New York Theatre Barn Presents a First Look at New Musicals From Kellen Blair, Joe Kinosian and More

New York Theatre Barn will host a free live stream of the 30th installment of its virtual New Works Series on Wednesday, November 18th, 2020 at 7PM EDT, featuring excerpts from the new musicals It Came From Outer Space and Broken Ground. The live 45-minute presentation will be the first time that material from both shows will be presented publicly, and will also feature a conversation with the writers and creative team.

Written by Murder For Two creators Kellen Blair (book/lyrics) and Joe Kinosian (book/music), It Came From Outer Space is a new musical comedy adapted from the 50's classic sci-fi film from Universal Pictures. Amateur astronomer Jon Putnam encounters an alien spaceship in the desert and becomes the laughingstock of his small town, until the extraterrestrial visitors make their presence known, and he must convince the gathering mob that they have come in peace. A clever musical score and creative physical humor puts a new spin on Ray Bradbury's flying saucer tale-examining society's fear of outsiders as it simultaneously embraces the wonder of what lies just beyond the stars. Featuring performances by Joe Kinosian, Jennifer Latimore (NBC's Chicago P.D.), Brandon Springman (Come From Away) and Shannon Tyo (Dear Edwina). Blair and Kinosian will be joined by their director Laura Braza.

Broken Ground is a new musical with book/lyrics by Christine Toy Johnson (Come From Away) and music/lyrics by Jason Ma (Gold Mountain, Miss Saigon). Taking place in 1912 on the cusp of a new era for China, Broken Ground tells the story of 18-year old Xuě Lán, as she sets out on the path created for her by tradition and her family to marry a young soldier. Still grieving the recent loss of her mother and twin brother and yearning to make peace with the new life before her, she seeks guidance from both Guān Yīn, the goddess of compassion, and the spirit of her mother. Transported to another space and time of an ancient myth via an embroidered story in NüShū, the centuries-old writing system created by and only for women, Xuě Lán connects to her mother's wishes for her and discovers that she can indeed find happiness by both speaking her truth and honoring her destiny. Featuring performances by Ali Ewoldt (The Phantom of the Opera, The King and I) and Jonny Lee Jr.

It Came From Outer Space was commissioned and subsequently developed by Chicago Shakespeare Theatre (Criss Henderson, Executive Director, Barbara Gaines, Artistic Director), where it will receive its world premiere production in 2021. Broken Ground was commissioned by Village Theater (Robb Hunt, Executive Producer, Jerry Dixon, Artistic Director, Brandon Ivie, Associate Artistic Director).

The 45-minute presentation will be available on New York Theatre Barn's YouTube channel and Broadway on Demand, and is hosted and produced by Jen Sandler and Joe Barros. For more information, visit New York Theatre Barn's website: www.nytheatrebarn.org.

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