“THERE’S A TRAIN A-COMIN” from WE FOXES
From We Foxes in Concert at 54 Below (Video 5 of 8)
Performed by F. MICHAEL HAYNIE, KERSTIN ANDERSON, KATIE THOMPSON
And WILL ERAT, CORY JEACOMA, JOHN-MICHAL LYLES, ANDI ALHADEFF, VICTORIA HUSTON-ELM
Sheriff Quimby and his beloved wife Vesta are dead. The town learns that their adopted daughter, Willa, is responsible. One tramp, Mr. Sallow, is asked to tell what he knows about the orphan girl Willa. Four years earlier, Willa, a young teenager, lives the tramp life on the road with her brother, George. But George is hauled away to war, leaving Willa without a soul in this world to guide her. Vesta Quimby adopts Willa, indoctrinating her into a glamorous world of privilege and class. Yet that isn’t Willa; Willa comes from road people, and once her brother returns from the war, she’ll have her real family again.
On Tuesday, October 27th 2015, RSO performed the premiere of a new song at Lincoln Center Originals: Songwriters. Check out the full video over on Broadway World and read the lyrics below:
“NEW PICTURES”
Matthew always dreamed of dancing with ABT…
That is, of course, American Ballet Theatre.
(Which I thought it was a college because I’m dumb.)
He’d studied since a kid, and worked his ass off,
And then it happened. It ALL happened.
He had this picture in his head
Of dancing at the Met.
And by seventeen he’d joined that scene
In tights and T-shirt stained with sweat.
Building stacks of broken shoes,
Every day a brand new bruise,
A life’s goal attained so fast!
But what’s a dream to do
When it’s finished coming true?
The picture of his life didn’t — couldn’t last.
Cuz the picture in your head
Never ends like you expect.
And four years in, room starts to spin,
He stayed home sick, his body wrecked.
Sure, he thought, a minor bug,
But after weeks, and still a slug,
The docs called it Epstein-Barre.
Goodbye the dreams of ballet star…
Goodbye … goodbye …
He was lost. Everything he worked for,
Gone!
All the pieces smashed asunder,
Left eighteen months to wonder
What would he do now?
What would he do now?
With his picture just a shred,
He was jobless, with no hope.
But that wasn’t him, and so on a whim
He bought a camera, just to cope.
Slow at first, but then some speed —
He knew the passion it took to feed
A skill, whether dance or art —
He knew how much time, how much heart —
He was found. Suddenly the work came
Fast!
Putting pieces in position,
Reigniting old ambition,
He was an artist once again and how!
And now —
We have a picture by our bed
Of him dancing at the Met.
Now he shoots the shows, and Broadway knows
He’s the go-to-guy, good as they get.
He taught me life may change your art,
But it can never change your heart.
The real test, he came to see:
The picture of a dream can fade…
But the point is, new pictures get made.
He made new art
With his new life with me.
“CITY OF ANGELS” from WE FOXES
From We Foxes in Concert at 54 Below (Video 6 of 8)
Performed by NIC ROULEAU
Sheriff Quimby and his beloved wife Vesta are dead. The town learns that their adopted daughter, Willa, is responsible. One tramp, Mr. Sallow, is asked to tell what he knows about the orphan girl Willa. Four years earlier, Willa, a young teenager, lives the tramp life on the road with her brother, George. But George is hauled away to war, leaving Willa without a soul in this world to guide her. Vesta Quimby adopts Willa, indoctrinating her into a glamorous world of privilege and class. Yet that isn’t Willa; Willa comes from road people, and once her brother returns from the war, she’ll have her real family again.
“SORROW DONE” from WE FOXES
From We Foxes in Concert at 54 Below (Video 2 of 8)
Performed by KERSTIN ANDERSON
Sheriff Quimby and his beloved wife Vesta are dead. The town learns that their adopted daughter, Willa, is responsible. One tramp, Mr. Sallow, is asked to tell what he knows about the orphan girl Willa. Four years earlier, Willa, a young teenager, lives the tramp life on the road with her brother, George. But George is hauled away to war, leaving Willa without a soul in this world to guide her. Vesta Quimby adopts Willa, indoctrinating her into a glamorous world of privilege and class. Yet that isn’t Willa; Willa comes from road people, and once her brother returns from the war, she’ll have her real family again.
