source material so, when we go back to "square one" about something, we end up looking at a very, very white piece of paper!

Ok, you got me - I'm not giving away too many specific details about the show's good or bad points or even characters and story! Part of that is not to give things away for when you (hopefully!) see it one day. But I'm also a bit superstitious about letting too much of the cat out of the bag before the cat is ready for prime time...to mix a metaphor or two! So I don't like to say too much too early...

...but, as we continue to write and shape the show, I will say that I'm optimistic that a reading - a real reading where the actors sing and we invite an audience - could happen in the next few months. There are a lot of factors that will determine that of course, but it is possible that The Distant Bells might be getting"closer", little by little...

Name Dropper!

Don't you hate it when people pepper their conversation with random famous names? Usually these famous names are tossed out in such a way as to imply that their fame is insignificant to the speaker - as if it just happened to come up in conversation. It can get really old, really fast - especially if it happens often.

Annoying, right?

But here's the thing - today's blog entry is about somebody famous that I'm fortunate enough to get to work with. I could go through the entire entry using pronouns or non-specific phrases, but that would almost make it worse. The herculean effort people put into NOT dropping a name is more annoying than just saying it and moving on! So, watch your toes and clear some space, cause here it comes...

The funny part is, the reason I bring her up isn't because she's famous - not really. But you'll see what I mean soon enough...

I first worked with Chita when she did a guest spot on "Johnny and the Sprites". She played the part of the Queen of All Magical Creatures and, when her character appeared, she was greeted by a song I wrote called Welcome to Grotto's Grove. The song was mostly sung TO her, but she briefly joined in at the end, so I found myself at a recording studio with Chita to pre-record her vocals. She only sang a few lines in the song, but there was something very surreal about hearing her voice - that distinctive voice - singing something I had written. To this day, one of the most exciting theatrical experiences of my life as an audience member was seeing her in Kiss of the Spider Woman the day after she won the Tony award for her performance.

A few months after "Sprites", I was approached about briefly filling in for her music director for some concerts and club gigs - and I jumped at the chance. I learned her show - a combination of showtunes she made famous, standards and stories about her career - and did 2 concerts in large theatres as well as a 2 week run at the Rrazz Room - a more intimate "club" venue in downtown San Francisco. A little over a year later, they asked me to return as her regular pianist and I'll be doing various concerts with her in 2010, including an exciting night at Jazz at Lincoln Center on Saturday March 6!

(L-R) Jim Donica, Chita Rivera, Me & Michael Croiter

In Sarasota, FL - January 20, 2010

Working and performing with her has been a wonderful thing, but what surprised me more than perhaps it should have, was how creatively energizing she was to me. I 'm not telling any secrets when I say that Chita has been performing for a long time! And that doesn't happen unless you have something very special - and she does! In the several years I've worked with her off and on, I've never seen her just "sing" a song. She is invested in everything she performs - every song she sings is acted and interpreted and given such care, and yet it is never overdone or anything other than appropriate for the moment. It is extremely impressive! I still find myself carried away by her performance - no matter what the audience is like, no matter how tired we are or aren't, no matter how...anything. When she is on that stage, performing, you clearly see why she was, is and continues to be who she is!

And that's the funny part about it - in regards to everything I've said, she really does just "happen to be famous". I would write the same thing and get the same thrill from any actor and performer who brought the level of dedication and craft and joy and commitment to her performance. It really is something to behold and an honor and a thrill to be a part of.

So, if you wanna say this entry was me being a name dropper, that's fine - but, in a business that's as cynical and jaded as it can be, I will gladly risk the "name dropper" moniker to remind myself of the excitement, the thrill and the joy of why I do what I do. All of which is embodied in the life, career, personality and performance of...

Chita Rivera

(For info on my upcoming appearances with Chita, click on the News button at the top of your screen.)

Adaptation

Over the last few years, I've been asked to consider writing a few musicals which would have been adaptations - from books, movies, etc. Some I was excited about - the source material seemed rife with possibilities for musicalization. Others, I didn't see working out. As it turns out, I'm not working on any of those proposed projects, but I have thought alot lately about musicals that started out as something else.

I want to be clear on this from the start - I see nothing fundamentally wrong, bad or distasteful about a musical being adapted from another source. It's been going on for a long time and, when it is done well and wisely, it can lead to a really wonderful musical. In fact, one of my favorite musicals of all time, Little Shop of Horrors, was based on a movie. But in that oddball little show lies what I regard as the key to adaptations - imagination.

