Test Post

JamesMarler — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 19:53:24 +0000

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Prologue

JamesMarler — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 08:37:02 +0000

OK… Initially, there wasn’t a prologue, per se. We had an opening number – What If You Opened Your Eyes? – which was sung by John the Baptist and the full cast. It worked for a number of reasons, not the least of which was the masterstroke of Adam Steinberg in writing each verse to be “about” each of the primary characters, but sung by John (Verse one was about Salome – and to a lesser degree it was the theme and general question of the show – Verse two was about Kaila, Verse three was about Herod, the bridge functioned as a sort of reminder lesson and verse 4 was about John, with the recurring refrain “What If You Opened Your Eyes?” being sung in a kind of round/canon by the rest of the cast.). So, again, while there wasn’t a prologue, per se, there was effectively a long number before the action of the show kicked in. Not cool.

Here’s why it didn’t work (and, for the record, this is nitpicky)… Because the next song was a 9:30 minute extended sequence that established the primary action of the show, we had, essentially, two opening numbers. What If You Opened Your Eyes? has been moved – more on that later – and I took the same idea (An unknown person singing to set the stage) but had him sing lyrics that were more about the story that anything else. The music is still, in terms of the groove behind the song, similar to the softer portions of the original opening, but the melody is a secondary melody that I wrote to use in Act II (in a number called I See In You). This song is important because it’s prepatory, and it let’s the audience know that they are in for something different. One of the things that I most love about this show is that it is unlike ANY OTHER version of the Salome story floating around. I will probably say that many times across many posts.

Below is the Script for #1 Prologue (What If The Story…)

The stage is unlit. The voice of JOHN THE BAPTIST comes out of the darkness, singing:

JOHN

I AM A VOICE CRYING OUT IN THE WILDERNESS

The music begins, along with an obscenely expensive laser light show [My favorite stage direction EVER!] culminating in a massive laser painting of the image from the show’s poster on the backdrop. A soft spotlight discovers a SINGER, sitting on a huge stack of amplifiers.

SIMON

LOOK AT THE FACE OUT THERE IN THE CROWD

ARE YOU HERE FOR A STORY? DID YOU COME TO BE WOWED?

TO HEAR A TALE FILLED WITH ROMANCE, WITH WONDER AND AWE?

WELL, NO HAPPY ENDINGS ARE PROMISED YOU…

WHAT IF THE STORY THAT YOU CAME IN TO SEE

WASN’T WHAT YOU EXPECTED, OR THOUGHT IT WOULD BE?

Dialogue [I have come to so despise the dialogue I wrote here, I can't even bring myself to look at it.]

IT’S A CLASSIC STORY THAT WE HAVE TO TELL

THE PLAYERS YOU KNOW AND ONLY TOO WELL

A PRINCESS, A DANCER, A KING AND A QUEEN

A PROPHET A BROTHER AND ALL THAT LIES IN BETWEEN…

WHAT IF THE STORY THAT YOU CAME IN TO SEE

WASN’T WHAT YOU EXPECTED, OR THOUGHT IT WOULD BE?

Grand chords fill the arena. As the SINGER exits.

Purpose – What In The World Are We Doing???

JamesMarler — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 07:57:53 +0000

Welcome to the blog chronicling what will be, I hope, the final stages of the creation of “Salome” a theatrical concert written by me, James Marler and Adam Steinberg.

This blog exists as a two-fold experiment… My collaborator Adam lives in Germany. GERMANY, people!!! SO, this will be a place for us to communicate with out driving up ridiculous phone bills or wasting minutes. The other interesting, for me, aspect of this is that it is an interesting and NEW way to create a musical. Open up the creative process to comments along the way… how cool is that?!?!?!? So, each post will be dedicated to a particular scene or to the overall show. Some posts will be text and audio. Feel free to comment as heavily as you like. Here we go Adam!

Salome The Musical

Test Post

Prologue

Purpose – What In The World Are We Doing???