“The plan” is a common theme throughout Esther. While there was no pre-meditated intention to make “plans” a theme of Queen Esther the Musical, plans change and now there are lots of references to plans. I believe in making plans, I know that plans change, and I embrace that change. So, yes, I have plans. Big plans! Plans are subject to change. Here are the plans:
First and most obviously, I have songs and I have a script. That’s where I am at as of today. In February of 2022, there will be a living room read, with thanks to my Wife’s aunt and uncle, Judy & Steve Chamow. This will help me hear the script aloud to check for consistency in character as well as get feedback from the readers on story and dialogue. We will play the demo recordings of Queen Esther the Musical songs during the read.
Meanwhile, I am on the hunt for a musical director to arrange Queen Esther the Musical songs into a piano/vocal score. The songs were written on guitar. I have written sheet music for the vocals as well as some piano melodies. The goal is to have a piano vocal score for Queen Esther the Musical by the end of Spring 2022.
In July of 2022, there will be a staged reading of Queen Esther the Musical in the Bay Area, California. This is the plan I am currently focused on. In order to accomplish this, I will need a rehearsal space, a performance space, the musical director, the actors, an audition process with Equity contract for said actors, and an audience. For this, I am reaching out to people I know on all fronts to make connections. As far as gathering an audience, I am creating a contact list of Temples in the Bay Area. Queen Esther the Musical is written for all audiences, not just a Jewish one. However, knowing that Queen Esther the Musical is intended to be the next big Jewish musical, it is obvious that the most interested audience will be a Jewish audience.
The staged reading of Queen Esther the Musical will provide additional feedback from the audience and is meant to excite interested investors. The next step after that will be to produce a full production of Queen Esther the Musical on a legitamate stage. There are a lot plans associated with that step, of course, which I will save for a future post.