1st Annual Festival of New Musicals
1989
Overview
September 24 - 25
Musicals
I Love You Jimmy Valentine (fka Alias Jimmy Valentine)
Capitol Cakewalk (fka Backstage with Waren G.)
Kiss Me Quick Before The Lava Reaches The Village
Genre & Style:
Synopsis
What happens when a glamorous girl, a dashing director and a desperate diva descend upon the peaceful town of Patience, Nebraska to film a south seas tropical adventure? A wildly funny tribute to the great B-movie classics.
Little Ham
Genre & Style:
Synopsis
What happens when the downtown gangsters move in on Harlem’s homegrown numbers games in 1938? Little Ham has the feel of a black Guys and Dolls. Lots of comedy, lots of dance, and composed by the writer of Raisin.
The Real Life Story Of Johnny Defacto
Synopsis
This black comedy is about a rock star with a distant past and a fading present, who, at his farewell concert, is fired upon by an obsessed fan named Leo Sobocinski. Johnny falls into a coma, but comes out of it a month later to find that his condition has become front page news and his career, as a result, has suddenly been recharged. Leo is sentenced to a mental institution for the criminally insane where he records a song titled “Kill Johnny One Note Dead.” His tune is released as a single across the airways and skyrockets to the top of the charts. And Johnny, who is now out on the road with his “Resurrection” tour, finds himself the target of a new breed of thrill-seeker: Fans wishing to destroy him for the sake of their own notoriety.
Writers & Artists
Sheldon Harnick
Lyrics, That Pig Of A Molette
Sheldon Harnick began his career in the 1950’s with songs in revues both on and off-Broadway. In 1957 he teamed with Jerry Bock to create a number of memorable musicals including Fiorello (Tony Award, Pulitzer Prize), She Loves Me (Grammy), Fiddler on the Roof (Tony Award), The Apple Tree and The Rothschilds. Other musicals: Rex (Richard Rodgers), A Wonderful Life (Joe Raposo), A Christmas Carol (Michel Legrand), The Phantom Tollbooth (with Arnold Black and co-librettest Norton Juster) and his own Dragons. Mr. Harnick also contributed songs to the films The Heartbreak Kid and Blame It on Rio (Cy Coleman) and Aaron’s Magic Village (Michel Legrand). In the 1970’s Mr. Harnick expanded his activities by translating The Merry Widow for Beverly Sills, Carmen, Ravel’s The Enchanted Child and Stravinsky’s The Soldier’s Tale. His collaboration with Jack Beeson produced Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines, Cyrano and Dr. Heidegger’s Fountain of Youth.
Skip Kennon
Lyrics & Music, Blanco!
Music & lyrics: ÄúBlancoÄù (Goodspeed, NAMT), ÄúTime & AgainÄù (MTC, Old Globe, O’Neill). ÄúLast StarfighterÄù (Storm Theatre, St Clements, workshop at Seattle’s Village Theatre), ÄúFeathertopÄù (WPA, PA Stage). Wrote the music for ÄúHerringboneÄù (Playwrights Horizons, Williamstown, La Jolla, McCarter, Prince) and one-act ÄúAfternoon TeaÄù (59E59 in 2007; INTAR with Ed Harris & Amy Madigan). Music & lyrics for one-act opera ÄúEternal AnniversaryÄù (59E59 in 2009) and one-act ÄúPlaisir d’AmourÄù (book by Terrence McNally, 59E59 in 2008). Film/video: songs in ÄúFriends & FamilyÄù (Regent Entertainment) and Disney’s DVD Premiere award-winning sequel ÄúHunchback of Notre Dame Part II.Äù Moderated first year of the BMI-Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop for 20 years (overseeing whole program for ten years). Taught at The Neighborhood Playhouse for ten years. Graduate, USC School of Music; winner Cole Porter Prize for Theater Arts. ÄúHerringboneÄù named in Top 10 cast albums of 2014 by Sound Advice at Talkin’ Broadway.
This page was last updated on 08/18/2017. Some musical and writer information may be more recent.