RSO Joins Lincoln Center Originals Line Up

October 23, 2015

RSO Songs at Lincoln Center this Tuesday.

Catch RSO tunes on Tuesday, October 27th at 7:30pm in Lincoln Center Originals: Songwriters, a FREE performance at the David Rubenstein Atrium.

Alice Ripley

Celebrated musical theater composers showcase original songs inspired by Lincoln Center. Don’t miss appearances by Tony Award-winner Robert L. Freedman (A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder), Joe Iconis (NBC’s Smash), Kait Kerrigan and Brian Lowdermilk (Henry and Mudge), Ryan Scott Oliver (Jasper in Deadland), Peter Millls (The Pursuit of Persephone), and Justin Levine (Pepper and Sam). The evening will be hosted by Lincoln Center Originals veteran Jeff Blumenkrantz and include special performances by Broadway stars including David Perlman (Baby, It’s You!), and Alice Ripley (Next to Normal, Side Show).

Get more information on the Lincoln Center Atrium website.

‘WE FOXES’ SELECTED FOR NEW HORIZONS MUSIC FESTIVAL

September 15, 2014

‘We Foxes’ is one of two shows selected for the New Music Theatre concert in Truman State University’s New Horizons Music Festival.

RSO’s new show We Foxes, which recently had a reading at the York Theatre, was selected to have selections performed at the New Music Theatre concert at Truman State University, on October 25, 2014. We Foxes was selected from 130+ submissions from 11 different countries.

We Foxes is a southern Gothic thriller set in small-town Missouri, 1945.  It’s the story of Willa, a tough and unmannered orphan girl, and her adoption by the crafty Sheriff’s wife, Vesta Quimby.  When Willa discovers the dark secrets beneath the floorboards, a war cuts them apart and Willa must fight to survive.  After all, Vesta Quimby is the most beloved and powerful woman in town … Yet she’s less humanitarian socialite than she is Machiavellian sociopath…  Can Willa discover her own salvation, deliver herself into courage, and sacrifice everything to escape Vesta?  It is a story of intense human struggle, deliverance, and the great salvation found only through oneself.

The epic period musical is mostly sung-through, combining bluegrass, country, big band and concert music of the 1940s, infused with the contemporary folk-rock of today. We Foxes is a commission from Broadway Across America, and has been in residence at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley’s Writer’s Retreat, CAP 21, and the Weston Playhouse.

The New Horizons Music Festival is a day of contemporary music featuring performers from the university and the surrounding region. The Festival includes music from most of the major genres in modern performance: chamber groups, multimedia, solo performers, large ensembles, and theatrical performance. The concerts and ongoing curated exhibition provide a substantive slice of contemporary music focusing on music that leverages the techniques of the classical musician and looks to the future.

As the sixteenth edition of Truman’s festival of contemporary and experimental music, this year’s Festival features six concerts on the beautiful Truman State University campus in Kirksville, Missouri. The New Horizons Music Festival will be held on the Truman campus on Saturday, October 25th.

For more information, email newhorizonsmusicfestival@gmail.com.

DARLING WINS BOSTON METROPOLITAN OPERA FOR MAINSTAGE MUSICAL THEATRE

July 22, 2014

Mainstage production to occur in 2015.

RSO’s Darling is the winner of the Boston Metropolitan Opera’s Mainstage Award for musical theatre, out of 625 submissions from composers from over 120 countries. Darling will have performances in BMO’s 2015 regular season.

Darling creative team
Darling at Emerson College

‘WE FOXES’ READING IN SAN DIEGO

May 4, 2014

RSO residency with the San Diego State University MFA Musical Theatre Program April 28-May 7.

The residency will culminate in a reading of RSO’s new show We Foxes on May 5th at 7:30pm at San Diego State University’s Experimental Theatre. The reading is directed by Paula Klaustian with music direction by Robert Meffe, and features performances by students and alumni of the MFA Musical Theatre program.

Set in 1945 Missouri, the Southern Gothic musical We Foxes tells the story of Willa, a tough, unmannered orphan adopted by the wife of the Sheriff and the bloody domestic war that ensues between them when Willa uncovers the secrets lurking beneath the floorboards. It is the story of intense human struggle, deliverance, and salvation that can only be found from within.

Admission is free, but seats are limited, and reservations are recommended. To reserve, call (619) 594-8262 or email [email protected].

RSO NAMED ‘FUTURE BROADWAY POWER’

April 26, 2014

Backstage’s first annual Future Broadway Power List highlights RSO.

Check out what Backstage.com has to say about RSO:

Oliver is the best composer working today without a major production. His songs are routinely included in showcases; his musicals are released on CD (“35mm”) and staged in concerts (“Jasper in Deadland”). Whenever theater aficionados gather and talk, his name crops up with unvarying frequency as the songwriter you must listen to. So it’s only a matter of time until Oliver himself gets the showcase he so richly deserves: a spectacular mounting of one of his chewy, thought-provoking works.

See the rest of the list here.