Raising Cain: The documentary is ONLINE!

From the Academy of New Musical Theatre newsletter this week -- one year later and the doc is up. WOW! And what a year it's been.

I am so glad I participated in the ANMT mini-musicals, and even more proud that I was a "subject" in this documentary. Maybe the next one you'll actually see me with my fingers on a piano... but hey, I'm shy about my skills when you've got such a pro like Myrna around.

What a great year time -- thanks, Kell and Myrna.

Enjoy the show-- from Madley (aka The Comic Relief).

A documentary about ANMT/Mini-Musicals! (27 minutes)

Last season, filmmaker Kellen Blair followed the amazing journey of one team of writers as they created the musical CAIN AND ABEL: THE NAKED TRUTH, as part of ANMT's annual rite of passage, the 15-Minute Musical.

Kellen himself was the lyricist on this project, which allows an audience a rare behind-the-scenes look at what it's like to create a musical.

Follow Kellen and his collaborators Myrna Emata (bookwriter) and Madley Katarungan (composer) as they experience the highs, lows, tears and laughter of creating a brand new work of musical theatre.

To watch the documentary (via streaming!), CLICK HERE!

The writers of CAIN AND ABEL: THE NAKED TRUTH
(l to r: Madley Katarungan (music); Kellen Blair (lyrics): Myrna Emata (book)

Recital Moments: 60 of my favorite zillion seconds

Cain and Trudy REALLY try to keep it together (and not kiss!) until Abel FINALLY prances in... you can hear cameraman Kellen laughing, and of course, my howling at the end :)



From "Cain and Abel: The Naked Truth"
Book by Myrna Emata, Music by Madley Katarungan, Lyrics by Kellen Blair.

"Cain and Abel" Redux

I admit it: I will NEVER get tired of doing this show. EVER, EVER, EVER. Of course, I miss the two songs we cut -- but if you and your organization are looking to do a short (20 minutes for the complete version) and fun take on this Biblical story with great songs and guaranteed laughs -- you just contact me, you hear?

In the meantime, here are some photos Myrna took of closing night. If it looks like we're outside -- we are! Our "backstage" waiting area was actually out in the frickin' parking lot... ugh! As someone dear on our team said about our fab group -- it's like we had taken THOROUGHBREDS to a dog and pony show... (I'm still really perturbed at what happened there, but don't want to speak to it yet...) so I'll just hold my tongue and celebrate "all the good bits"!

Feel free to click on each picture for a little more commentary. Enjoy! :)


Headshots in the lobby


The Writers


The TEAM -- w/ Myrna and Kellen, less Michele :(


Stephen Van Dorn as CAIN


John David Wallis as ABEL


Rachel Payne as TRUDY


Kelly Lester as EVE


Adam LeBow as GOD


Me in an Abel-and-Cain sandwich

The Year of the Filipino

It's been awhile since I've written a "substantial" blog sometimes I wonder if I'm even capable of doing it anymore! Or maybe life has been so rich lately I don't want to stop to record it for fear of this wild ride disappearing... Well, que sera sera...

So many things:
* Got to meet four of the five Filipino actors of The Romance of Magno Rubio: Bernardo Bernardo, Ramon de Ocampo, Jojo Gonzalez and Paolo Montalban (yes, THAT Paolo) and Arthur Acuna was terrifc too. More later.

* This weekend our mini-musical Cain and Abel: The Naked Truth had a three-day run at Actoberfest with John David Wallis and Rachel Payne reprising their roles as Abel and Trudy; Stephen Van Dorn as Cain, Kelly Lester as Eve and Adam LeBow as God. Michele Spears came back to direct and Myrna Emata was the music director. This is a whole post in itself -- the performances were top-notch, the team was great! That's all I'll say for now and will have photos to share soon.

But what inspires the title of this post?

I'm in the middle of breaking out an outline for my next musical, Sailors and Nurses. First of all, I'm so grateful to have two fabulous lyricists to collaborate with -- ANMT-trained and YES, FILIPINAS! Thank you for signing on Allison Johnson and Maureen Borillo... it's gonna be a TRIP... if the bookwriter can get her proverbial sh*t together. Oh wait, that's me!

My classmate, Terri, asked me how it was going -- and I all I could say was "I'm crying a lot. I can't stop crying."

