THE REAPER REAPS / THE ROAD EVERLASTING

May 20, 2016

“THE ROAD EVERLASTING” from WE FOXES
From We Foxes in Concert at 54 Below (Video 1 of 8)
Performed by F. MICHAEL HAYNIE, KERSTIN ANDERSON, KATIE THOMPSON
And WILL ERAT, CORY JEACOMA, JOHN-MICHAL LYLES, ANDI ALHADEFF, VICTORIA HUSTON-ELM

Sheriff Quimby and his beloved wife Vesta are dead. The town learns that their adopted daughter, Willa, is responsible. One tramp, Mr. Sallow, is asked to tell what he knows about the orphan girl Willa. Four years earlier, Willa, a young teenager, lives the tramp life on the road with her brother, George. But George is hauled away to war, leaving Willa without a soul in this world to guide her. Vesta Quimby adopts Willa, indoctrinating her into a glamorous world of privilege and class. Yet that isn’t Willa; Willa comes from road people, and once her brother returns from the war, she’ll have her real family again.

Video/Graphics by Nessie Nankivell

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.

KATIE THOMPSON, NIC ROULEAU, JAY ARMSTRONG JOHNSON AND MORE SING WE FOXES AND ROPE IN CONCERT

February 19, 2016

March 14, 2016 7pm & 9:30pm AT FEINSTEIN’S/54 BELOW

RSO54-WEFOXES-GREENFEINSTEIN’S/54 BELOW, Broadway’s Supper Club, presents the music of Ryan Scott Oliver in We Foxes and Rope on March 14, 2016. We Foxes and Rope represent two of three musicals in a trilogy of musical folk operas Oliver is writing about American desperation in war-time.

RSO is returning to 54 Below with a concert show featuring the music of his next two major works. Vocal powerhouse Katie Thompson (Giant) is joined by Jay Armstrong Johnson (On the Town, upcoming Quantico) Nic Rouleau (Book of Mormon), Alex Wyse (Spring Awakening), Kerstin Anderson (The Sound of Music), and F. Michael Haynie (Wicked, Dogfight) in presenting audiences a first-look at two works on the same stage. We Foxes is a musical tale of salvation in the face of murderous manipulation set in small town Missouri, 1945. Set against the Civil War, Rope explores the bonds of brotherhood when a blind boy, Shy, becomes tied to the gang-thief, Clay, and they embark on a  quest through war-torn America.

Jill Abramovitz (Cinderella), Andi Alhadeff (Jasper in Deadland), Will Erat (Catch Me If You Can), Victoria Huston-Elem (Addams Family), and Cory Jeacoma (Fan Girl) are also confirmed to perform with more to be announced.

Matthew J. Schneider will serve as the Director of the evening with Music Direction provided by Joshua Zecher-Ross who will play piano along with a five-piece folk band.

RSO at 54: We Foxes and Rope plays Feinstein’s/54 Below (254 West 54th Street) on March 14, 2016, at 7pm and 9:30pm. There is a $30-$40 cover charge and $25 food and beverage minimum. Tickets and information are available at www.54Below.com.  Tickets on the day of performance after 4:00 are only available by calling (646) 476-3551.

‘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

RSO’S LATEST SHOW ‘ROPE’ PREMIERED AS DEVELOPMENTAL WORKSHOP IN NYC, JAN 2016

November 18, 2015

RSO’s ROPE, second in the Dogs Trilogy begun with We Foxes, will premiere as a developmental workshop at Pace University.

The cast will include: Zack Zaromatidis, Ethan Carlson, Chris Isolano, Saidu Sinlah, David Park, Mary Claire Miskell, Bethany Perkins, Aury Krebs, Ian Fairlee, Jonathan Miller, Linnea Sumner, Hanako Greensmith, and Sam Swenson.

Ethan Carlson

The story of ROPE is as follows: “New York, 1864. They are an unlikely pair: Clay, a gang-thief determined to find life’s fortune alone; and Szajda (“Shy”), a ghostly Jew with an Irish accent, blind but possessing a remarkable power.  Yet 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 Shy to see through the eyes of Clay, the two young men must escape the vicious gangs of New York and push a path into the heart of the Civil War, where they find the greatest battle of all must be between themselves, brother and brother.”

 

More information will be released soon on performances open to the public.