Take a look at the movie version of Little Shop of Horrors - certain characters and plot points will be familiar, but the musical is a very different animal from the movie - and that's a really, really good thing. It's not a good movie! The writers of the musical - Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman - were able to see imagine and create an entirely new musical world. If they had lacked imagination - or lacked sufficient imagination - they might never have written the show or, worse yet, they might have written a straight "musical version" of the film without adapting it at all! Horrors indeed!

There are other more recent examples of well-done adaptations, but there are also - as I'm sure you've noticed - plenty of examples where it didn't go so well. Writing a musical is never easy, but, when it comes to adaptations, it sure is easier to regurgitate a movie on stage with some songs thrown in. It might even be successful - depending on how you measure success that is. (Sadly, laziness is no guarantee of failure nor is imagination a guarantee of success!) But when laziness trumps imagination, we get lazy shows, lazy producers, lazy actors and, eventually, uniformly lazy audiences.

So am I suggesting that, from now on, we do nothing but original musicals, not based on any source material? Of course not! If a show is well written and works on stage, it doesn't matter where it came from. But we need to care more about the quality of the shows being done - big shows, little shows, cheap shows, expensive shows - all kinds, all musical styles and all types of stories.

It is a sad bit of irony that, in the entertainment industry, creativity and imagination are often valued less than what I will charitably call "the easy road". We need, as an industry, to try harder, aim higher and do better. And making that level of work the norm will take the most imagination and be the biggest adaptation of them all!

(On a related note, check out my Media page to listen to a demo recording of the song " Different Kind of Man" which I wrote for a potential musical version of the indy film, Kinky Boots.)

Write a lot of new stuff...rewrite old stuff

Lately, I've been doing a lot of work on the score for The Distant Bells. I wrote the first song for Bells about a year and a half ago. Of course, I put that song in my trunk awhile back, but I digress. At this point, working on the score is an interesting combination of writing brand new songs for brand new moments and rewriting and retooling old songs which still fit, but not quite as well as they used to. When you first begin writing a show, it's all new. And when you get to previews - if you get to previews - then, though you may be rewriting like mad, it's almost all "old".

In between those two fence posts though, it's a mixed bag. I'm almost always working on old and new things at the same time. It's a constant battle as to which I love or hate more - sometimes old beats new and sometimes the other way around. And sometimes they both lose to the Wii in the other room...but I digress!

When I'm working on an old song - rewriting, revising or retooling it - it can be very exciting. It is a wonderful feeling when I feel that I'm "almost there" or that I just have "one more piece of the puzzle" before I can put my pencil down, play through the last section and take a satisfying drink of my international coffee. Then there are the times where rewriting a song feels like I'm walking into a run-down fixer upper of a house when I really want to see the brand new shiny place across the street.

When I'm working on a new song - well, that can be very exciting too! Finally tackling a new moment in the show that has been crying out for a song is what it's all about. Of course, writing new material isn't all joy and rapture. Sometimes, an idea is all I need. I crack "the nut" and the musical and lyrical ideas start to flow. Inspiration hits and a song seems to write itself. Ok, that almost never happens. It would be nice if it did, but... Don't get me wrong, an idea is important. But an idea on its own is like a friend with ADHD who gives you remodeling suggestions. Sure his comments about "knocking down that wall" might give you something to think about, but he's nowhere to be found when you start swinging your sledge hammer!

So, back to rewriting the old material. The idea is already there and I've fleshed it out - and that's nice. But the old material also comes with the baggage of what the song already is or once was or maybe could be.

Back to the new stuff! It's exciting to ponder what the "in" for a moment or a song might be. The possibilities are exciting and good and pure and hopeful and frustrating and scary and annoying!

Suddenly I have the strongest urge to call Carrie Fisher and tell her I know how she feels...

But, such is the glamorous life of a writer - or at least this writer. I dunno, maybe other writers get up in the morning and trip over their pianos and toe-stub out a song by accident...but I doubt it...

Check out one of the "in progress" songs from The Distant Bells entitled "What Margaret Thinks" - just click on the Media button at the top of your screen!

The End of an Era

The official announcement will be made today that the Off Broadway production of Altar Boyz will close on Sunday January 10th, 2010 following the 7:30pm show. It will have played 16 previews and 2032 regular performances over a period of almost 5 years, making it the 9th longest running Off Broadway musical off all time - the 8th longest by my count, but that's another story!