But don't fell sorry for me... I've finally figured out this is my process! It's what happened when I wrote Carabao Bookends and Light Filipino Brown -- and it's when I know I'm telling the truth and writing of my heart. [As I've told many people: I'm like Dorothy Parker:

"I hate writing, I like having written"

-- because a story has to be told. So I wallow in the process, as messy and inconsistent as it is...]

===

And today, Stephen, the new fellow who played (our third!) Cain so wonderfully this weekend, found out how crazy I am about these songs that are OPM = Original Pilipino Music, like Ikaw. We're backstage this weekend waiting for their curtain call and he starts singing this song, Bakit Ngayon Ka Lang, in pure, beautiful Tagalog... a song his co-star, Carol Banawa (a famous TV star/singer in the Philippines) taught him while they were in a biblical extravaganza of a musical in Singapore called Judah Ben-Hur.

Oh dear. Talk about completely melting. More watery eyeballs. And to hear this fabulous voiced white boy sing it... good grief, I'm on another planet.

===

We find out last night we didn't make the finals... it's a long, long night. But I woke up: and there's a beautiful serenade of Bakit Ngayon Ka Lang on my voicemail from my new friend Stephen, singing the duet with his friend, Mel.

Now I'm just a bowl of jelly. I've never received a song that way before, EVER. And of course, it's just opening up more and more STUFF for me to write about...

Thank you, Stephen. You don't know how magical that was. Sailors and Nurses will be all the more truthful because of that gesture, you have no idea.

Here's a YouTube duet version of it and an English translation -- yeah, you better believe I'm gonna learn this one!

Enjoy.



Why only now...
Why only is it now that my heart needs?
It now has found out...

I wish that I'd found out
That you would come into my life
Then I would have waited

Pre-chorus:

You were supposed to have been the one for me to hug
Your hand always for me to hold instead of hers

Chorus:

Why only now....
Is it that you arrive in my life
I'm forcing to open my closed heart
You are the only one for me
Even though I want to forget you
I want to know...why is is now that you arrive in my life?

I'm legit -- I'm on YouTube!

Well... my NAME is anyhow. Enjoy!

Cain and Abel: The Naked Truth
Book by Myrna Emata
Music by Madley Katarungan
Lyrics by Kellen Blair
(Songs are sung in order)


"New Eden" (Amy Reiss, John David Wallis)


"Every Time You Fall" (Leighton Grampp, John David Wallis)


"One Button at a Time" (Rachel Payne, John David Wallis)


"See the Light" (Brent Schindele, Rachel Payne)

In Praise of Actors

It's an unbelievable process to have your material interpreted by actors. Musicals don't exist on paper... they have to be brought to life by folks as talented as these "Red Team" actors are!

I'm so grateful we had such a great group... damn, the life of an actor is really difficult, yet they're so willing to share of themselves like this... Thanks forever, guys!

(All photos by Myrna Emata)


Second Assessment (May 12, 2007): John David Wallis, Amy Reiss, Leighton Grampp, Rachel Payne and Christopher Carothers (our original Cain).


Rehearsal (June 13, 2007): Amy Reiss, Leighton Grampp, Rachel Payne and Brent Schindele in In the Nick of Time by Hillary Rollins, Tara Redepenning and Darin Goulet.


Cain and Abel: The Naked Truth with Rachel Payne (Trudy), Amy Reiss (Eve), John David Wallis (Abel) and Brent Schindele (our new Cain) doing "New Eden."


John David Wallis (Abel) and Leighton Grampp (God) in "Every Time You Fall."



Rachel Payne (Trudy) looks on as Brent Schindele (Cain) sings "See the Light."

Leighton Grampp

Brent Schindele

Amy Reiss

John David Wallis

Rachel Payne

T-E-A-M

FYI, that's a fun song from the musical "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown"! (In high school I got to play Lucy :)

My cousin sent me these photos from the opening night party at PF Changs:


The writers of "Cain and Abel: The Naked Truth" -- Myrna Emata (book), Kellen Blair (lyrics), Madley Katarungan (music).


Kellen's 6'1"... we're not. Kellen's 23... we're not that either.

===

(Edited 7/17 to add these second night photos)

All Done!

I wish I had a camera to take pictures of the beautiful flowers I got Lu, Mer and Heidi/Andrew... I feel blessed to have these much love in my house.

