Writing my newsletter takes a while and sometimes I forget to cross-post it to the website. I will be posting several catch-up posts and a new one soon. Cheers! —M
Hello all,
Some music that I have been working on for a long time is finally available!
The short version:
1. Listen (or watch with captions) to "The Crane Wife", a 20-minute musical: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vow6fft5cpg
2. Watch a live performance of "The House Next Door", a short musical theatre song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTLSYFBIpik
3. Get tickets for the June 9 good thoughts concert: www.eventbrite.com/e/the-upsides-ep-release-good-thoughts-anna-sun-tickets-313925990087
Out Now
The Crane Wife:
Our audio-play version of "The Crane Wife: a musical" starring Sienna Aczon, Jenny Kim-Godfrey, and Paul Chwe MinChul An is now available online. Libretto by Keurim Hur, lyrics by A. J. Freeman, and music by me, Maria Caputo.
Library blog article is here — Writeup is by Doug Reside, the curator for the Theatre Collection at the New York Library for the Performing Arts. Doug also serves as the facilitator for the Across A Crowded Room writing program (AACR), which culminates in a festival of 20-minute musicals. Usually these short musicals would be presented in person at the library at Lincoln Center; due to health and safety measures, the 2021 AACR projects were published online instead.
above: the credits/abbreviated program for "The Crane Wife: A Musical". A drawing of a crane stands beside the following credits: Book by Keurim Hur, lyrics by A. J. Freeman, music by Maria Caputo. Featuring: Sienna Aczon as the Crane Wife, Jenny Kim-Godfrey as the Sister, Paul Chwe MinChul An as the Man. Special thanks to Andi Lee Carter and Lily Desmond.
During the summer of 2021, fellow writer Alison Freeman reached out to me about collaborating on an AACR project with her and Keurim Hur: I would write music for Alison's lyrics, with a libretto by Keurim. The three of us were interested in fairytales and folktales about women and transformation. Keurim suggested we adapt the Japanese folktale known in English as "The Crane Wife", which she told to us from memory.
We chose to focus on the title character's point of view and her reasons for making her surprising choices. Why do people make sacrifices for the ones they love? What does it mean if a sacrifice is also a secret? Can we love someone without knowing their true nature?
We got to present our story concept and two songs over the course of a few weeks in masterclass sessions with notable dramatists David Henry Hwang, Heather Christian, and Amanda Green. What a thrill!
Our writing team is hoping to get together to do a rewrite this summer, perhaps to expand the show slightly and/or to add a companion piece. Let me know what you think of the show.
To watch: Click this direct link to hear our "Crane Wife" recording on YouTube ; you can choose to either watch with open captions, or just listen to the audio.
Highlight from the William Finn students concert:
A month ago I got to set this startling lyric by E. M. Lewis as part of a lyric writing masterclass taught by Broadway composer-lyricist William Finn.
Ellen wrote these words for a prompt by Bill which reads in part: "Write a lyric about a difficult family. The father, the mother, too, and the children are unbelievably bad." (Accordingly, this song tackles some heavy topics and contains swear words.) I enjoyed the challenge of corralling nearly three pages of lyrics into a solo song.
For this concert, I sang the song with piano accompaniment performed by my friend Dan Wilson. Ellen and I think that in a show setting, though, this would be a song for a teenager.
above: a still from the video of my performance of "The House Next Door". It's me at a microphone wearing a blue jumpsuit and an expression of surprise.
This video was filmed & edited by FAMOUS IN NY. It was recorded at our class's concert at the Music Hall, a free, creative space for writers provided by the Dramatists Guild Foundation. The concert was produced by Pearl Rhein and Lauren Taslitz.
Take a peek over the fence with me if you like, to "The House Next Door". (YouTube video link here)
Upcoming
Tickets for June 9:
I'll be sitting in (on keys and vocals) with my friend Alex Petti and his band good thoughts for their June 9 show at the Chelsea Music Hall (407 West 15th Street, New York, NY 10011)
Doors are at 6:30 pm. We will be on at 9:30 pm. The band Anna Sun will open the show, with The Upsides headlining.
Follow @goodthoughtsnyc on Instagram
That's all for now, I think! Take care of yourselves, check your smoke detectors, and enjoy the sunshine.
Cheers,
Maria