Paul Spicer writes a Guest Blog for West End Frame ahead of Onstage Acts, a summer course in new and contemporary musical theatre taking place in London this summer. Curated by Julie Atherton and Paul Spicer, the course is an opportunity to re-focus, and to learn more about performance in this particular strand of the industry from those at the top of their game.
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| Paul Spicer |
New and contemporary musical theatre has given me many of my major career breaks as an actor and later, as a producer. If my contribution to theatre were ever to be defined by a certain genre, it would be this.
Having said that, I do have a deep love for the classics. Carousel is probably hands down my favourite musical (on the ‘I find it almost impossible to pick holes’ scale) but the epic-ness of the behemoth musical has so far eluded the path I have taken. 13 years in the musical theatre business and my passion has been a quest for finding, performing and supporting new and contemporary musical theatre (and because that’s such a massive phrase to type it’ll herein be referred to as ‘NACMT’).
For NACMT I have done my bit. It’s just over 10 years since I co-founded the Notes from New York concert series with the aim of introducing London to NACMT from America. That remit shifted when we presented Not(es) from New York, showcasing material by British composers, and again with an all-female line up for Notes in Heels and then again when we presented the seasonal instalment, Christmas in New York. During our time we featured music by Andrew Lippa, Adam Guettel, Jonathan Larson, Grant Olding, Georgia Stitt and William Finn, often premiering new material and sometimes the actual composers themselves.
In 2008 we celebrated our 5th Anniversary with a gala concert of Jason Robert Brown’s The Last 5 Years, which was the musical that inspired the concert series in the first place. I played Jamie opposite the incomparable Julie Atherton as Cathy (“London’s reigning Queen of New Musical Theatre”) and we played three sold-out shows at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket. Somewhat unprecedented because at that time small scale, quirky, American two-hander musicals didn’t feature heavily in the West End picture. We knew it was a huge risk to present it, and luckily the audience got behind the production and proved that there was a calling for NACMT, and thrice.
Two years later I sat in the stalls at the Garrick Theatre and watched the creator of The Last 5 Years play to a sold out auditorium of people genuinely moved to hear those songs again, and we produced that evening too. Full circle.
Many of my proudest NACMT (is that getting annoying?) moments feature British composer, Michael Bruce. In 2007 we launched a nationwide search for a new Brit musical theatre composer in conjunction with The Stage newspaper called Notes for The Stage. We had over 300 applicants and using all of our Notes special powers, we whittled them down to a handful, and the candidates’ songs were performed to a panel of judges including theatre critic Mark Shenton, Drama Desk Award-winning composer Grant Olding and West End leading lady Anna Jane Casey. Michael Bruce effortlessly sailed into first place, amongst a group of peers who’ve since gone on to achieve greatly in the world of NACMT.
Michael Bruce had his own inimitable style, with echoes of early Sondheim, which sounds like a lazy comparison, but it’s entirely accurate. Over the next few years together we workshopped his first musical, recorded and released his debut album Unwritten Songs (which debuted at #1 on the iTunes vocal chart), made a music video for his song Portrait of a Princess starring Julie, Sheridan Smith, Russell Tovey and little old me (currently sitting at over 700,000 views on Youtube) and to top it all off he’s now the first ever Composer in Residence at the Donmar Warehouse, so I suppose Notes for The Stage was a worthwhile undertaking.
NACMT has taken me to Broadway, where I performed at Lincoln Center at the launch of the debut album from Emmy Award-winning composer, Lance Horne and during that evening I made one or two observations. American audiences think you’re actually more gifted if you can sing and act at the same time. They’re also very well versed in the genre of Musical Theatre. When three-time Tony Award nominee Rebecca Luker opened her pipes to sing torch song ‘Last Day on Earth’ it was like a Holy experience, and not because she was belting high and loud (and she was). The audience was made up of a huge range of ages and demographics radiating nothing but utter commitment and respect and they were all there to hear music from the debut album of a young musical theatre composer. The art form is alive and well in the Big Apple.
