Interview: JC Chasez & Jimmy Harry on FRANKENSTEIN-Inspired Concept Album

BroadwayWorld spoke with Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter JC Chasez and Golden Globe-winning songwriter and producer Jimmy Harry, whose new musical theater concept album, Playing With Fire, is out now! Inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, the project marks Chasez's first major foray into creating for musical theater, and the album features his vocals alongside artists Cardamon Rozzi and Lily Elise.

In this interview, Chasez and Harry delve into how Playing With Fire came to life after Harry shared his late mother Barbara Field’s adaptation of Frankenstein with Chasez. They also discuss the creative process behind writing the music, their hopes to bring Playing With Fire to life on stage in the near future, and more. 

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How did you two first become connected to each other and to this project? How was this collaboration born?

JC: We’ve been friends and co-writers for a long time. We met through an A&R person a bajillion years ago, and we were working on stuff for a record for me at the time. We were experimenting with ideas and songwriting, and just formed a friendship that lasted. We’re always sharing ideas and always having conversations. And one thing led to another and we ended up writing a musical during Covid, and then when we had a draft of that, we were taking some time to breathe. I was doing a bunch of reading, and we were talking about the stuff I was reading, and then I basically nudged my friend [laughs] to maybe write another musical. So, as we were discussing ideas, he brought up his mother’s play. It’s not a musical, it’s a play, and he asked me to take a look at it. And I’ll let him tell you the rest from there.

Jimmy: I think that kind of sums it up, really [laughs]. We were looking at different things to do. And my mom had just passed away, and it was one of my favorites of her work. I’d been pitching it to other people just in the hope that somebody would do something with it, so I thought I’d share it with JC. It wasn’t like it was like, “Oh man, this is going to be the most amazing musical ever,” but thinking about it, why not? It really just sparked a lot of great things.

How did you go about finding the sound for this album, and what was the process like in writing the music?

JC: I think we wanted to go, like everybody else who ever does Frankenstein, ‘It’s about technology’, a lot of industrial, goth stuff kind of fits the vibe. Sonic influences were Nine Inch Nails, and Radiohead, and Depeche Mode, and add a big dose of romantic composers, specifically Beethoven and Chopin. And showtunes.

Jimmy: I think both of us were kind of noncommittal at first, like, “Let’s give it a shot.” The first thing we wrote for it was ‘How Do You Sleep’. And after we had written it, it was just like, “Holy shit! We have to do more.” It was really special, and I think we really pushed ourselves, and it forced us into areas we wanted to explore. So, it was built all around that song, truthfully.

JC: When you get inspired by something, not to be too cliché with it, because we are talking about Frankenstein, it does kind of take on a life of its own. You kind of become obsessed. And that’s what happened. We wrote the song ‘How Do You Sleep’ and then we just said, “Hey, we have to do more.” And then when we started doing more, we just became more and more obsessed with the idea, and we became even more excited about the piece.

When we had a collection of songs, and we had Barbara’s play and that’s what we were using as the connective tissue for the songs, originally. And we ended up going to Playwrights' Center, of which Barbara was a founding member, in Minneapolis. And Jeremy Cohen did a great job of making us feel welcome there, and he was a friend of Barbara’s. So, we went up there, and he brought in some actors to read Barbara’s play between where we thought songs should be. It was a great way for us to start to experiment about joining a play with music to become a musical.

Now, obviously, the book of the musical has gone through some changes since Barbara’s play, but it was a really great opportunity for us to see if the two things could live together, and we left there knowing that we had to make changes, but also left a little bit more confident, like we were walking in a good direction in terms of making a musical about Frankenstein.

Jimmy, how did it feel to revisit your mother’s work in this way?

Jimmy: It’s interesting, because everybody wants to write a technological Frankenstein, and there are a lot of them. And our Frankenstein is really about family, to be honest. It comments on technology, but it’s really like a father and son story. It was hard, but it was kind of awesome, it was super therapeutic. It was not only fun to write it artistically, but it was a big therapy session for me, and I think for JC too. We put in a lot of emotion, and I think that comes out in the piece. It’s very truthful and very emotional.

JC, this is your first official venture into musical theatre. How did the experience differ from your previous work in pop music, and did it create any new challenges or opportunities?

JC: Working with Jimmy, it’s my first time creating anything for musical theatre. I did dabble a little bit before. But, this is the first time I’ve ever co-created anything that has to do with theatre. And I’ll be honest with you, it’s been really exciting. Whenever you’re making a record, you know what your voice sounds like, so you know what the record is going to sound like. And I think what’s been really exciting about this, is we’re making something, but it’s been really lovely to hand over some of the singing to other people. It’s been exciting to hear how they transform these ideas and these characters through their emotions. They’re singing the melodies and the words that Jimmy and I have written, but they are putting themselves into those characters by giving them a voice.

The people that we tapped to sing on this concept album— because we hope that it’s going to be a musical in the future, and not just an album, we want to make a musical—but the people that we tapped for this concept album, Cardamon Rozzi and Lily Elise, they really brought some of this stuff to life. Because now all of a sudden, Jimmy and I are hearing things that we wrote from a different perspective. Because when we’re writing the demos, I’m singing all the things, and you don’t really get those different personalities, the differentiation between The Creature and Frankenstein.

It’s really fun to hear people singing what you’re making, and what you imagine, and to hear it grow. So, that aspect of theatre has been really fun. And we’re looking forward to more of that, we’re looking forward to working with art directors, and directors, and choreographers to see how they’re inspired, and how it’ll evolve through their lens as well. Theatre is a big collaboration, and it’s been exciting to see- at least the people we talk to and interact with- to see the piece through their lens. Because we’ve seen it through our lens, and we have ideas, but then, when someone says something inspiring, it gets even more exciting.

Are there plans in the works for a live stage adaptation?

Jimmy: There are definitely near-term plans to do a concert version, probably within the next six months. And hopefully that will grow into a full-fledged musical for the stage.

Like you said, JC, theatre is collaborative, so it is cool to think about what it could become once it’s on a stage with other people.

JC: Absolutely. We wrote it to be a musical, we are in a position where we understand that theatre takes time. And Jimmy and I might be a little bit more impatient than some people [laughs]. Because when it comes to music in this day and age, you can put it out there basically whenever you want. You don’t have to wait forever for get music out.

Jimmy: A song can come out whenever, it can be on Spotify the day after you’ve finished it.

JC: We’re excited about the project, and it’s our way of being excited about the project. We want to make a musical, and we know that it takes time, but we want to get the music out there even to whet people’s appetites, to get people as excited as we are about the idea of a musical.

What do you both hope listeners will take away from Playing With Fire?

Jimmy: A lot. It’s our version of the story, and we’re going to put out a comic book with it, so you’ll be able to connect the dots visually, a little bit, which has been super fun to do as well. So, you’ll see the characters and kind of get an idea. Obviously it’s not going to be like a theatre piece, but it at least it makes it a little bit visual. And besides it being a potential musical, it’s a great record, I’m super proud of it. I think it stands up really well or better than all the stuff I’ve done before. 

JC: We’re very proud of the work. I hope that they can feel the emotion and the hard work we put into it. I hope it makes them curious to think what a stage representation of those songs could be like with the book. We do have a book, we’re still working on it, because we want to get it into workshops, and transform it, and make it better every day. Until it’s done, it’s not done [laughs]. We hope that people get excited, and get curious!