Q&A with Songs You Don't Know By People Who Loves You's David Rossmer

By: Sep. 23, 2005
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Composer/lyricist/actor/rock musician David Rossmer currently has his hands full with a number of new projects. In the meantime, songs from notes from MariAnne and JOE!--his two musicals with Dan Lipton--will be performed by stars such as Kate Baldwin, John Cariani, Matt Cavenaugh, Mark Jacoby, Steven Pasquale and Anthony Rapp in Songs You Don't Know By People Who Love You. The concert will be held as part of the New York Musical Threatre Festival on September 26th at 8pm.

So first of all, could you tell me a bit about notes to MariAnne and JOE!, the two musicals that you've written with Dan Lipton?

Dan and I have always been drawn to the idea of creating original musicals. JOE! and notes to MariAnne are alike in that neither are based on source material. We made everything from scratch. Aside from this, the two shows have very little in common. notes to MariAnne is a small rock musical in the spirit of The Wall or Tommy. JOE! is a musical about a guy who gets trapped in a musical -- a satirical love story with a more traditional "Broadway" score.

How did you two start writing together?

Well Dan and I grew up about 10 blocks from each other. Nonetheless, we didn't start working together until we ended up at the same summer camp, around 15 or 16. We realized we shared an affection for a million different kinds of music. Our attraction to musical theater wasn't so much an early addiction to Oklahoma as it was to the general idea of music telling a story. We wrote a huge song for a show that summer, and continued to collaborate in college, where we contributed material to the Waa-Mu Show at Northwestern (Dan's alma mater). We spent the summer after graduation in Chicago and began to take ourselves seriously.

Also, what's your writing process like? Do you two write music first, followed by lyrics, vice versa, or is it more organic?

From what I gather, we're a pretty rare case of a team that writes everything together -- music, book and lyrics. All very equal. We both love to have our fingers in every pie, but we also love collaboration. We each bring something different to every piece of the puzzle. For instance, I love puns and Dan is very good with fart jokes. I'm kidding.

What can audiences expect to see in Songs You Don't Know…?

Well first off, they can expect to see some of Broadway's most kickass performers singing new material. Am I allowed to say kickass? Anyway, as to what comes out of their mouths, certainly the evening will embody our eclectic taste in music. We've enjoyed working on a variety of different projects and many are represented in the concert. The pop-influenced songs of notes to MariAnne, a comic patter song from JOE!, there's even a Gershwinesque instrumental concert piece that DRE.DANCE will present at Alvin Ailey this December, featuring cellist Peter Sachon. Steve Rosen (Spamalot) will perform a medley of the most random Broadway tunes imaginable, which we arranged for his show at Ars Nova. Oh, and a brand new tune from our upcoming musical The Blonde Streak. I don't even know how to describe this one, you'll have to tell me.

It seems as if you've marshalled a great cast! Have you worked with most of these performers before?

Anthony Rapp, Mark Jacoby, John Cariani... these are just a few of the amazing people in the concert we've worked with before. The remarkable group of actors who have given their time to perform our material have added so much to it. We even started writing for some of their voices. I'm not exactly sure how we've been so lucky, I think it's Dan's cologne.

What drew you to NYMF as a venue for the concert?

Jamie McGonnigal -- actor, director, producer (I think he fights crime in his spare time) -- approached us about doing the concert. We were honored to be asked and quickly said yes. The New York Musical Theater Festival is one of those rare gifts for writers, and we are very pleased to be a part of it.

What are your plans after the concert, as a team and individually?

The usual 400 things on the fire. notes to MariAnne is a big priority right now. It was just optioned for production by Kirsten Berkman (Araca Group) who is also generously producing this concert. We are finishing up a rewrite of JOE! for interested parties and are far along on our newest piece, The Blonde Streak. We are also collaborating with Drew Z. Greenberg (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The O.C.) on a new show to be produced by Jayson Raitt and are currently developing a movie musical with Greg Lessans at Terra Firma Films (Universal). Individually, Dan continues to pursue his career as a musician and I as an actor. Presently, Dan play in the pit at Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and often accompanies Audra McDonald. I recently performed in Fiddler on the Roof in New York and then Zhivago at La Jolla Playhouse. We both spend a lot of time in the pop world as well. Dan will soon release his third solo album "Zeitgeist" and I have a second album, "Super Orange Happy Sauce," coming out this fall with my band The Misconceptions.

Do you have one favorite vocation out of actor, rock star and musical theatre composer?

I wish I did. It would make things easier. I usually get obsessed with whatever I am working on at the time. Oh, and thanks for calling me a rock star. That's awesome.

In JOE!, a guy gets trapped in a musical. What would your reaction be if that happened to you?

An overwhelming sense of irony.

How would your characterize your style as a songwriter?

All over the map. I like words. I like when lyrics and music become inseparable. Dan and I put in a lot of effort to try and find this marriage when we write. As to what kind of songwriter, I'm not sure. I've spent a lot of wonderful hours in the land of musical theater, but I've also spent many happy nights jamming to Steely Dan and Phish. I guess stylistically I would be where these two worlds meet... and go bowling.


Visit www.nymf.org for tickets and more information on Songs You Don't Know By People Who Love You.
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