The New York Musical Theatre Festival Welcomes Two Musicals from Neil Berg

 The New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF) is the premiere international festival for contemporary musical theatre. Dedicated to discovering new works, new artists and creating new stars, NYMF pledges to do for musical theatre what Sundance does for independent film; celebrate its diversity, creativity and future. For three action-packed weeks ending on October 14, the Festival will be presenting 61 events, 31 premiering musicals, 14 concerts with 283 performances and 1,000 performers and musicians.

 Among the talented people invited to share his labors of love in the Festival is New York composer and musical director Neil Berg. With a bio as big as the Big Apple, Neil has just completed a successful second year Off-Broadway run with his musical The Prince and the Pauper. Among his many credits are composer/lyricist for Heidi, Fiona: The Mother Goose Musical, Percy Penguin Comes to America, producer/director for Chess in Concert as well as The Broadway Series at the China Club and his popular All-Star concert "100 Years of Broadway."

 After playing phone tag for weeks I finally caught up with Neil for a heads up on his involvement with this year's Festival.

 Pati Buehler: Congratulations! You are involved in two of the productions selected for this year's Fesitval. Please tell us about the roots of both shows....

 Neil Berg: Thank so much, I am very excited. The first of the two shows is The Man Who Would Be King, which I'm the composer of . Most people remember the classic movie starring Sean Connery and Michael Caine. It is a rousing, epic, heroic score with a cast of over twenty-two people and is being directed by Paul Doby, who was most recently the associate director of Thoroughly Modern Millie and choreographed by Karen Eisenberg. It's co-written with B.J. Salisbury.

 The events of the show take place in the 1800s and are based on a novella written by Rudyard Kipling. It concerns two British soldiers in India where they have been for quite some time, and there's no work. In order to survive, these two great soldiers become scam artists pretending to be news correspondents or whatever they can do to get news about wealthy people. They eventually get caught and are going to be deported back to England. They escape and go over the mountains of West India in search of the lost tribes of Alexander the Great, who had left a city of gold thousands of years ago. They set out to overtake these tribal kingdoms, to build their own country and become kings. It's about dreamers and not accepting being told what to do with your life, but to follow your dream.

 They actually achieve their goal, get over the mountains and because of a series of events the tribes actually think that one of the two men, Daniel Dravot, is not just the king but the second coming of their Messiah. Daniel begins to believe this and thinks this is his destiny to show these people the right way. He's seduced by that, and doesn't want to return back home again. Without giving away the ending, that's all I'll say. It's really an epic story with tons of dancing; the warring of the tribes is done through dance. The music is sweeping and lush, and it's truly the most exciting score I've ever written so I just can't wait for people to hear it. 

 Tony Lawson, playing Daniel Dravot, heads our cast. Tony played Gaston in Beauty and the Beast for five years and has done many other projects. Paul Anthony Stewart, co-star of the musical, is playing Peachy Carnehan, and among other things has starred on The Guiding Light.

Our female lead, Roxanne, who basically tempts both of them in the tribal lands, is being played by Mandy Bruno who is co-incidentally also one of the stars of The Guiding Light, and also has a big theatrical background. Our musical supervisor is Wendy Bobbitt Cavett, conductor of Mamma Mia, associate conductor of Tommy, Scarlet Pimpernel and Frog and Toad, among others. Our producer is Kevin Duda.

The second show is Tim and Scrooge, which is quite simply adorable. It's the sequel to A Christmas Carol, and covers what happens when Tiny Tim Crachett grows up. It's an eleven-character chamber musical that I wrote with Nick Meglin, who's the editor of Mad Magazine. It's totally differen though, don't be expecting Mad humor (laughing).

 In a nutshell, Tim is in college about to graduate and gets the surprise of his life. Scrooge has died a happy man having saved Tim's life, and on Christmas vacation Tim find out that Scrooge has bequeathed Tim his accounting firm for him to take over the family business. Tim though has met the woman of his dreams and they were going to go off to become teachers. In reality, this is exactly what my life was like. Do you fulfill the family business or do you go off to do what you love? Through this dilemma for Tim it's Scrooge that returns as the ghost to pay Tim a visit to help him resolve his conflict. This is starring Jessica Grove' and Bobby Steggert as Tim.

 

 PB: These works sound both intriguing and wonderful and I wish you well with them. Neil, many people have seen and loved The Prince and the Pauper including some great reactions from the critics. Tell us more about what's happening with that.

 NB: The Prince and the Pauper is now being published by Samuel French and we're expecting that it will be released in their catalog this fall so every regional theater, college, high school, tour, any one who wants can do the show. That's been very exciting! Secondly, Hal Leonard who prints the piano vocal books is putting together the vocal selection and that should be out this fall as well. Last of all, we are in negotiations for a movie version of the show to be possibly shot in Russia using British actors.

 PB: That is really exciting. Congratulations! Neil, how long have you been writing music and what inspires your creative side?

 NB: That's a great question. I started playing piano at about ten years old and as soon as I started taking lessons I was making up my own tunes because I was always interested in creative writing and story telling. I would type stories when I was eight years old on my father's typewriter. Once I realized that I could play music, I just married my love of storytelling with music and musical theater is the most natural way to do that. Even though I liked musical theater, I really didn't do it full time. My life was baseball and I liked playing in a rock and roll band.

 It's interesting, because looking back; my favorite rock and roll music was basically from musicals. My favorite album was Pink Floyd's The Wall, and that's coming to Broadway next year. Tommy from the Who, The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway from Genesis. By today's standards they're pop operas..musicals! When I was in college someone asked me to write a musical, and by that time I was playing professionally in piano bars and clubs. That was my first opportunity to take someone's libretto and put music to it and become dramaturgically attached to it. It was called Ghost Story, and was produced by the college I attended; Binghamton University and that pretty much changed my life. With that, I was on my way and I came to New York with ideas.

The ideas I gravitate to are mostly about ordinary people, laymen who are overachievers. This pauper from The Prince and the Pauper is a boy who in a million years could never attain becoming a prince. The Man Who Would Be King again is two ordinary men going over mountains looking to be kings. It's all about people who aren't afraid to go out and live their lives they way they want to.

 Personally I faced these issues myself as I was pre-ordained by my family to take over the family business. It took everything I had to shun that security and to pursue this "insane" world..and I say that affectionately.

 PB: And we're glad you did. Like most composers/musical directors, there's always a half dozen project in the wings. What's in your side pockets?

 NB: I'm also working on a couple of other really exciting projects. One of them is a new pop, rock musical which is where my roots are called the Twelve. Hopefully that will be ready by next year. I'm also writing a musical version of Beau Geste, the famous movie that Gary Cooper was in. So there you are, I have three in the wings along with another musical called The Mouse That Roared and that would be with my collaborator from Tim & Scrooge.

 Also, my next 100 Years of Broadway is playing at the Tarrytown Music Hall, on Oct.9^th. It's a beautiful 1,000 seat venue right on the Hudson River in New York. This will be a triumphant return and an incredible cast including Liz Calloway, Norm Lewis, Chad Kimball, Danny Zolli, and Brad Little, creating some great songs from their great shows. Tickets can be purchased at Tarrytownmusichall.org

 For more information on the Music Festival you can visit www.NYMF.org.

 PB: Well, I know how busy you are and I appreciate your taking time from your rehearsal to give us a heads up on your shows in the Festival.

 NB: Anytime! Thank you so very much for asking me.