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NOTES FROM THE WRITER

The subject matter of Sally Spectre the Musical feels even more relevant today than when the show was first conceived. While the visual style of the piece may draw the eye, I believe the true power of Sally’s story lies in something simpler: she remains true to herself, without compromise, throughout her journey. That’s the real game changer.

What I want to share here is nothing more than an idea. To sum it up quickly, I think it's simply become more difficult to “be yourself” in today’s world than it was twenty or thirty years ago. Social media bombards us with constant noise, encouraging instant fame and forcing us to measure our lives against someone else’s curated feed. If our choices don’t feel “post-worthy,” we can be made to feel invisible. News has become entertainment. Attention has become currency. In Sally’s time, the pressures were slower — what you wore to dinner, what appeared in the rotogravure — but still aimed at building social credit, much like today’s “likes.” In any time period, resistance to the forces that would have you be someone you're not is a big challenge. 

Even in a world this tough, there is kindness. It's not a matter of knowing where to find it, it's a matter of recognizing it when you see it. That is Sally to the core. My hope is that audiences leave encouraged by what people are capable of, and that Sally’s persistence resonates. She doesn’t understand how she arrived in her strange limbo, or what lies ahead, but she continues to be the same little girl she always was — refusing to let the darkness define her. (Well… not too much, anyway. She does eat spiders.)

Thank you for joining us. It means the world to me and the cast and crew to share this story with you.

Please enjoy the show.

David P. Johnson