Dispatches

Perspiration, collaboration, and continued education.

Schooled Community!

This is the third update to the Schooled community. Here we go!

Writing and revising: the creative process

Buckets of research suggest that the creative process has five stages: incubation, experimentation, perspiration, refinement, and integration. Ideas start by incubating: before we know what we’re thinking, ideas percolate deep in our minds, inspired by the many sources of information we take in. Once they begin to hatch, we experiment with those ideas. In teaching and learning, for example, we ask what different approaches we might take to teach a topic or text. In painting, we sketch out studies of different portions of an image. In music, we try out different melodies, harmonies, rhythms, or song structures. Eventually, we land on a form, and it takes perspiration to execute it: to finish the draft, to write the novel we’ve outlined, to complete the research we’ve designed. Then, once we have a draft, we refine it. And once the final touches have been made, we integrate it into our lives: we bring it into discourse with others and the world. The path isn’t always linear — it is full of backtracking and false starts and roundabouts — but it moves generally in that direction.

Act II is deep in the perspiration stage. It has an outline, a script has been written, and songs are now taking shape. There’s still plenty of experimentation (How might this song evolve? Maybe the melody should go in a different direction?), and I’m still devouring inspiration to keep new ideas incubating (see the reading list below) — but mostly, the current moment is about putting the pen on the page. And it is so fun and fulfilling. (And also hard, but happily so!) This is the period of turning an idea from an outline into a thing in the world. I can’t wait to share Act II with you!

The joys of collaboration

It has also been so exciting and so helpful to bring other minds together on this. Rian Alfiero has been an incredible friend and regular collaborator since day one of this project, offering insight, reflections, encouragement, and the kind of consistent support that I feel fortunate to have. We meet weekly like a writers’ group, sharing updates on our projects — and I absolutely wouldn’t have made progress on Schooled without this kind of accountability and support. (Rian has meanwhile been working on his own projects; here’s one…!)

I’ve also met twice now with director Ryan Dobrin and music director Mike Mackey. Ryan’s dramaturgical guidance has helped me think through storyline and character development in Act II. Our meetings remind me of show after show that I’ve read about which went through a process of asking: what is the central question, relationship, or tension that drives the show, and how can you focus every moment on advancing that question, relationship, or tension? Lin-Manuel Miranda cut a (killer) John Adams rap out of Hamilton because Adams wasn’t central to Hamilton and Burr’s conflict. Meredith Willson cut a longstanding character out of The Music Man because the character wasn’t central to the romance. Great shows are taut and economical with the little time they have to tell a rich story.

And conversations with Mike Mackey have surfaced new insights and angles into the music for Act II. I feel like a student again. Mike has deep history in music directing for musical theater and choirs — and also in jazz, which was his doctoral work. I studied jazz a little in college and faked it in NYC for a period. Now, with some pointers from Mike, I’m digging back into contemporary harmonic approaches and learning about the histories of songs I’ve been using as references for certain pieces. What an absolute joy. I’m beyond grateful to these collaborators — and others, too, who have pointed me toward new sources.

My reading list (on an updated website)

I’ve also updated the website for Schooled! Philosophically, I wanted it to model or reflect what happens in schools: I wanted to make my learning visible. So I’ve posted each of my updates there. And I’ve included the full curriculum I’ve taken up for myself since I began this work. You can visit the reading list page, which includes not only what I’m currently reading, but also what’s on the nightstand, and everything I’ve read, seen, watched, and listened to in order to study and develop this specific art form since I embarked on this work. Recommendations welcome, by the way! If you’re a musical theater aficionado (or an enthusiast, or even a curious consumer), I’d be glad to know what resonates for you or what you recommend.

Being a producer

July has also been the month of working with additional collaborators to bring this performance to fruition. I love making the art. But that art is more meaningful when it exists in the world. And making it actually happen in the world is the work of a producer, which is often a vaguely and inconsistently defined title. In this context, I’m describing a producer as someone who produces something, who makes it happen. This means arranging rehearsal space, identifying and coordinating with the performance venue, raising funds, managing budgets, planning the A/V and tech support, promotion, and more. This has been a layer underneath this whole process. I’ll share more about this work in August, including some of the brilliant, generous, and passionate advisors and partners who are helping bring this to life.

What’s next?

By the next update, we should have a casting call out, an announcement about the details of the event, and more to share, of course, about the writing. I look forward to the next!

Peter

A team comes together, and Act II takes shape.

Schooled Community!

It’s been a busy month in Schooled land. Here we go!