“THE MAD DOG” from WE FOXES
From We Foxes in Concert at 54 Below (Video 7 of 8)
Performed by KERSTIN ANDERSON
Sheriff Quimby and his beloved wife Vesta are dead. The town learns that their adopted daughter, Willa, is responsible. One tramp, Mr. Sallow, is asked to tell what he knows about the orphan girl Willa. Four years earlier, Willa, a young teenager, lives the tramp life on the road with her brother, George. But George is hauled away to war, leaving Willa without a soul in this world to guide her. Vesta Quimby adopts Willa, indoctrinating her into a glamorous world of privilege and class. Yet that isn’t Willa; Willa comes from road people, and once her brother returns from the war, she’ll have her real family again.
“I HAVE SEEN THE AFTER” from ROPE
From Rope in Concert at 54 Below (2 of 8)
Performed by ETHAN CARLSON, CORY JEACOMA with IAN FAIRLEE, MARY CLAIRE MISKELL, DAVID PARK and DANIEL YEARWOOD
America, during the Civil War, 1864. They are an unlikely pair: Clay, a gang-thief determined to find life’s fortune alone; and Szajda (“Shy”), a ghostly Jew with an Irish accent, blind but possessing a remarkable power. Yet they become tied at the waist with a length of rope, stuck together on a desperate quest through a Civil war-torn America. As their journey begins, each boy struggles to understand the stranger beside him.
“THE ROAD EVERLASTING” from WE FOXES
From We Foxes in Concert at 54 Below (Video 1 of 8)
Performed by F. MICHAEL HAYNIE, KERSTIN ANDERSON, KATIE THOMPSON
And WILL ERAT, CORY JEACOMA, JOHN-MICHAL LYLES, ANDI ALHADEFF, VICTORIA HUSTON-ELM
Sheriff Quimby and his beloved wife Vesta are dead. The town learns that their adopted daughter, Willa, is responsible. One tramp, Mr. Sallow, is asked to tell what he knows about the orphan girl Willa. Four years earlier, Willa, a young teenager, lives the tramp life on the road with her brother, George. But George is hauled away to war, leaving Willa without a soul in this world to guide her. Vesta Quimby adopts Willa, indoctrinating her into a glamorous world of privilege and class. Yet that isn’t Willa; Willa comes from road people, and once her brother returns from the war, she’ll have her real family again.
“THE STRANGER” from ROPE
From Rope in Concert at 54 Below (1 of 8)
Performed by ETHAN CARLSON, CORY JEACOMA with IAN FAIRLEE, MARY CLAIRE MISKELL, DAVID PARK and DANIEL YEARWOOD
America, during the Civil War, 1864. They are an unlikely pair: Clay, a gang-thief determined to find life’s fortune alone; and Szajda (“Shy”), a ghostly Jew with an Irish accent, blind but possessing a remarkable power. Yet they become tied at the waist with a length of rope, stuck together on a desperate quest through a Civil war-torn America. As their journey begins, each boy struggles to understand the stranger beside him.
“THEM BEASTS” from WE FOXES
From We Foxes in Concert at 54 Below (Video 3 of 8)
Performed by KATIE THOMPSON
Sheriff Quimby and his beloved wife Vesta are dead. The town learns that their adopted daughter, Willa, is responsible. One tramp, Mr. Sallow, is asked to tell what he knows about the orphan girl Willa. Four years earlier, Willa, a young teenager, lives the tramp life on the road with her brother, George. But George is hauled away to war, leaving Willa without a soul in this world to guide her. Vesta Quimby adopts Willa, indoctrinating her into a glamorous world of privilege and class. Yet that isn’t Willa; Willa comes from road people, and once her brother returns from the war, she’ll have her real family again.
