MADAM LUCY, DECEASED A New Musical To Be Presented On The William & Mary Campus, June 11

MADam LUCY, deceased, a new musical about the life (and afterlife) of Lucy Ludwell Paradise (1752-1814), with book & lyrics by two-time Emmy Award-winning songwriter William Schermerhorn and music by composer and recording artist Elise Morris, will have its first staged workshop in Williamsburg, Virginia, in the historic Great Hall of the Sir Christopher Wren Building on the campus of William & Mary with public performances at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, June 11, 2023. Laurie J. Wolf, professor of theatre, directs.

Set in a salon in mid-19th-century Williamsburg, MADam LUCY, deceased recounts the life story of Lucy Ludwell Paradise: her ascent into the fashionable world of 18th-century society on both sides of the Atlantic, her correspondence and interaction with prominent figures of her day, her tragic descent and incarceration in America's first Public Hospital "for the Reception of Ideots, Lunatics and Persons of insane Mind" and, finally, her continued presence as a resident ghost at her former home, the Ludwell-Paradise House on Duke of Gloucester Street in Williamsburg. Through keen and cutting observations, three Gossips - Mr. Canard, Mr. Tittlebriar & Mrs. Chatworth - shed additional light on Lucy's life and on mental health theories of the 18th and 19th centuries.

"What began as a lark to dramatically musicalize the ghost story about Colonial Williamsburg's most infamous spirit has developed into a deeper exploration of the extraordinary and largely forgotten life of Lucy Ludwell Paradise," says Schermerhorn. "This was a woman who took extreme pride in her Virginian family name and was equally famous for her charm and violent temper. She also had a great appreciation for (expensive) style and a strong sense of entitlement. Combine these traits with a weak personal support structure, along with the many losses she suffered throughout her lifetime and the limited understanding of mental illness in the late-18th/early-19th centuries, and there is the opportunity, through dramatic presentation, to explore this chapter of Williamsburg's history in a powerful and meaningful way."

"What resonated with me was Lucy's flamboyant vibrancy in a life remarkable enough to be personal friends with several founding fathers of America," says Morris. "The depth of her experiences gave me many options musically to explore the different places she might be emotionally and mentally. I threaded different American influences into the score, including gospel/spiritual, theatrical, jazz and classical motifs. My goal was to make a score that blends the emotional moments into musical color and melodies."

Following invitation-only performances on June 7th and 9th, there will be two public performances of the workshop presentation on Sunday, June 11th at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Tickets for both performances will be pay-what-you-can. To secure seating for the performances, please call (757) 221-2671. Support for the staged workshop production is provided in part by the W&M Theater & Dance Performance Fund (5270).

William Schermerhorn (book & lyrics) is a two-time Emmy Award-winning songwriter. As VP/Creative Director for Macy's Parade & Entertainment Group, he brought his vision to some of America's most beloved, large-scale productions for over three decades. In his role, Bill wrote the book and lyrics for several musical endeavors and created original material for a wide range of performers, including Julie Andrews, Harvey Fierstein, The Charlie Daniels Band, Idina Menzel, Kermit the Frog, Debra Voigt, Jane Krakowski, Whoopi Goldberg and the Texas State University Strutters. He won a Daytime Emmy Award in the "Outstanding Original Song" category for "Yes Virginia (There's A Santa Claus)" with composer Wesley Whatley and a second consecutive Daytime Emmy Award for the song "(Won't You) Join Our Parade" with composer Doug Katsaros. He received two additional Daytime Emmy nominations for the Christmas song "I Believe" (Wesley Whatley, music) and "Jolly Dream Pirates" (Michael Feinstein, music).

Past theatrical projects include a musical adaptation of "Miracle on 34th Street" (Wesley Whatley, music) and the Carnegie Hall premiere of "American River Suite," a five-piece musical tone poem, with music by Stephen Flaherty. The Americana revue "Free to Dream: The Songs of Katsaros & Schermerhorn" premiered at Joe's Pub and was performed at the Kimball Theatre in Williamsburg, Virginia. "My Gift of Thanks," a program of Bill's holiday songs, was presented at Feinstein's at The Loews Regency to benefit The Actors Fund. One of Bill's proudest moments was being invited to write "And That's The Way It Is" (Michael Feinstein, music) for legendary broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite's memorial service at Lincoln Center. That song can be heard in the documentary "JFK: One PM Central Standard Time." Macy's "Yes, Virginia The Musical" (Wesley Whatley, music) had its concert debut with The Cincinnati Pops in 2013; a royalty-free school production was performed by numerous student organizations throughout the country and a full-length musical version was presented at Twin City Stage in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Other projects include "Central Park & Other Dreams" (Matthew Sklar, music), a song cycle that premiered at Feinstein's/54 Below in May 2017 and "The Hope of Christmas," a recording of Bill's Christmas songs (with composers Ann Hampton Callaway, Michael Feinstein and Matthew Sklar, among others) interpreted by Ann Hampton Callaway and an outstanding array of jazz musicians, and released on the MCG Jazz label (2015). A vinyl edition was released in 2016. In spring 2017, Bill was an artist-in-residence at the William & Mary Theater Department, which presented his World War II musical "Swing Wings" (book & lyrics by Schermerhorn, music by Milton DeLugg & Mary Ehlinger) in a workshop premiere. In spring 2023, he was commissioned by Essential Voices USA to provide a poem for "Illumination," a new choral composition with music by Pierre Jalbert. "MADam LUCY, deceased" (Elise Morris, music) is his latest theatrical endeavor.

