Heritage Players, Inc., a strong presence on the suburban Baltimore community theater scene since 1975, will present a unique musical song cycle, Songs for a New World, opening March 18th at Rice Auditorium in Catonsville. Written and composed by Jason Robert Brown, whom the Philadelphia Inquirer has called "one of Broadway's smartest and most sophisticated songwriters since Stephen Sondheim," Songs for a New World offers audiences a collection of stories, all in song. But this is not merely a musical revue, nor is it a book of short stories set to music. As Erik Stein of the Pacific Conservatory for the Performing Arts wrote, Songs for a New World "takes three men and three women on a journey. They journey together and alone; sometimes they lead, sometimes they follow. They journey with friends, family, lovers...they look for allies, confidants, mentors...and in doing so they discover they are worthy--worthy to love, worthy to risk, worthy to fail, worthy of success, worthy of trust...they let go of their agendas and find authenticity." They sing us their stories, which, though individual and very different from one another, express our common human experience of facing difficulty and disaster, struggling our way through it, and surviving--perhaps even finding moments of faith and grace along the way.
Audra Mains, director of the Heritage Players' production, explained further, "The connecting thread throughout the show is the theme, not a story line. The cast members create their characters and relationships entirely through the music they are singing." The music itself draws from a broad range of musical genres, including pop, gospel, jazz, and classical music; almost everyone will find at least one song that is a heart-grabber. The set is minimal because Songs for a New World doesn't take place in any one city or time period; its timeless stories are set in life itself--in the heart.
Heritage Players, in fact, is a community theater with a heart. The group is unique in that it donates a portion of the proceeds from each production to a charity chosen by the cast and crew, often an organization near and dear to the heart of someone in the show, or to a group whose purpose matches the theme of the show. For this production, the cast and crew have chosen the Night of Peace Family Shelter, a faith-based homeless shelter located in Baltimore County (www.nightofpeace.com), as well as the Spring Grove Hospital Patient Fund.
Performances of Songs for a New World will take place on Friday and Saturday nights, March 18-19, 25-26, and April 1-2 at 8 p.m., with Sunday matinees on March 27 and April 3 at 2 p.m. in Rice Auditorium, Spring Grove Hospital Campus, Catonsville. Tickets are available at the door for $12 and $10 for seniors/students. Note that certain language and situations in this production might not be suitable for younger children.
www.heritageplayers.com.
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