Student Blog: Block and Jerjian Present: Safe & Sound the Musical

First, there was Rodgers and Hammerstein, Kander and Ebb, and Pasek and Paul. Now, there is Block and Jerjian. Holly Block and Elizabeth Jerjian are unlike the writing teams who have preceded them, but these two women have no issue with breaking boundaries. "We want women to have equal opportunity in the industry," shared the duo.

Holly Block, who is an actress and writer, was born and raised in New York. She booked her first professional job at age 12 when she was cast in the Godspell Cast of 2032, and since then, she has been focused on her career and passion for theater. Block recently graduated from Circle in the Square Theater Conservatory, and while she was in school, she met Elizabeth Jerjian. Block is set to originate the role of Kendra in the Off-Broadway production of One Night Only when theater makes a return.

Elizabeth Jerjian, who began as a singer/songwriter in the UK, has been writing music for as long as she can remember. Jerjian has released music that has reached almost 200,000 listeners from all over the world, her songs have reached number 2 on the iTunes Singer/Songwriter charts, and she has even had the privilege of working with Grammy Award-winning writers. Jerjian's path has evolved and shifted over the past couple of years, and she has realized that creating music to empower and inspire, and the importance of self-love, is more aligned with her soul than the path she was headed down. "When we heal ourselves, we heal the world," said Jerjian. Now, Jerjian lives in New York, and both her and Block are ready to take the world by storm with their brand new musical.

Safe & Sound the Musical brings attention to mental health, self-love, toxic masculinity, equality and kindness. The character Love, played by Block, guides 3 characters toward rediscovering who they are by reconnecting them with their inner child.

"We talk about the raw and real circumstances we go through in life, and our whole mission is to shine a light on the fact that any challenge in your life, or any darkness you experience, can be healed and overcome with love. Any kind of love! Love is around us everyday if we choose to see it. Opportunities present themselves, and if you are open to the world around you, you can see them! When we were writing [Safe & Sound the Musical], it was important to us to write about life experiences to make this musical be relatable. We knew we had to write about things we were passionate about; something that would help us get our message across [about] loving yourself, [as well as] healing in a world where you are never truly alone. The show is just an uphill climb from start to finish!" said the team.

Jerjian is the musical director for Safe & Sound the Musical, and the songs are compiled of previously written songs by Jerjian, as well as new songs written for the show. "I'm Not Ashamed," a female empowerment song written by Jerjian, Niki Black & Isabel Cox, was licensed by NBC in November. Block, on the other hand, is the director of Safe & Sound The Musical, as well as the lead of the show; Love.

When talking about the creation of Love, Block shared, "When going to auditions, I often would get the same feedback, 'We love your energy'. 'You are so exciting to watch'. 'I can't take my eyes off of you'. Callback after callback, I heard 'You're a lot.' 'You are not your typical leading lady.' [After getting that feedback], I realized that the perfect leading lady role [had not] been created for me yet. It simply did not exist... a role like the Emcee in Cabaret and Lead Player in Pippin were originally written for men! I knew what I had to do! I took my feedback of me being 'a lot' and I thought, 'what is the biggest most overwhelming thing in the world?' Love! And [that was how] the character was created!"

Safe & Sound the Musical is premiering at the very first Front Row Fringe Festival on March 13th at 10pm EST. "It has been extremely fun creating this show virtually!" says Jerjian. "At first, we were a bit hesitant to do this production over Zoom, because the show is so visual. Yet, directing this has been so eye opening to the possibility of virtual theater," shared Block. "We want to give a big thanks to Jacob Foy, our instrumental orchestra, and also to Jeff Foy for extending this opportunity to us! No matter how dark a day seems, you are not alone. With the power you hold inside your soul, you have the ability to overcome everything in life! WE ARE LOVE! You are not alone."

Check out https://www.safeandsoundmusical.com to buy tickets to the premiere of Safe & Sound the Musical, and follow @safeandsoundmusical on Instagram for updates on the show.

Listen to "I'm Not Ashamed"

Listen to "Hold This Love"

Listen to "Safe and Sound"