Songs for a new world, indeed.
I knew a revue of this sort would be a good choice because of the nature of this remote process. We would be able to work on it in small pieces and not have to worry about upholding the demands of long-form narrative storytelling. In listening to all the Musical Theater revues out there, this one immediately jumped out at me because of its message of new worlds and healing through song. Of course, the
process has been like no other SAAS musical to date. The music all had to be learned remotely and then individually submitted and edited to the score. Then began a process of visualizing how each number could possibly look on video. The actors, director and stage manager brainstormed a vision. Then, each shot had to be filmed and submitted finally culminating in a short film edit. What a herculean effort by all involved.
There is not a template for a high school performance like this. A play or revue where all involved have never been in the same room together. A performance where two people sing a love song to each other that have never met or even spoken. This is all new and yet we made something collaborative and beautiful!
Thank you to all involved! What a feat of learning, submitting, editing and heart.
All I want to leave you with are the lyrics that have kept me afloat this fall and this hour:
“Listen to the song that I sing
And trust me...
We'll be fine...
A new world calls across the ocean!”
-Jason Robert Brown
In light,
Michael Cimino
