- M U S I C A L S -
The Ghost Says "Boo"
Words by Julia Gytri
Music by Yan Li
On Christmas day in 1929, a poor North Carolinian farmer empties his pockets to buy new toys and clothes for his family of nine, treats them to a bountiful holiday feast, and spends the rest of the day murdering each of them, one by one. THE GHOST SAYS "BOO" unpacks the day's events through the eyes of the farm's animals as they explore the complications of extreme wealth disparity, economic oppression, and the inaccessibility of the American Dream. Paired with biases and observations from the citizens of the area and fact reporting from the town livestock veterinarian and county coroner, the narrative is deconstructed to reveal what we all know, but through shocking new lenses: that hard work can only take one so far. The status quo is the ultimate determiner of fate.
Salonika
Words by Julia Gytri
Music by Avi Amon
Salonika, Greece. 1941. The Axis powers move into the city and its Sephardic Jewish population experiences a small taste of the very real horrors to come. A young boy and girl, terrorized by the same Axis soldier who was once a friend, escape their tensions and trials by disappearing into an absurd, magical realm of make-believe, a world constructed from light and sound, filled with Ottoman shadow puppets, pirates, and talking animals.
In their story-within-a-story, a prince and princess parallel their teller’s troubles—both quest to cure their heroically fatal flaws. The prince, born too brave for his own good, must learn to feel fear, and the princess, physically unable to laugh, seeks an all-powerful Genie, trapped within the Seal of Solomon, to relieve her from her melancholy existence. As they work to alleviate their own struggles, Salonika's boy and girl mimic their invented characters' actions, setting out to find peace and a better life. The young royals in their story eventually find their own escape route into an “invented” world of the future, where a girl and boy, much like themselves, tell stories to help them understand the world around them. Experimenting with traditional Ladino folklore, the mixing of languages, conventions of Turkish storytelling, Ottoman shadow play, and musical fusions of Middle Eastern and electronic sounds, SALONIKA turns up the volume for the voiceless and blurs lines between reality and fiction to explore the multiple—and inevitable—ways in which all human beings are connected through the power of storytelling.
The White City
Words by Julia Gytri
Music by Avi Amon
Chicago, 1893. Twenty years after the infamous fire, the city hopes to regain and further its global status by hosting the World's Columbian Exposition. Countries from far and wide boast the latest in technological advancement as the planet plunges deeper into industrial revolution. Change is tangible: led by the fair's president, Chicagoan Dr. Henry Howard Holmes, every scientist, scholar, and business tycoon in attendance hopes to propel society into a shining new era. We follow Lucy, a rambunctious orphan of the wild Old West, who hides her identity as she runs from the law back home. She hopes to find a place where she can truly be herself within the faster-paced modernity of city life at the fair, but behind the facade of the shimmering "White City," she becomes ensnared by Dr. Holmes deceptive plot to exploit innocent fairgoers for his own prestige and financial gain. Through his heinous actions, Lucy realizes that the innovations of this burgeoning industrial revolution have the power to both benefit and destroy humanity, and only one group of people has access to that power: the rich. The White City is a full-length musical featuring an energetic score influenced by nineteenth-century romantic music and classic country sounds.
Words by Julia Gytri
Music by Yan Li
Based on H.G. Wells' short story The Country of the Blind, blind is an interactive sensory musical that follows Mihai, a Romanian explorer, as he stumbles into a valley of strange villagers deep in Hoia-Baciu Forest. Born sightless for generations, these villagers have no concept of what it means to see, and Mihai finds his own senses challenged by their highly evolved survival methods. The budding romance between Mihai and Adela, an elder's daughter, forces life altering decisions upon everyone in the village. Blind was authored, composed, and designed with the intention of being performed for sightless (or blindfolded) audiences.
- P L A Y S -
The Grand Mosque at Abu Dhabi
Maaaaany harsh realizations smack Kit square in the face as she tours the Sheikh Zayed Mosque with her boyfriend, Ben, who she's now coming to understand, is maaaaaybe a little bit of a sexist dickhead? Well, okay, he's actually definitely a lot a bit of a sexist dickhead, but... she's lucky to be with him, right?! He's WAY out of her league. RIGHT?! Sure. And look, in Ben's defense, everyone else she knows might also be sexist dickheads, too, it might just be the way of the world. Who is she to stand up to the entire world? As she slumps around the mammoth structure in her standard issue abaya (her version of "modest" wasn't quite modest enough, whoops), she considers whether or not Ben is actually bringing out the best in her. Sometimes it takes traveling halfway around the world to see something that's been right in front of your dumb, dumb face all along.
- FILM & TV -
Hype Folks!
By Julia Gytri & Kate Thomas
On Christmas day in 1929, a poor farmer empties his pockets to buy new toys and clothes for his family of nine, treats them to a bountiful holiday feast, and spends the rest of the day murdering each of them, one by one. The Ghost Says "Boo" unpacks the day's events through the eyes of the farm's animals as they explore the complications of extreme wealth disparity, economic oppression, and the inaccessibility of the American Dream.
Sioux Falls
By Julia Gytri & Kate Thomas
In the late 1800s, women flee to the exclusive and mysterious Compass Hotel in Sioux Falls, South Dakota to hide from their husbands as they seek legal and expedient divorces. Why? Well, just because divorce is legal in the United States does not mean it’s easy… or safe, for that matter. Maev Marion knows about the dangers of leaving a prominent marriage firsthand, which is what leads her to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. With the most relaxed divorce laws in the country, Maev and her son, Michael, curate The Compass Hotel, a safe haven brimming with resources for women in need. However, from the outside, the place is pulsing with mystery, revelation, and rebellion, and the townspeople are more than happy to side with the men outside its walls. Inspired by historical events, Sioux Falls weaves a twisted tapestry of love, regret, strength, and eventual freedom. Let’s just pray no one dies in the process.