Guest Blog: Composer Brayson On FROM HERE TO ETERNITY, And New Show JIMMY MAC

Stuart Brayson

It's been an incredible year and six months or so for me since From Here To Eternity said goodbye to the Shaftesbury in London's glittering West End. My plan was to not be idle and dwell on what might have been. The constant barrage of emails, tweets etc of total enthusiasm, support and in some cases obsession for FHTE and my music have been simply unbelievable and I would like to thank everyone for truly being so kind. It really does mean the world to me and proved perhaps we were on to something. And since most of the fans who write seem in the 17-25 age bracket it justifies my earlier claims that FHTE would and did resonate with the kids of today. I suppose the legacy of the West End production lies in the subsequent movie and now DVD that have been released worldwide and the original cast recording of course. Both are still available and excellent if I say so myself!

As I said, I have been busy since, though. I have trodden the boards again in a Q and A 'Evening With Stuart Brayson' format in which I talk about my early career in the pop business and my life writing musicals. I also get to sing a few of my songs with the guitar or accompanied by a pianist. This format has been well received as far afield as Bonnie Scotland to sunny California as well as on the lovely Isle of Man to my hometown of Newcastle. I try to be as candid as honest as possible about the pitfalls, the struggles and the craziness in this business on these evenings and my mantra to anyone who listens or asks is simply just don't give up. It's a great fun format and I would love to bring my 'Evening With SB' to London and meet more of the fans who supported FHTE in the West End. Perhaps this will happen soon.

I have also been fortunate enough to witness a major concert of my ambitious labour of love KING PIT (a new musical set in the North East mining community pre-WW1 ) receive a mind-blowing standing ovation at Sage Gateshead earlier this year. This was a spellbinding experience as the likes of the terrific Joe McElderry and exquisite Siobhan Dillon among many others sang my score. KING PIT is currently being developed for the stage and we have big plans so watch this space.

And of course From Here To Eternity is still very much on course for an American launch. In June along with Tim Rice and Bill Oakes I watched a terrific workshop of the new book of FHTE performed seamlessly by a great bunch of Broadway actors in New York City. The response was really incredible. And Tim and I now have a great new song in the score. Next year promises to be very exciting indeed!

However, in the meantime I have the little matter of a world premiere I would like to tell you all more about. This latest venture is called JIMMY MAC, a musical comedy which I am trying out away from the West End glare on the Isle of Man as part of the first Theatre Fest this Oct 10th. And it's all rather exciting.

I wrote the actual score over ten years ago after a trip to France. I remember conjuring up an arty European film scenario in my head while in Paris about a young English bloke called Jimmy Mac who likes the ladies and himself a little too much! I thought the idea of following a young guy go from being king of the hill to a washed-up bum and back again in the setting of four relationships would be interesting. I wrote the music quite quickly as I tend to do then forgot about it, to be honest. It was only when on the Isle of Man last year performing my Evening With SB Q and A show that Jimmy Mac came back on the scene. To be asked to present a brand new show at the glorious Gaiety Theatre as part of Theatre Fest 15 seemed a wonderful opportunity to try out a small piece, and Jimmy Mac seemed to tick all the boxes.

So I finally sat down and wrote the actual book of Jimmy Mac earlier this year for some reason with the late great Anthony Newley in mind. I always saw Jimmy Mac as the illegitimate son of Little Chap from Stop The World I Want To Get Off with a bit of Pal Joey thrown in, I guess. Ask your mum and dad who Anthony Newley was. I happen to think Newley was one of the greatest talents this country has produced. Of course from these humble beginnings the story, flesh and bones of Jimmy Mac have evolved into something else, something totally original, I hope, but at its core Mac is still - well, at least I like to think - a slight homage to Newley.

I guess the piece is best described as Chaplinesque as although zany dreamer Jimmy is a self-centred so-and-so I hope the audience will root for him as he muddles his way through life. At Jimmy's core he is a good lad simply in need of direction as well as the love of a good woman. And as well as the misunderstood Jimmy Mac the piece has four spanking new roles for women - four strong meaty female characters who shoot from the hip and don't take prisoners. How many times have I heard on my travels this last year, "Where are the great new roles for women in musicals?" Well, since Jimmy Mac is all about women and he is outnumbered four to one I hope women out there will both enjoy performing the roles in future as well as watching the show.

The creative process and journey on every new show I do is totally different. This time it's all about being economic and intimate - five entertainers, three or so musicians telling a story as simply and efficiently as possible, a total contrast to From Here To Eternity or King Pit which are both unashamedly epic. And this time I have written book, music and lyrics so it's pretty slim on the creative side, self-contained, I guess, and a great potential touring vehicle as it should be reasonably simple to stage. Of course that's all in theory; in practice it could all be a totally different matter! Wish us luck - or better still come over to the Isle of Man on Oct 10th and see JIMMY MAC's first time out for yourself!

JIMMY MAC, a musical comedy written by Stuart Brayson, will receive its World Premiere at the Gaiety Theatre Isle of Man on Oct 10th as part of Theatre Fest 15. Jimmy Mac will be directed by Nigel Garton and stars Simon Gordon (Jimmy Mac), Erin Caldwell (Sharon), Victoria Mellors (Chantal), Kristene Sutcliffe (Alice) and Michelle Jamieson (Lucy).

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