A Book, A Wedding, And A Musical

Add Up To A Busy Summer For Newtown Native

By Nancy K. Crevier

To say that 2012 has so far been “a very good year,” as Newtown resident Brett Boles professed in a May 11 interview, might be a bit of an understatement.

A 2003 graduate of Newtown High School (where he appeared in The Music Man, Man of La Mancha, West Side Story and Anything Goes), and a 2007 graduate of Ithaca College with a major in musical composition, Mr Boles is a musical theater composer, lyricist and writer. He credits his experiences at Newtown High School, particularly the encouragement of then-drama coach Sabrina Post, and two of his English teachers, with inspiring him to follow the career that finds him currently in the midst of producing his own musical for the New York Music Festival (NYMF) this summer.

He is also looking forward to his July 6 marriage to Caitlin O’Keefe, and celebrating the publication of his first novel, Eye of the Storm, the first volume of The Five Districts trilogy swirling about his brain. The fantasy tale, illustrated by Sandy Hook photographer Darren Wagner, is available on Amazon, and Mr Boles said that he feels hopeful that the book will do well and has already begun work on the second book.

“I had wanted to write a book for a long time. I have always been a fan of epic fantasy stuff and love creative writing,” he said. “I made time in 2010 to write my own, finally. More than half the battle is forcing yourself to do it,” Mr Boles admitted. He is pleased to have made the book available to Kindle readers, as of March.

“But I haven’t had a lot of time to devote to marketing it, right now,” he admitted.

That is because in February he received the news that Foreverman, a musical for which Mr Boles has written the script, music and lyrics, had been accepted into the Next Link Project of the New York Music Festival, one of just a dozen productions chosen from 30 finalists winnowed down from the original 400 submissions. The acceptance is all the more impressive, considering that the freak October storm coincided with the final date for submission to the NYMF. Down to the wire already, the power outage nearly put the brakes on Mr Boles’s plans to enter the contest. The musical could be on the back burner still had the contest submission date not been extended to accommodate those affected by the storm.

Foreverman, begun in 2008, grew out of Mr Boles’ fascination with immortality.

“What if you could live forever? What about it would be good? What about it would be bad?” wondered Mr Boles. With that concept in mind, he crafted the story that is now taking shape on the stage.

The musical is a story of “friendship, love, betrayal, and redemption spanning several tumultuous centuries” according to the nymf.org website description, and the love trilogy that ties it all together. With the discovery of an elixir on New Year’s Eve in 1625 that will allow them to live forever, friends Will and Jack begin a journey through time that finds both enamored of the same beautiful woman. Intertwined with the dialogue are nine original songs for the cast members, who have yet to be selected.

Writing, whether a novel or a musical, is a labor of love, said Mr Boles, who continues to act and sing himself, most recently in the Center Stage production this past February of Guys and Dolls in Shelton.

For this show, he said, the concept came first. “Then I had an idea for a song when Will and Jack discover the elixir. ‘Sons of Adam’ hasn’t changed much since I first wrote it, strangely enough,” he said.

From there, Mr Boles begins to figure out the “moment” for which he is writing.

“The musical idea comes first, then the music and the lyrics puzzle themselves together. When I have 10 or 12 songs, I can see where the gaps in the story are, and fill them in,” either with more music or dialogue, said Mr Boles.

Every musical, since his first attempt as a sophomore in high school (an Arthurian legend that “was horrible, but you have to start somewhere”), has its challenges. With Foreverman, it was the songs for the lead female part.

“I realized she needed another solo,” he said. Originally he had written two for the female lead, both in the first act; then he discarded one that did not sit right with him.

The idea he came up with was not a solo, but a duet. It was his fiancée, said Mr Boles, who realized the lack of a romantic duet. “I Will Take You” has since moved from Act 2 to Act 1, and become a reprisal in the Second Act. It is one of only many changes that has occurred, and of the many yet to come, said Mr Boles.

Following a crash course in theater production at this level that took place in March, Mr Boles said he has been working with teams of professionals in all aspects of the business to put the musical together.

“I have a director, a general manager, and a casting director, and several designers working with me. It is great to have a director,” he said. They will work together to select the cast in the near future, following a Table Read that was scheduled for May 13, when experienced actors read aloud the script.

“These won’t necessarily be the actors who are in the musical. This just helps us to tap into the characters and get input from actual actors,” Mr Boles explained.

Each production selected to take part in the Next Link Project received a $4,500 stipend, in addition to professional support. But Mr Boles estimates that the cost of the entire production will come to at least $86,000, which he must raise. As of May 11, he had raised $3,500 through the online site, but remained calm, saying, “We’ll get there.”

“This is by far the biggest thing, next to actually opening on Broadway, that could happen to Foreverman,” said Mr Boles. So far, one Broadway producer and two off-Broadway producers have expressed an interest in his show. “They are waiting to see how it does in the festival,” he said. It is not a pipe dream to believe that inclusion in the NYMF could lead to something bigger. According to information at nymf.org, “the New York Musical Theatre Festival has premiered more than 300 new musicals — more than 75 of which have gone on to award-winning productions in New York.”

It is a time of hard work and excitement for him, said Mr Boles, as the July 20 opening date draws closer. “This is a blast, though. This is the opportunity of a lifetime.”

Performances of Foreverman will take place at the 160-seat PTC Performance Space, 555 West 42nd Street in Manhattan, beginning Friday, July 20, at 8 pm. Shows will continue Sunday, July 22, at 1 and 5 pm; Tuesday, July 24, at 5 and 9 pm; and Saturday, July 28, at 1 pm.

Mr Boles encourages anyone planning to purchase four tickets or more to consider a membership with NYMF. The silver level membership, $100, includes four festival tickets and two tickets to the 2012 NYMF Opening Night party. NYMF members may also begin placing ticket orders as of May 15 and doors open in advance of public seating at the shows, guaranteeing best seating. Seating for all performances is unreserved. Tickets go on sale to the public June 15.

To make a 100 percent tax-deductible donation to support Foreverman, please visit nymf.org/donateforeverman.

Full ticketing information for Foreverman and information on NYMF membership can be found at nymf.org. Select NYMF 2012 link, then Full Productions. Biographies for the creative team for Foreverman can be found at forevermanthemusical.com.

The Kindle edition of Eye of the Storm (The Five Districts) can be purchased online at amazon.com, for $8.99.

A book, a wedding, and a musical. It sounds almost like the title of a Broadway show, with lyrics that sing of hope and success. Mr Boles’s demeanor is serene, but his eyes belie the thrill that lies beneath it all.

“Who,” he said, “would’ve thought it?”