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Gordon and I are thrilled to announce that we have a commission from Flint Repertory Theatre to complete These Familiar Spirits. We're so excited to develop this witchy little piece at one of our favorite theatres with some of our favorite people.
Gordon and I recorded a handful of demos for two of our shows in progress, These Familiar Spirits and Choreomania. We're so very grateful to the luminous MinJi Kim, Hana Slevin, and Ally Bonino who were game for some remote recording. It's so exciting to hear brand new material on such lovely voices.
Gordon and I were thrilled to receive such a thoughtful, positive review for The Magnificent Seven cast album in Talkin' Broadway. Some of my fave pull quotes:
"The Magnificent Seven makes the feelings behind the stakes and struggles...feel universal" "...well-made, muscular material ..." "This well-crafted score is full of mighty Meinwald melodies that capture the stress level build-ups and intense environment without hitting us over the head. Gordon Leary's polished lyrics often shine like those gold medals The Magnificent Seven's characters covet, attentive to unlabored, pure rhymes and alluring alliteration combined with economic plain language." "In an ideal world where high-quality lower-profile cast albums would sell in the millions, this look at girls who go for the gold would earn a gold record. For now, it earns respect and recommendation." You can read the whole thing here! The Magnificent Seven Cast Album is available on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, Amazon and more!
The Magnificent Seven Cast Album is now available on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, Amazon and more!The musical, set during the Atlanta Olympic Games, follows the 1996 U.S Women’s Olympic Gymnastics team - Amanda Borden, Amy Chow, Dominique Dawes, Shannon Miller, Dominique Moceanu, Jaycie Phelps, and Kerri Strug - on their quest to become the first American women to win the team gold medal, imagining the gymnasts’ inner lives as they work to get their faces on the Wheaties box, all leading up to the vault heard ’round the world.
The recording features the cast of the 2022 Theatre Row production, including Allison Posner (John Mulaney & the Sack Lunch Bunch), Libby Servais (Wicked), Amy Linden (The Bridges of Madison County), Racquel Williams (Hadestown), Ellen Condon Macy, Holly Gould (Camelot), MinJi Kim, Kylie Lavrenchik, and Josslyn Shaw with Sam Heldt, Evan Maltby, and Lynne Marie Rosenberg. The Magnificent Seven features music, arrangements, and orchestrations by Julia Meinwald and book and lyrics by Gordon Leary (Pregnancy Pact, The Loneliest Girl in the World.) Music Director Alex Ratner leads a band that includes Michael Blancafor, Michael Epperhart, and Zachary Larson. John Kilgore served as recording engineer and mixing engineer from recording sessions held at The Bunker Studio and John Kilgore Sound & Recording in September & October 2022. Alan Silverman of Aerial Sound served as mastering engineer. The album is Executive Produced by Steve Kyriakis and Matt Donaldson for MDSK Productions. So proud of this beautiful production. If you didn't happen to catch it in Michigan, here are some photos!  So excited to have a handful of good reviews in the books for The Magnificent Seven at Flint Rep! I particularly like this one, by Bridgette M. Redman.
It's hard to find the words to describe the past month Gordon and I spent in Flint, Michigan for the world premiere of The Magnificent Seven at The Flint Rep. The show follows the 1996 U.S Women’s Olympic Gymnastics team on their quest to win team gold at the Atlanta games, imagining the gymnasts’ inner lives as they work to get their faces on the Wheaties box, all leading up to a star-making (and ankle-busting) vault heard ’round the world. Director Catie Davis brought an avalanche of exciting ideas about how to realize a musical about Olympic gymnastics….without doing Olympic gymnastics. The cast (including Spring Awakenings’ Phoebe Strole as Kerri Strug and Come From Away’s Alex Finke as Dominique Moceanu) is wonderful across the board and the design (including lights by Jake DeGroot and set by Ann Beyersdorfer) creates a visceral, super-saturated deep-dive into the hearts and minds of the young Olympians. Duane Lee Holland Jr (an elite level gymnast himself, who trained with Dominique Dawes!) has captured elements of not only gymnastics but also the dance styles popular in the 90’s in his energetic choreography. There’s a pop rock score, there’s a Lyra hoop, there’s a quick-change into golden sequin jackets – we pack a punch into our short 96 minutes (see what we did there?) onstage. The Magnificent Seven March 31-April 16, 2023 Flint Repertory Theatre: Elgood Theatre (1220 East Kearsley Street, Flint, MI 48503) Tickets Book and Lyrics by Gordon Leary Music/Orchestration/Arrangements by Julia Meinwald Directed by Catie Davis Choreographed by Duane Lee Holland, Jr. Music Direction by Jeremy Robin Lyons Scenic Design by Ann Beyersdorfer Costume Design by Adam M. Dill Lighting Design by Jake DeGroot Sound Design by Matt Otto Props Design by Miranda Sue Hartman Stage Manager: Melissa A. Nathan Asst. Stage Manager: Rebecca MacCreery 
We're so excited that, thanks to the generous support of MDSK productions, we're making a Magnificent Seven cast album! We're so grateful to be able to capture the work with did at Theatre Row this summer and share it with a wider audience. The album should be available on Spotify, itunes, Amazon, and wherever else the cool kids are finding music these days, in early 2023! |
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