Bill is currently creative director for Colonial Williamsburg's Signature Events. He was born on the Fourth of July.

Elise Morris (music) Vocalist, pianist and singer-songwriter Elise Morris released her latest album, "LoveIsALove" on Jazzbo Records in December of 2021, following up on several exciting projects, including worldwide chart recognition with her original songs "Mardi Gras" reaching No. 1 on U.S. iTunes jazz charts and No. 3 on the Billboard Jazz Digital Sales Charts, "Unto Light Unbroken" reaching No. 37 on U.S. singer/songwriter charts (No. 7 in Canada), and "Silently" becoming a featured summer release in Jazziz Magazine.

With the release of her album "Dancin' With The Boys" in 2020, listeners were introduced to her inventive songs that blend influences of jazz, pop, theatrical, classical, progressive, world, experimental and folk. Elise calls her unique style "jazzbo" because it captures the enigma of music that doesn't fit into one genre alone, but rather crosses stylistic borders.

Recent music travels and tours include the "W.O.A. Records Indie Music Festival" in the U.K., "Friends of Eternity" - a celebration of artists from around the world as the guest of Supreme Master Ching Hai in Taiwan, and the "Biggar Little Festival" - a 10-day festival and leading songwriting workshops in Biggar, Scotland.

As a professional studio and stage musician, Morris' credits cover a wide range of experiences. She was the featured keyboardist/vocalist with Joe Jackson on the international Heaven and Hell tour; she headlined The Water Festival in Sweden as a core member of the fusion band GeWaDoKa; she was music director in concert for Ronnie Spector, and she was featured vocalist and master of the prepared piano, playing the highly improvisational score of Tan Dun ("Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon") in the play "America Dreaming" at The Vineyard Theatre in New York. She has played and/or sung with Cy Coleman, Rebecca Pidgeon and Peter, Paul, and Mary, among others, and has performed with many artists of the vibrant NYC music scene over the years, including music directing the current "Stoned Soul Picnic" project featuring the music of Laura Nyro.

As a composer, Morris has written underscores for Scholastic Audio Books for children, for documentary film shorts, and for straight plays as well as music and lyrics for musicals. Her dance scores have often included her performing live with dancers all around the globe. As a lyricist, she has written lyrics for Pat Metheny and Charlie Haden. Her voice has brought life, color and a world of sounds to myriad TV commercials, and as a voiceover artist, she created the character voice of Candy for the animated Moviefone promos in theaters. Morris also sings the otherworldly wail during the opening credits of the CBS TV hit show "Cold Case," whose Signature Sound is based on techniques Elise learned from listening to music from around the world.

She is a recipient of the New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship in Music Composition, the I-Park Sound Sculpture Award and has been awarded multiple artist residencies, fellowships and grants.

LAURIE J. WOLF (director) Professor of Theatre, William & Mary. Professor Wolf received her Ph.D. from UCLA, following several years working for Walt Disney Imagineering (a relatively brief but dream-fulfilling period of time). She previously taught at Goldsmiths College, University of London, where she developed and convened the M.A. degree in Writing for Performance. She is an associate member of the Stage Society of Directors and Choreographers and included among her directing credits are "Top Girls" and "As You Like It" (London), "Candida" and "Othello" (for the Virginia Shakespeare Festival), "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie", "Pippin", "Marat/Sade", "Amadeus", "Rhinoceros", "Avenue Q" and "A Chorus Line" at William & Mary. She is dedicated to the development of new writing; previous students have had works produced at NYC Fringe, Capital Fringe, The Royal Court Theatre in London and the Traverse in Edinburgh.

Laurie's current scholarship is two-fold: She is focused on women in Shakespeare's problem plays and has presented at international Shakespeare conferences situated in such locations as Taipei, Taiwan; Hull, United Kingdom; and New Delhi, India. She is also researching body imaging in film and popular culture and has a monograph that is scheduled for publication at the end of 2023. She has authored/edited three additional books on theatre: "Performance Analysis: an Introductory Coursebook", co-edited with Colin Counsell (Routledge), "Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband", introduction and editor (Nick Hern Books/Methuen) and "Introduction to Theatre: A Direct Approach" (XLibris).

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