“ALWAYS LOVE” from ROPE
From Rope in Concert at 54 Below (7 of 8)
Performed by ALEX WYSE & ALEX BONIELLO
At the climax of their journey, loyalties are tested and sacrifices must be made. In a cold world where brother must fight brother, Clay and Shy dream of a future together, lifelong companions and brothers forever.
“MAP OF SCARS” from WE FOXES
From We Foxes in Concert at 54 Below (Video 4 of 8)
Performed by KERSTIN ANDERSON
Sheriff Quimby and his beloved wife Vesta are dead. The town learns that their adopted daughter, Willa, is responsible. One tramp, Mr. Sallow, is asked to tell what he knows about the orphan girl Willa. Four years earlier, Willa, a young teenager, lives the tramp life on the road with her brother, George. But George is hauled away to war, leaving Willa without a soul in this world to guide her. Vesta Quimby adopts Willa, indoctrinating her into a glamorous world of privilege and class. Yet that isn’t Willa; Willa comes from road people, and once her brother returns from the war, she’ll have her real family again.
“DARKNESS” from ROPE
From Rope in Concert at 54 Below (8 of 8)
Performed by CLAYBOURNE ELDER
The conclusion of the story sees one of the boys sacrificing his own life for the other. The surviving boy must take the broken, frayed rope, and understand how to move on, alone. He takes the rope in hand and ties it around himself, the two souls becoming one in an eternal embrace.
“WHAT YA CALL FREEDOM” from ROPE
From Rope in Concert at 54 Below (6 of 8)
Performed by MARY CLAIRE MISKELL
Later in the story, Shy meets his long lost sister, Stefa, who has an affinity for dressing up in boys clothes. Stefa’s best friend is the slave Reggie, and she dreams of a world where her mother will free Reggie and all the slaves, and maybe even Stefa can find her own sort of freedom.
“WE FOXES” from WE FOXES
From We Foxes in Concert at 54 Below (Video 8 of 8)
Performed by KERSTIN ANDERSON and NIC ROULEAU
Sheriff Quimby and his beloved wife Vesta are dead. The town learns that their adopted daughter, Willa, is responsible. One tramp, Mr. Sallow, is asked to tell what he knows about the orphan girl Willa. Four years earlier, Willa, a young teenager, lives the tramp life on the road with her brother, George. But George is hauled away to war, leaving Willa without a soul in this world to guide her. Vesta Quimby adopts Willa, indoctrinating her into a glamorous world of privilege and class. Yet that isn’t Willa; Willa comes from road people, and once her brother returns from the war, she’ll have her real family again.
“MY LASS, SHE TIED HER LACE TO ME” from ROPE
From Rope in Concert at 54 Below (4 of 8)
Performed by CORY JEACOMA, IAN FAIRLEE, DAVID PARK and DANIEL YEARWOOD
The pivotal moment when Clay chooses to tie to Shy, giving his friend sight. The onstage band of storytellers, The Daybreak Boys, blesses their union with a song.
“I GO ON WITH YOU” from ROPE
From Rope in Concert at 54 Below (5 of 8)
Performed by CHARLIE FRANKLIN and MATTHEW MCFARLAND
Clay vows to get Shy home to Virginia, escaping the vicious gangs of New York and pushing a path into the heart of the Civil War. Yet with all the danger ahead of them, Clay and Shy vow to journey together come what may.
“ALL MEN ARE TIED TOGETHER” from ROPE
From Rope in Concert at 54 Below (3 of 8)
Performed by MAURICE MURPHY with IAN FAIRLEE, MARY CLAIRE MISKELL, DAVID PARK and DANIEL YEARWOOD
Along the journey, Daniel, the man who practically raised Shy, offers Shy and Clay a final sermon that despite their differences, in this life all men must bond together, for only then, may true brotherhood be found.
Ryan Scott Oliver and librettist Ethan Lipton have been named as winners of the 33rd Annual Kleban Prize for Musical Theatre by The Kleban Foundation. Each winner receives $100, 000.