Pittsburgh, October 18

We’re preparing for the staged reading coming up October 18, in Pittsburgh, PA. More details to come (probably in the next update) — but in the meantime, if you’re interested in attending, keep Sunday evening, October 18, in Pittsburgh on your calendar. It will be the first staged reading of both Act I and Act II, and I couldn’t be more grateful for all the support and interest around this.

Director!

I am beyond thrilled to share that the reading will be directed by Ryan Dobrin. Ryan has extraordinary experience both with early-stage work and with full Broadway productions. On Broadway, he was the associate director for the Tony Award–winning revival of Merrily We Roll Along, with Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff, and Lindsay Mendez, and he’s also a co-producer for Mexodus, which recently seemed to sweep through the off-Broadway award season. And what I’m most excited about is his dramaturgical work, close-reading shows. Schooled is a young show, and I’m very much looking forward to looking closely at what changes it needs in order to become its best version of itself.

Music Director!

One thing I learned in Austin is that directing the music of a show is a real skill in itself. (Well, I learned it back in NYC, too.) And while I have some music experience, I’m decidedly an amateur at coaching singers, giving feedback, and coordinating all the music components — all on a tight timeline. So I am so grateful and excited that Mike Mackey will be directing the music at the Pittsburgh reading. Mike has music-directed and arranged orchestrations for large shows like Les Misérables and Hello, Dolly!, and he’s directed choirs and choruses of all sizes. And what I’m most excited about is that he also has a PhD in Jazz Studies. Since jazz textures and harmonies play an important role in Act 2, I’m very much looking forward to working closely with him over the summer.

Writing!

And perhaps most importantly: the writing is taking shape! During May, I wrote out a book version of Act II — taking the outline I’ve had for almost a year and turning it (finally!) into dialogue. Then, since the beginning of June, I’ve been “songspotting,” finding the moments when music makes sense and building those moments into songs. Early scenes have focused on the prologue for Act 2 and a tense reunion of two characters partway into the act — a scene which, like a tango, mixes intimacy with distance. I’m excited for you all to hear it when the time comes! June, July, and August will be a sprint of songwriting. There’s a lot to get through, and I’m keeping as much of my calendar clear as possible to finish it all.

What’s teaching it

For inspiration, I’ve been reading: the developmental history of Cabaret (the parallels are striking!) and Aladdin (a reminder that big shows sometimes don’t work in draft stage), The Playwright’s Guidebook (full of useful nuggets), “40 Questions for a Political Play” (an excellent essay by Dan O’Brien), Second Act Trouble (a collection of cautionary tales), and more. For every text I read, I catalog the lessons learned — gathered on the reading list.

I’m about to hop on a plane and finish that book on Cabaret — and then get home and back to writing. More to come, and thank you for following along!

Peter

An enormous success at SXSW EDU — and a full reading booked for Pittsburgh.

Schooled Community!

This is the first update as the journey takes its next step. Here we go!

Schooled at SXSW EDU

I’m so happy to share that the staged reading at SXSW EDU this past March was an enormous success. The actors and team in Austin put together an amazing staged reading in just a week; it was a full house when it started, and it just got fuller as the show went on. Then people were talking about it for days. And for those who like data: the post-show survey had an NPS of 67 (!), with near-full participation from the audience.

Next stop: Pittsburgh!

I’m thrilled to share that Schooled has now been scheduled for a full staged reading of both Acts I & II for Sunday evening, October 18, in Pittsburgh! Two generous funders have committed to supporting the event, and we have a large theater booked — so mark your calendars now. I’ll be sending more information in the weeks and months ahead.

Building a team

With five and a half months until the performance, my first deadline is to lock in the local team. Fall calendars are already filling for in-demand artists, so I just spent four days in New York City meeting directors for this reading, with calls scheduled with music directors in Pittsburgh. Once these key players are in place, I’ll be digging back into the story outline to finish the script and music.

Wait — the script and score aren’t finished?!

They’re fully outlined — but nope, not finished! A few reasons why: it’s really helpful to have a deadline; once a director is on board, I’ll have a crucial creative collaborator to help inform Act II (just as Deonté Warren was an incredible collaborator in Austin); and I learned a lot from the SXSW EDU reading — it made sense not to build out too much before knowing whether Act II would be a worthwhile endeavor. Turns out Act II is a worthwhile endeavor!

More broadly: did you know that Hamilton was booked at the Public Theater with most of Act II incomplete? Or that Sondheim’s Pulitzer Prize–winning Sunday in the Park with George was still missing two songs just days before opening night? Musicals are enormously complex, and one element of successful shows is the deep engagement and commitment of a full creative and producing team. My solo work won’t be complete — a single artist’s never is in musical theater.

So: I’m building the team now for this fall, and returning to writing. I look forward to keeping you updated — and let me know if you have questions!

Pete