Gordon Leary

159 posts

Songs for Today @ Weston Playhouse

Julia and I were thrilled to be asked to participate in Weston Playhouse’s Songs for Today series and to kick off a weekly release of new songs (and fresh looks at old songs) by friends and heroes like Kirsten Childs, Joe Iconis, Tidtaya Sinutoke & Isabella Dawis, Jenny Giering & Sean Barry, Adam Gwon, and Adam Guettel. We were asked to perform the song ourselves, so you can hear Julia’s beautiful vocals along with my animation…

This song was written both in conversation with the present moment AND for a new show we’re just beginning to write (called These Familiar Spirits) and we’ll share more info and more songs and videos from it soon!

Thanks to Andy Zinsmeister for his audio engineering, and Susanna Gellert for including us in this project. There will be some public Zoom conversations in the next few weeks, and I’ll share more info (or at least a recap) once those are on the books!

Here’s to a magnificent 2021!

As we expected, both of our scheduled productions of The Magnificent Seven have been postponed to next year. We are so looking forward to following through on all of the planning that we’ve done, and grateful for a moment to step back into our role as writers to tackle some refining and rewriting. It’s also exciting to be coinciding not only with the (now) 2021 Olympics but also celebrate the 25th anniversary of the team’s gold medal win!

There will be more information about our productions at Flint Rep and The Players Theatre, and we’ll share it with you when it’s available!

A Pact deferred

I’m sad to say that performances for the NYU production of Pregnancy Pact have been cancelled now that NYU has suspended all events in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. While I’m disappointed that we won’t get to share the hard work of the amazing ten actors pictured here with you all (not to mention the creative team behind the scenes) I’m so grateful to have had the chance to see the show run in the rehearsal room in front of a small audience of family and teachers and friends.

Thanks to Sarah Schlesinger and Kent Gash for giving us the opportunity; and thanks to our wonderful collaborators: director Catie Davis, music director Mark Evans, choreographer Nancy RenĂ©e Braun , stage manager Alannah O’Hagan, assistant director Sarah DeMarino, assistant stage manager Hannah Ford, and actors (pictured at left, clockwise) Cuinlin Pedretti (Cory/Justin), Caroline Reinstadtler (Jenn), Mary Jardine (Maddie), Scottie Schwefel (Brynn), Tiana Monique Jung (Sansanee), Jennifer Daly (Kaylee), Kylie Lavrenchik (Jeanelle), Ruby Zinner (Jeanelle), Chanel Morehead (Jenn), and Maddie Dyer (Maddie.)

This has been a wonderful second act for the show – we’ve gotten to tackle some meaningful rewrites and think through what this show means in 2020 – and Julia and I truly hope we’ll have a chance to share it again before too long.

A Magnificent summer!

In the lead up to the Olympics, The Magnificent Seven will vault onstage in New York this summer! Produced at the historic Players Theater in Greenwich Village, the show will be directed by Nikki DiLoreto (Soft Power, Kiss Me, Kate) with music direction by Alex Ratner and choreography by Sunny Hitt. The production runs June 25 to July 19. Casting will be announced shortly!

For more information and tickets: magnificentsevenmusical.com