‘JASPER IN DEADLAND’ Album to be Released May 20

May 20, 2016

300_jasperRSO’s ‘Jasper in Deadland’ (with a book by Hunter Foster) will release a Cast Album on May 20, 2016.

The album is distributed by Sh-K-Boom Records, which also distributed his ’35mm: A Musical Exhibition.’

MATT DOYLE as the title character, with SYDNEY SHEPHERD, LOUIS HOBSON, ANDI ALHADEFF, BRANDI MASSEY, BONNIE MILLIGAN, F. MICHAEL HAYNIE, JOHN-MICHAEL LYLES and KYLE CARTER are featured as the nine-person cast on the album.

The album is produced by Oliver and John Clancy (orchestrator), with Nessie Nankivell, Kailey Marshall and Solomon Hoffman as associate producers.

The album will be available on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, and more.

Jasper in Deadland was developed as a commission for the Pasadena Musical Theatre Program in 2011. Prospect Theater Company presented the New York City premiere, which featured Matt Doyle (The Book of Mormon) as Jasper, Allison Scagliotti (Off-Broadway debut, SyFy’s “Warehouse 13”) as Gretchen and Ben Crawford (Big Fish, Shrek The Musical) as Mr. Lethe. Performances ran through April 13 at the West End Theatre in the Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew. In May of 2015, Jasper in Deadland opened at Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre. David Armstrong, 5th Avenue Theatre’s Executive Producer and Artistic Director said, “Ryan Scott Oliver and Hunter Foster are two of the most exciting young talents working in the theatre today and The 5th has a very successful track record in providing emerging theatre artists like these with a large scale playing field in which they can thrill and amaze us. What Rent is to La Bohème, this show is to the Orpheus myths and legends.”

Jasper in Deadland tells the story of 16-year-old Jasper, who journeys into the Afterlife to rescue his recently deceased best friend, Agnes.  But in this version of the hereafter – known as “Deadland,” a hybrid of mythology, religion, and superstition – the dead forget Life…  And so, too, will Jasper, if he can’t get past the seven circles of Deadland, fearsome Cerberus, heavenly Beatrix, mysterious Mr. Lethe, and ultimately himself.  Can Jasper bring his best friend back from the dead, or will he join the dead forever?

The cast album is made possible by a generous contribution from Kenny and Marleen Alhadeff, Angela Hardy, Diane Finston, Kevin Montgomery, and Frank and Linda Damon.

WATCH: ‘WE FOXES’ and ‘ROPE’ in Concert

May 20, 2016

CHECK OUT TWO PLAYLISTS FOR RSO’S LATEST SHOWS!

‘WE FOXES’ and ‘ROPE’ represent two of three musicals in a trilogy of musical folk operas RSO is writing about American desperation during war-time.  

SELECTIONS FROM ‘WE FOXES’ IN CONCERT

‘WE FOXES’ is a southern Gothic thriller set in small-town Missouri, 1945.  It’s the story of Willa, a tough, 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 – however 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.  

SELECTIONS FROM ‘ROPE’ IN CONCERT

‘ROPE’ which takes place in 1864 New York, tells the story of Clay, a gang-thief who’s determined to find life’s fortune alone, and Szajda, a ghostly Jew with an Irish accent.  He is blind but possesses a remarkable power.  They become tied at the waist with a length of rope, stuck together on a desperate quest through a war-torn America.  Clinging together with this charmed rope that allows the blind Szajda to see through the eyes of Clay, the two young men must escape the vicious gangs of New York and forge a path into the heart of the Civil War where they find the greatest battle of all must be between themselves.

RSO LIVE AT LINCOLN CENTER

January 8, 2016

DEREK KLENA, LINDSAY MENDEZ, KATIE THOMPSON, AND MORE JOIN RYAN SCOTT OLIVER TO OPEN LINCOLN CENTER’S AMERICAN SONGBOOK SERIES

12489894_10153183943696246_1931776842_oAward-winning composer Ryan Scott Oliver will open the 2016 season of Lincoln Center’s acclaimed AMERICAN SONGBOOK series with a free concert on Tuesday, January 19 at 7:30 pm in the David Rubenstein Atrium. Now in its 17th season, American Songbook celebrates the best of American singing and songwriting as interpreted by top performers and rising stars.  Admission is free; no tickets required; seating is first-come; first-served.

The concert will star Kerstin Anderson, Nick Blaemire, Ben Crawford, Jason Gotay, John-Michael Lyles, Julia Mattison, Derek Klena, Lindsay Mendez, Katie Thompson, Betsy Wolfe, and more to be announced.

It will also feature Ethan Carlson, Jessica Crouch, Ian Fairlee, Mary Claire Miskell, Tatiana Lofton, Daniel Yearwood, and the cast of Pace University’s Pace New Musicals developmental workshop of Oliver’s latest musical, ROPE. The concert will feature a dynamic range of songs spanning Oliver’s career.

For the third year, through Lincoln Center’s partnership with PGIM, the global investment management business of Prudential Financial, Songbook’s “Invest in the Future of American Song,” gave members of the public the opportunity to select the artist to open the Songbook season with a free concert at the Atrium. Oliver received the most votes, earning him the opening spot on January 19.

The Larson Grant Award-winning composer’s work has been presented at the Kennedy Center and Joe’s Pub, among other notable venues. Oliver created the music and lyrics for Jasper in Deadland premiered Off-Broadway and remounted at Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre); 35mm: A Musical Exhibition (licensed by Samuel French, with original cast recording on Ghostlight Records); Darling, Mrs. Sharp, Out of My Head (licensed through Steele Spring Stage Rights) as well as the commission We Foxes (Broadway Across America). Additional career highlights include a commission for Disney Theatricals, projects for Rosie O’Donnell’s Theater Kids and Theatreworks USA’s We the People.