It's over. WHEW! Even MORE people there tonight, they were overflowing... and the casts were GREAT! So weird to have an opening and closing next to each other...

Jeff Marx said after the Tony awards he wrote a 12-page detailed account of his night so he'd never forget it -- and so he could share it.

But I can't write right now. I went to tonight's cast party, talked a lot, got intimidated a little, then couldn't stand being in my own skin, snuck out and talked to a friend from long ago who'd come tonight but had also been the very first reading of my very first play in its very first incarnation (there were four people listening and he was one of them). So he knew me "when" and he could speak specifics tonight, as well as SMACK. He calmed me down as I was parked somewhere in Sherman Oaks/Van Nuys... enough so I think I can lie down tonight and pretend to rest.

Actually, I got a little "emotional" seeing two actors walk off with each other tonight at the party... and I got an idea for show... so I'm going to jot some stuff down right now...

NOTE TO SELF: Why is it when I feel "emotions" -- I feel like the only relief or duty is to write/tell about it. Maybe I'm artist. Or maybe I just can't HANDLE all that drama... and I have to put in a show, in actors' mouths, to relieve myself of the pain...

Oops.

Okay... more later.

Congrats, Me!

One Show Down, One More to Go...

I'm very, very proud.

And then life gets normal again?

What IS normal anyway?

And I got a beautiful haircut.

New Cain

It's been two weeks since we delivered our final draft and lots of things have happened since then... I'll catch up with it all later. (Going to a Tony Awards party and still debating whether or not I should slave over a hot stove and fry some lumpia...)

Went to my first rehearsal with and am so pleased to have met our new Cain, Brent Schindele. How did we luck out to get ANOTHER fantastic singer/actor -- the gods must be with us.

He's a whole different energy than Christopher Carothers, which didn't take long to get used to at all. But it does show me how DIFFERENT a role can be depending on the performer. I don't know if we would've written it any different if we'd seen Brent first -- he's quite the energetic one and very funny... Christopher was more "sensitive" and has a sweet quality to his singing -- but sadly, Christopher also never got a fully-realized script to work from.

Anyhoo, I'm quite pleased -- more than pleased -- with how the whole show is going. Michele Spears, our director is TERRIFIC, and gets that our play can handle all the "BIGNESS" (yes, it's that broad of a play... who knew?).

I was given a Christmas present last night of seeing the show "Wicked" again in Hollywood -- right after this fab rehearsal -- mind you, and I was in HEAVEN. I told Lu that I've never been so happy in my life -- I'VE FINALLY FOUND SOMETHING I LOVE, UNEQUIVOCALLY! It's such a relief -- and yes, such bliss.

I am so looking forward to this next week and sharing it with my friends and family... and I'm already brewing about my next project (after the recital, of course!). Brew, brew...

P.S. I'm not gonna fry lumpia -- I'll bring purple (ube) ice cream instead. Trying to stay stress-free!

Closing Night Party

The Red Team had its final reading last night. As we had Triple Mousse Cake from Porto's for Kellen's birthday, someone mentioned it felt like a closing night party!

Each of the three mini-musicals had done absolutely wonders the last 10 days after the Second Assessment -- and we all had very tight, lovely shows! "The Liar" went first and was an impressive 21 minutes so they (we all) have two days to make 6 minutes of cuts. It's so wonderful to "get" that show now -- it's really clear and sweet and I actually like the main character, "Melvin."

"In the Nick of Time" (formerly "Mamarama") came in at an amazing 16 minutes -- amazing because after the First Assessment it came in at 31! They basically cut their show in half, and ended up with such an original, fast-moving -- and ultimately very touching show! The last song, Nickety Nick, really moved me in its simplicity and lyric... it came at the perfect time in the show and was set up beautifully... I'm still so impressed with this show! Hillary, the lyricist, could not believe it was possible to cut it when it was 22 minutes, but her collaborators, married couple Darin and Tara, have been writing and producing children's musicals for years now, and they did a fine job of making a super-tight, edgy show.

Our show -- I never had so much fun! I, like Kellen, was worried that what we thought was funny to us was ONLY funny to us -- working so hard on something you don't know if you're perspective works correctly. Fortunately, Elise and Scott, who played all five parts, picked up the "timbre" of script right away. They played it for the comedy -- quick, madcap, melodrama -- that it was, as after two or three speeches into the first scene, I closed my book, relaxed and enjoyed the show.