But how do we feel about NACMT here in the UK? Which new British musicals capture the imagination outside the realms of the enthusiast? Are new musicals not seen as a part of the commercial theatre scene unless they’re penned by an established hand? A very successful, hugely influential theatre producer once told me that they wouldn’t touch a brand new piece of Musical Theatre by an unknown composer, and I died a little inside.
But hold up. These people need solid gold, public-at-large interest inducing musicals (often revivals of old favourites) with recognisable casting because the risks are monumental. This year alone we’ve watched as three new major musicals came and went in quick succession. Three new projects linked to heavyweight players in entertainment, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Tim Rice and The X Factor, were opened and closed prematurely, which begs many questions; is NACMT on shaky ground? Should we be producing more NACMT, and how?
You can’t buy Producing For Dummies. At the roots of it, one produces theatre because of an inherent need to do so. If money can be made and bills paid, then bonus, and like most magical experiences, it’s alchemy. There is no right or wrong. There is no formula. Fortunately for NACMT, we do have one weapon; scale. It’s a hell of a lot less risky to develop NACMT small scale. A case in point is the recent production of In The Heights at the Southwark Playhouse, which was an exceptionally produced, affordable evening of NACMT not premiering in a West End theatre and for a very good reason. A canny move on behalf of Tristan Baker and Paul Taylor-Mills, who both recognise the benefits of the smaller scale try out. I applaud them for putting their money where their mouth is, and let’s hope there’s another life for the production.
Often I look around at a West End awash with revivals (because they either did or didn’t work the first time around), with the odd exceptional NACMT trail blazer, and I figure that tried and tested with bums on seats is at least a way to ensnare new takers when promoting NACMT. I remember our original mission at Notes from New York was to try to make new musical theatre cool. Cool to people who didn’t think that they liked musical theatre, and we made some in-roads, but I think it’s evident that we still have a fight on our hands.
Thankfully there are learning opportunities for new producers via the excellent Stage One and even a new MA course in production beginning at Mountview, and then another question I often find myself asking; does everyone understand exactly what a producer does? Perhaps if ‘producing’ were a more widely understood science it’d be a positive thing for the psyche of theatreland and, in turn, positive for new musical theatre. For who do we mostly take to the internet and lambast when a production gets 2 weeks notice? More often than not, the producer.
I’ve been banging on about NACMT for 10 years and I will continue to do so. This summer my production company Stage Acts Productions launches our first summer course in NACMT called Onstage Acts. Aimed at professional actors and those already in training, it’s an opportunity for students to work with some top NACMT talent and also for us to discover a new generation of performers. Exploring this often underestimated style of musical theatre, getting stuck into brand new material, and showcasing that material at the end of the week to an invited industry audience.
The week will include masterclasses with Michael Bruce, Julie and myself as well as Interval Productions’ producer/writer/performer Tori Allen Martin and director Adam ‘Bo’ Boland (I wanted the students to be in front of other new producers who could offer opportunity) and also meetings with top casting directors and agents. I will also personally make sure there are lectures on the business of theatre. This is a course that is designed to create epiphanies and inspire a new generation of NACMT enthusiasts. Plus, perhaps the most important point; it’s affordable.
So in closing I want to say this. We have to fight this from the inside out. NACMT is vital to ensure the proper evolution of musical theatre. We all have to support it, so go to the theatre. Scrape together the cash to actually pay for your ticket. Give back to the industry and through the marvel of social media, bastion NACMT and market it positively to anyone who’ll listen. It’s up to us. In life, it’s great to have an opinion either way, but you do have to participate. Cameron Mackintosh recently said “What it needs is a new Cameron Mackintosh to come up and work with a younger generation… it can and will happen again” and he’s right, but we need to instigate it.
We are all of us searching for the new, the next, the untapped. That something might be physical or emotional but rather than despair at what you can’t see or find, take a leaf out of my book and with a hopeful heart, just keep looking.
Paul Spicer
Onstage Acts is about rediscovering a love for performing, and unearthing new, relatable material in a creative environment. Course fees are just £200 for the week’s tuition, making the course economical as well as immensely rewarding. Only 30 places are available. To apply visit www.onstageacts.com or email info@stageactsuk.com to register your interest and for an application form. Experience will be taken into consideration.
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