Every show eventually posts a closing notice - whether after 1 performance or after thousands. Altar Boyz is no exception and, right or wrong, its time has come. But being the first show I wrote that was professionally produced, Altar Boyz will always hold a special place in my heart.

The show was written and re-written over a period of years and, as with any show, we had our share of drama and difficulties along the way. Simply put, the show did not work for a long time. We had many readings, but every one of them was...well, let's go with "problematic".

Eventually, Gary Adler, Kevin Del Aguila and I hunkered down with our director, Stafford Arima, in my old apartment on 47th street and made a last-ditch effort to write a show that worked. We didn't emerge from that studio apartment-sized cocoon with the finished script and score in our bruised and bloodied hands, but we did take several giant steps forward - in many ways the first real steps toward the creation of the musical that, for a little while longer at least, plays 8 times a week on west 50th street.

Writing Altar Boyz wasn't easy - but I doubt writing a musical is ever easy. But, at a reading we did in late July 2004, for the very first time, the show actually worked! Lynne Shankel, our music director, always made the boyz sound great, but this time, the songs and script were working together and the characters came alive.

Barely a month later, when we began to rehearse for the NYMF production, Christopher Gattelli began to add the choreography and another crucial element to the show began to take shape. When the show was performed for, ultimately, 8 performances in September, 2004, the packed houses laughed, cheered and cried in a way we had dreamed, but never really dared to hope, they would.

Between the end of the NYMF run and the start of rehearsals for the Off Broadway production, we continued to rewrite the show - completely throwing out one song, making changes to others, and refining and tightening the book and the show as a whole.

Our long-time lead producers, Ken Davenport and Robyn Goodman, set countless wheels in motion while raising money and bringing other producing partners into the fold. We visited several theatres with them to find the right space for the show and plans were made at a furious pace.

Meanwhile our wonderful design team - including Natasha Katz (lighting), Anna Louizos (set), Simon Matthews (sound), Gail Brassard (costumes), Kathy Fabian (Props), and Doug Katsaros & Lynne Shankel (orchestrations) - worked tirelessly, with Stafford at the helm.

Cheyenne Jackson, who played the role of Matthew at the NYMF, had moved on to another project but our amazing new Matthew, Scott Porter, began rehearsals with us on Tuesday January 18, 2005. The rest of the NYMF cast - Ryan Duncan (Juan), David Josefsburg (Abraham), Andy Karl (Luke) and Tyler Maynard (Mark) - joined us on January 25th. Along the way, our two original swings (Daniel Torres and Kevin Kern) came into the mix and, before we knew it, we were in tech.

Our first preview was on February 15th and, on March 1, 2005, six weeks to the day from our first rehearsal with Scott, Altar Boyz had its opening night Off Broadway. The many things that happened between that day and today are too numerous and varied to list. But it doesn't really matter because that's the part of the story you already know - that is the life of the show.

Many actors, musicians, stage managers, crew members and staff have made the show happen 8 times a week for the past 5 years, through good times and bad. Earlier, I mentioned our talented original cast. They were on stage when it all began, but have all moved on to other projects long ago. So when the last performance occurs in a few weeks, our wonderful final cast will be made up of Michael Kadin Craig (Matthew), Travis Nesbitt (Mark), Lee Markham (Luke), Mauricio Perez (Juan) and Ravi Roth (Abraham) with swings Mitch Dean and Tommaso Antico as well as Joey Khoury our long-time dance captain who will have just left the show.

I'm enormously proud of Altar Boyz and the amazing run it's had, and I can't ever fully explain all it has meant to me, all I have learned from it, and all that has changed both for me and in me because of it.

So I'll simply end with one of the first lyrics I ever wrote for the show and one of the last lyrics that will be sung at the final performance:

Take a picture of me now

Take a look at who I am

Yesterday I wasn't half as strong

Take a picture of us all

What we've been and what we are

Look at that and tell me I'm wrong

I Believe...

Welcome to the All New MPW Website

Welcome to my first blog entry for my brand new web site!

It's been several months in the making, but it is finally here. Use the links at the top of your screen to check out the Projects Page for info on shows I've written so far and for a sneak peak of some projects that are on their way. The Media Page is the place to find audio and video samples of some of my work. I'll keep you up to date both here on the Blog Page as well as on the News Page. And, of course, you can click the links above to follow me on Twitter or join my fan group on Facebook. And, as if that weren't enough, head to the Contact Page to send me an e-mail and I'll do my best to answer your questions.

That's right, it's a promotional bonanza here at my new web site! And there's more to come, so thanks for stopping by, welcome and I hope to see you soon!