Past winners have included Jason Robert Brown (Parade, The Last Five Years), John Bucchino (A Catered Affair, It’s Only Life), Jeff Marx and Robert Lopez (Avenue Q), Michael John LaChiusa (Giant, See What I Wanna See, The Wild Party), and John Weidman (Pacific Overtures, Road Show, Assassins).
This spring has been incredibly challenging (the pandemic), changing (#BLM!), and finally prideful for us all. Here are a few RSO updates.
THE RHINEBECK WRITER’S RETREAT SELECTS RSO & ADAM CHANLER-BERAT
The new collaborators are at work revising Rope together during a digital retreat this summer. Find out more, including who the other recipients are, here.
SIGNAL CONCERT
RSO was thrilled to join Duncan Sheik and an incredible roster of writers for SIGNAL IV, a concert on YouTube presented by Adam Lenson (who directed RSO’s 35MM at the Other Palace in London in 2017). Kerstin Anderson performed “Bleed You Dry” from Three Points of Contact. Check out more about the event here, and watch Kerstin’s performance below at the 2’00″00 (2 hour) mark.
BROADWAY RECORDS RELEASED ‘ARTIST IN RESIDENCE’
RSO, Alan Menken, Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, Adam Gwon, and many others wrote songs for Artists in Residence, songs by writers during the quarantine. RSO penned “What a Thought” for his upcoming EP based on tales by the queen of classic horror Shirley Jackson, and the shocking, murderous comedy song was performed by Jay Armstrong Johnson. You can listen to it here on Spotify (and stay tuned for upcoming news about the Jackson project).
After the release of Three Points of Contact in February, highlights from the 2016 concert Darling: Live in April and the EP We Foxes: Tracks in May, RSO welcomes his new listeners!
“In March, ‘Crazytown: The World of Ryan Scott Oliver‘, at The Other Palace Studio, directed by Adam Lenson, with musical direction by Joe Bunker and RSO himself on hand to sing and play with the band was lush and wonderful. Incredibly, this was only given for a single evening, and it is undoubtedly one of the best musical events to have appeared in this country all year. Why, when so many inferior works get bigger and longer productions – when they plainly do not merit them – does a writer of such genius languish in a nearly forgotten corner? There is no sense in this world. Nonetheless, the supply of dross kept on coming, and I had to waste evening after evening sitting through shows that should never (and I mean, really… never!) have been shown the light and sound of a full production. Why do people continue to throw good money after bad in this way? It beggars belief. Meanwhile, quality remains neglected. There is something wrong here. I’m actually forced to wonder whether Theresa May has something to do with the funding of new shows.”
World renowned writer’s haven The Orchard Project has announced RSO as one of its 2017 writers-in-residence..
RSO will work in its brand new Cabaret and Musical Theatre Program, which launched last year in partnership with Putnam Den. This year, the Orchard Project has made annual favorite Julian Fleisher Director of Cabaret and Musical Theatre and will host new work by a slew of the most exciting artists around, including RSO.
While at the Orchard Project, RSO will begin work on THREE POINTS OF CONTACT, the conclusion of the Dogs Trilogy (begun by WE FOXES and continued by ROPE). ‘3PC’ tells the story of newlyweds Pooch and Amy Harvey, and is a contemporary piece about love, sex, and marriage.
![Artists in Residence [MP3] — Broadway Records](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/54060319e4b0fd1f5b9417a5/1592272345796-B17RHQW59WFBH7YYR70Z/ke17ZwdGBToddI8pDm48kLN3Y4jb0g-1Imo_D4JWRoB7gQa3H78H3Y0txjaiv_0fDoOvxcdMmMKkDsyUqMSsMWxHk725yiiHCCLfrh8O1z5QPOohDIaIeljMHgDF5CVlOqpeNLcJ80NK65_fV7S1UYu48Xzoh8aq9LYEIuKQF_jHjDj2RI0EPPhgJ3Jgw8oO6_D4fnz0YUSeCHlYSQ6w8g/Artists-in-Residence-FNLsqr.jpg?format=2500w)