Okay, that was an understatement -- IT WAS A HOOT and I was laughing my guts out! YAY! The show was out of our hands and into the hands of professionals -- and it's funny!!! I was knee-slapping at the very end... and fortunately, not just because we wrote it, but because it was a success.

We came in at a surprising 19:58 -- five minutes of cuts tonight and we're done.

Whew. It was a great Closing Night Party. Now we go into a different phase -- production. And as a writer -- well, we're basically consultants now. That's okay.

As Maureen says in her blog, gotta start thinking about next year.

Final Draft Assessment (for TIME)

The directors of the Academy will be singing/reading the Red Team's final draft tonight for time (we have to be at 15 minutes - last night we timed at 22-23 ourselves) -- holy shit, I AM EXHAUSTED. [But at least all the copies are made, we'll be there on time, and we have one last chance to make our final changes before script is locked this Thursday (May 24)].

WOW -- Not a lot of sleep, completely obsessed about this show and everything it entails -- from getting tickets, to writing every night, to getting gas money to go out to Santa Monica, to being fed all the time by our wonderful host, Myrna, to show night guests, to what the hell am I wearing, to Actors Nightmare dreams, to wondering if our new Cain will be able to sing a high Bb well, and wondering what the old Cain is... no, that's stopping right now.

And what May 23rd means: NO MORE LA-LA LAND FOR ME NOW. Time to grow up.

Tomorrow is our lyricist Kellen's birthday -- he shares it with Ilia, and May 23rd has always been a big marker for me too. So it's completely appropros that I'm priviledged to meet and work with such a wunderkind as Kellen -- oh yes, did I mention that's he's brilliant, clever, kind, and incredibly funny? Life is good -- talk about a breath of fresh air.

The pictures are from our Palm Springs working (and mostly moving) weekend -- check out our working setup! Myrna was behind the camera most of the time -- avoiding get her pic taken!

Cain

We found out today at the assessment that we may lose our Cain -- Christopher Carothers -- to another job. We're devastated, and I can barely contain myself. Do all writers/producers go through this disappointment when shit happens in the middle of a project? Because it's unbearable.

I did get to hear "See the Light" sung by him though. What an absolute joy.

Edited to add:

I've journaled, I've sent emails, I've shed many a... well, I've had my pouty day already. As heartbreaking as it all still is, we're meeting tonight to fix our show.

Edited even later to add:

I got the .mp3 of yesterday's assessment and his performance. The arrangement wasn't complete, some melodies have changed... but there it is. I will at least have this crazy .mp3 of the way it's supposed to be sung. Thanks, Christopher.

And our meeting tonight -- what a strong outline we have now! Very proud of my team.

"Mama's Mantra"

We had our first assessment this past weekend, after hearing our actors sing and read ... what a joy to hear something you've created out of your head actually manifest and be interpreted through professionals!

The RED Team has three musicals, and all three went up -- happy to say we came in the closest to time (15 minutes), but of course, we didn't have all our songs done either. I unfortunately goofed with our lead, Cain -- I didn't think he was as much a tenor as he was, so I'm just hiking up his music up a third or a fourth. He'd auditioned with "Joanna" from Sweeney Todd (lovely tenor!) but did The Beast from Beauty and the Beast too (strong, strong baritone as well!), so I didn't even pay attention to range. My mistake. Such a gorgeous voice -- I gotta take advantage of it! Take a gander here:

Christopher singing "The Christmas Song"

I love me a man that sings! (Yes, Maureen, I KNOW he's married, that's not the point, the boy's got a voice! :)

===

After the actors left and commented on their roles (same five actors in all three shows), we proceeded with our two-hour/per show assessments. Not such a bad experience for us -- there were a lot of clarity issues re: story, but only for the better, and pretty good about the music and lyrics.

Did I ever mention the title of our show?

"Cain and Abel: The Naked Truth"

We've met about our restructuring, and "Mama's Mantra," the lullaby I tortured myself with earlier, has been cut. :( I teasingly tell our lyricist that that's the LAST TIME I ever write a piece before I get a lyric because it's too easy for them to "disappear"!

But it's true -- it slows the show down (which is comedy DEATH) and doesn't really pay off. Oh well. Hopefully I'll use it again somewhere, sometime.

Hope you like it.

"Mama's Mantra"