BWW Preview: BOOKFACE...THE MUSICAL with Slingshot Productions at the Aurora Fox

A new musical is making its first appearance for one weekend only at the Aurora Fox, and it's tackling something a bit more contemporary. Bookface...the Musical explores how a family can both disconnect and reconnect through social media.

Denver-area audiences might know Melissa Faith Hart from her musical version of The Scarlet Letter, which premiered back in 2011-first at the Aurora Fox, then at Parker's PACE Center. (There have been about seven rewrites since.) Hart owns producing company Slingshot Theatre Productions with Rabs Hughey. This time, she's teamed with Broadway vet Bruce Perry for a more modern approach with Bookface.

Perry and Hart met while Perry was working as Frankie Avalon's assistant three years ago. When a friend introduced Hart to Avalon, she didn't know who he was.

"I thought: 'That's so cool...I have to know her'," Perry jokes.

Their connection grew from there. A few months later over drinks, the pair had a conversation about Perry's Facebook profile being hacked, posting random Islamic flags and wiping out his thousands of friends. He would joke he'd been "hacked by Al Qaeda." From there, the premise of Bookface was born.

"We just started doing it for fun, and then it started happening and became a show," Perry explains.

Bookface...the Musical chronicles three storylines- the younger generation, their middle-aged parents and grandparents. In one, Sarah's college roommate Mia has fallen in love with Sarah's brother, Jakob, through Bookface without ever meeting him. Then there's Rhonda and Jerry, Sarah's parents who are going through a rough patch. And finally the grandparents, Ester and Irving, who are discovering Bookface for the first time...but Ester is convinced the site is a portal for Al Qaeda. The plot intersects at the family's Jewish celebration.

Perry and Hart say their collaboration is 50/50 the whole way through. Sometimes Perry would write a song in the car and call Hart to get her opinion.

"I did Scarlet Letter alone," Hart clarifies. "To be able to share the composer's space has been an awesome experience, to the point that I'll probably never do a show alone again."

The writers incorporated a lot of culture into the piece. The grandparents are Jewish. Mia, the main character's roommate, is a Persian-American Muslim converted Christian pre-law student.

"We've had a lot of rewrites, but the songs are virtually the same as when we wrote them," Perry explains.

This weekend is the first time Bookface...the Musical will play to an audience.

The cast includes Rachel Turner (Sarah Klein), David Payne (Irving Klein), Jan Geise (Ester Klein), Megan Van De Hey (Rhonda Klein), Kevin Schwarz (Jerry Klein), Andrew Keeler (Jakob Klein) and Chanel Karimkhani (Mia).

"We are so lucky to have these actors. They're all incredible, and they're perfect in their roles," Perry says.

Hart, a single mother, has decided to pour her investment into producing local productions with local talent, and paying them a salary that will fund their needs.

The production is directed Robert Michael Sanders, with music direction by Michael Lavine. Donna Debreceni has provided additional musical arrangements.

Slingshot Theatre Productions will present the world premiere of the new musical comedy, Bookface...the Musical, by Melissa Faith Hart and Bruce Perry for three performances only, October 16 - 18. Performances are Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Aurora Fox Theatre, 9900 E. Colfax Ave. Tickets are $30 - $50 and available by calling (303)739-1970 or online at www.aurorafoxartscenter.org.

Rachel Turner and Chanel Karimkhani perform "There's Something There" from Bookface...the Musical

To post a comment, you must register and login.