Oliver is the Director of New Musicals at Pace University in New York City and the Artistic Director of the Pasadena Musical Theatre Program. He is currently at work on the new musical Rope, a commission for Grove Entertainment. Visit RyanScottOliver.com and follow him on Twitter @ryanscottoliver.

American Songbook continues with performances in The Appel Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center from January 20 through February 27, followed by American Songbook in the Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse from March 16 through April 1. For more information and to purchase tickets to these performances go to AmericanSongbook.org, call CenterCharge at 212.721.6500, or visit the Alice Tully Hall and David Geffen Hall Box Offices, or Frederick P. Rose Hall Box Office.

Since its launch in 1998, American Songbook has been dedicated to celebrating the extraordinary achievements of the popular American songwriter from the turn of the 20th century to the present day. Spanning all styles and genres from Tin Pan Alley and Broadway to the eclecticism of today’s songwriters working in pop, cabaret, rock, folk, and country, American Songbook traces the history and charts the course of the American song from its past and current forms to its future direction. For a list of artists that have performed in American Songbook over the years, as well as the composers that have been honored by evenings of their music, click here.

Lead Support for American Songbook provided by PGIM

 

RSO JOINS LINCOLN CENTER’S ‘AMERICAN SONGBOOK’ – BE SURE TO VOTE!

November 18, 2015

An evening of RSO’s work will be presented by an all-star Broadway cast as part of the Lincoln Center’s American Songbook series, “Prudential Invest in the Future of American Song.” When’s the show?  That’s up to you!

Follow this link to vote for RSO as your favorite… the winner of the three artists will get the coveted “opening night” spot on January 19th.  Be a part of #teamRSO, and vote today!

voteRSOVOTE HERE

Returning for its 17th season, Lincoln Center’s acclaimed series American Songbook will continue to broaden its scope in celebrating the best in American singing and songwriting as interpreted by top performers and rising stars, with events at three Lincoln Center venues. The series will expand to Mesa Arts Center, in Mesa, Arizona, with three performances in March. And for the third time, American Songbook will partner with Prudential Investment Management for an online program, Invest in the Future of American Song, through which the audience selects the performer to open the American Songbook season at the David Rubenstein Atrium.

For the third season, American Songbook will partner with Prudential Investment Management with Invest in the Future of American Song, an online competition through which the public chooses a performer for a free American Songbook concert at the David Rubenstein Atrium on January 19. Three performers have been nominated by Lincoln Center. Beginning on November 16, audience members will vote for their favorite artist via social media. The selection of the winner will be announced on December 14.

“We are proud to partner with Lincoln Center to expand the vibrant legacy of American Songbook,” said David Hunt, President and CEO of Prudential Investment Management. “American Songbook continues to be a marvelous series that celebrates and makes accessible the dynamic scope of American music performed by a blend of legendary performers and emerging talent.”

‘WE FOXES’ WORKSHOPPED AT GOODSPEED IN JANUARY; CONCERT MARCH 14 AT 54 BELOW

November 18, 2015

The RSO show joins Goodspeed Opera House’s festival of new musicals IN JANUARY 2016, AND WILL BE PRESENTED IN CONCERT AT FEINSTEIN’S/54 BELOW ON MARCH 14.

RSO’s southern Gothic thriller We Foxes will receive a developmental workshop at Goodspeed Opera House as part of their festival of new musicals.  It will again be directed by Leigh Silverman (who presently directed during this summer’s reading at Playwrights Horizons), with dramaturgy by Matthew Schneider.  Rich Silverstein will music direct. The reading will be presented on the mainstage and open to the public.

The concert presentation on March 14 will be held at 7:00pm and 9:30pm.  Ticket buyers can receive 50% off tickets on Cyber Monday (Nov. 30).  CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS.

SLIDER for site-wfconcert

All casting will be announced soon.

We Foxes was commissioned by Broadway Across America and has been developed in readings or written in residence at the 5th Avenue in Seattle, Goodspeed, TheatreWorks, Silicon Valley’s Writer’s Retreat, Pace New Musicals (Pace University), CAP 21 and the Weston Playhouse.  The York Theatre Company presented the New York premiere Sept. 12, 2014, as part of its Developmental Reading Series, and the show is the winner of the New Horizons Award.

Goodspeed Opera House has produced over 250 musicals, including over 70 world premieres, and exported 20 productions to Broadway including Amazing Grace, 13, and Annie.  Goodspeed stands as the first regional theatre in America to earn two special Tony Awards, one in 1980 for outstanding contributions to the American musical and a second in 1995 for distinguished achievement for a regional theatre.

Goodspeed mounts both new and newly revived musicals each year on our main stage at the Opera House and on their second stage in Chester – a total of more than 400 performances during the April to December season attracting 130,000 patrons to the Connecticut River Valley. They stand at the forefront of producing and preserving the American musical, simultaneously reinventing the classics and inventing new ones. They attract well-known icons of the theatre world and foster emerging talent among composers, lyricists, and librettists. Each year, thousands of actors, directors, choreographers, and technicians aspire to come to Goodspeed to practice their craft. Among millions who know and love this art form – and those who appreciate its history and enduring appeal – Goodspeed is widely recognized as “The Home of the American Musical.”

See more at: http://www.goodspeed.org/about/all-about-goodspeed#sthash.M3x2XTMz.dpuf

The developmental cast will feature college students from the Hart School and Boston Conservatory.

Listen to the #FoxesTracks here

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.

Goodspeed Opera House