
Dallas — On the Eve, the locally born indie rock music by Shawn Magill, Seth Magill and Michael Federico will have a concert reading at Joe's Pub in New York's Public Theater on Oct. 19, in a benefit for the seven-year-old company Theatre C. That group plans to later stage a full production of the show, about a group of actors and a time-hopping story involving the inventors of the hot air balloon, Marie Antoinette and an impending apocalypse. The music from the show can be heard on releases from Shawn and Seth's group Home by Hovercraft, on the album Are We Chameleons and the EP Seams. The show was first done at the Margo Jones Theatre in 2012, and given a world premiere at Theatre Three in 2014. It was part of the National Alliance for Musical Theatre's Festival of New Musicals in New York in 2015.
The Joe's Pub performance will be dircted by Tony nominee Sam Buntrock.
Here is the news release about the Joe's Pub reading:
The three-time New York Innovative Theatre Award winning Theatre C will present a concert of songs from the acclaimed folk-indie-rock musical On the Eve by Shawn Magill, Seth Magill and Michael Federico at Joe’s Pub (425 Lafayette Street) on October 19, 2016 at 10:00 PM. Tony Award Nominee Sam Buntrock (Sunday in the Park with George), directs and Kimberly Grigsby (Amelie, Here Lies Love, Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark) is the music director. Producing Artistic Director Carlos Armesto and Alecia Brooks produce the concert. The event is a benefit for Theatre C.
The performers for the concert include Tony Nominee Sarah Stiles (Hand to God), Will Connolly (Once), Eddie Cooper (Little Shop of Horrors, Mozart in the Jungle), and more.
Coming off of its breakout presentation at last year’s Festival of New Musicals (presented by the National Alliance of Musical Theatre), On the Eve is a post-modern rock event of apocalyptic proportions. The show pays tribute to the spirit of creativity and individuality in humanity’s darkest hours - “beyond any definition of American theatre. And bully for that,” as Dallas Observer put it.
On the Eve was deemed “soul-searching” (Dallas Morning News), “thrilling” and “a knock-out” (D Magazine), a concert “within an art installation,” (Dallas Observer), and has been featured in American Theatre Magazine. Think of the show as The Threepenny Opera and Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure spending a questionable night together.
Theatre C is developing On the Eve with plans for a full production. “We couldn’t be more excited that Theatre C is presenting the entire score in this concert format,” says Shawn Magill, composer for On the Eve. “Sam Buntrock’s imagination, Kimberly Grigsby’s dexterity, and Carlos Armesto’s ideas for the full production are exactly what On the Eve needs for a future life,” says Michael Federico, the book writer. “I can’t wait to share this with New York,” says Seth Magill, the lyricist and co-composer.
On the Eve was presented at the Festival of New Musicals (National Alliance for Musical Theatre) in New York in 2015, and has had a workshop production at the Margo Jones Theatre in Dallas, TX (the writers’ current home), where it was awarded “Best New Play or Musical” and “Best Contribution for Score” in 2013 by the DFW Theatre Critics Forum. The World Premiere of On the Eve was held at Theatre Three in Dallas, reaching 2014 year-end best lists for D Magazine and Dallas Culture Map and receiving The Column Awards’ “2014 Steve Lovett Award for Outstanding New Work by a Local Playwright.”
Tickets are on sale now and range in price from $30 bar seats to $50 VIP seats. To purchase tickets, visit joespub.com or call 212-967-7555. Ordering advance tickets is strongly encouraged as capacity is limited for the performance. For more information, visit www.theatrec.org, www.joespub.com, email us at info@theatrec.org, or call 212-967-7555.
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