Watch: THE FITZGERALDS OF ST. PAUL Music Video

Brainstorm Live Entertainment has released the first music video from their new musical, The Fitzgeralds of St. Paul. The two-actor chamber musical dramatizes the tumultuous marriage of Jazz Age literary legends F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald – two brilliant artists struggling with addiction, mental illness, professional jealousy and secret ambitions – whose love for each other was as poetic as it was mutually destructive. Featuring book, music and lyrics by Christie Baugher, winner of the American Theatre Wing's 2022 Jonathan Larson Grant and the ASCAP Foundation's Harold Adamson Lyrics Award, The Fitzgeralds of St. Paul is part memory play, part gin-soaked vaudeville – dreamlike and hypnotic, witty, and heartbreaking – a devastating love story that spans decades and continents. Watch the video! 

“Crafting a musical inspired by the fascinating, beautiful, infuriating relationship of these two people has been one of the great privileges of my life,” says Christie Baugher. “Fitzgeralds has been a decade in the making, and I've been so fortunate to collaborate with some of the best and brightest minds and hearts in the business in bringing it to life.  I'm thrilled to be partnering with Brainstorm on this next step of the journey, and I couldn't be more excited for audiences to finally get to see what we've been working on.”

The creative team includes film director Sarah Wilson Thacker (Ryan Murphy HALF Initiative fellow), director/choreographer Danny Mefford (Broadway's Kimberly Akimbo, Fun Home, Dear Evan Hansen), and music producers Frank Galgano & Matt Castle (Brainstorm Records). Tiffany Topol (Once the Musical and Xanadu, national tours) and Jewell Wilson Bridges (Voodoo Macbeth, feature film) star as Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald. This unique first glimpse into The Fitzgeralds of St. Paul features a selection of songs, offering audiences a teaser of the moody and sumptuous score and the wild and intoxicating world of the show.

Sarah Wilson Thacker, film director, comments: “I was first introduced to the show at an ASCAP workshop, and was immediately bowled over by how madly romantic it is, and how it balances these characters' electric connection with this unspeakable, looming darkness - not to mention every song is a banger?! I've shot footage for Broadway shows in the past and it's been a really long time since something grabbed me by the throat in the way that Christie's show did. I reached out to her that night and basically begged her to let me put it on film.” 

In addition to the music video, Brainstorm is also planning a star-studded concept album of The Fitzgeralds of St. Paul. This recording will feature the complete score from the show – orchestrated for an ensemble of 12 musicians – and with each song performed by a different theater star. Album producer Frank Galgano says: "Cast and concept albums were my musical theater gateway drug! I know every note and lyric to so many wonderful shows from listening to them on repeat. I feel so honored to be able to make those albums now, and to have the opportunity to add a shining star to the canon. Once you hear Fitz (that's what we lovingly call it), it won't let you go.” 

Brainstorm Records will kick off a Kickstarter campaign on November 8 to help raise money for the upcoming concept album, which will feature performances by Heidi Blickenstaff, Jewell Wilson Bridges, Jessica & Santino Fontana, Grace McLean, Shannon O'Boyle, Tiffany Topol, and Alysha Umphress, in addition to other talent to be announced.

As a final developmental step for The Fitzgeralds of St. Paul, a “preview production” will be staged at the Irish Classical Theatre Company in Buffalo this fall, directed and choreographed by Danny Mefford and starring Shannon O'Boyle and Jewell Wilson Bridges. This limited-run engagement will give audiences the opportunity to experience the show's captivating story and unforgettable music – and will offer the creative team a chance to put the finishing touches on the show before a future commercial run in New York City.

To learn more about The Fitzgeralds of St. Paul, please visit FitzgeraldsMusical.com