BWW Previews: LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS – IT'S ABOUT TIME at Powerstories Theatre

Imagine having a piano call to you - a soft whisper urging that you must play, asking if you remember. Despite the passage of time, playwright Janet Scaglione sat down and the melodies for a musical were birthed as her fingers danced across the piano keys. She had always wanted to write a musical, a biography of sorts about discovering herself after 50. Initially, a lack of confidence got in the way of fulfilling that lifelong ambition.

"I sat at the piano and a piece of music played through me. I believe what happened is I said yes to the Universe and the Universe started saying yes to me."

Janet explained that for a year and a half, she'd wake up at exactly 4 am with ideas for more music. Long before owning a cell phone, she would call her office voicemail and record a message. Despite classical piano lessons in her youth, though she'd never been able to before, she soon discovered if she listened to the music long enough, she was able to play by ear.

"I say I did not learn to write, rather listen to the melodious woman deep within my soul. Sadly I had denied her and I think a lot of us do, especially women. This show has been a long time coming because I've finally found the courage to speak this kind of truth," she said. "It's my story. It's the story of a woman who realizes she's not happy at 50 and she has to do the work to figure out why."

The resulting workshop production musical, It's About Time, debuted at Powerstories Theatre on July 11. It asks what happened to her happily-ever-after and the America that she knew and loved, using the characters of Liberty, Justice, and Uncle Sam, along with seven personified voices in her head.

"This is a work in progress and that's the journey. It's the search for happiness - life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."

Born in the 50s, a teen in the 60s, a young wife and mother in the 70s, she came from a generation that all young women were supposed to be "good girls," accepting of all the rules, never challenging the status quo.

"As a good girl, I was expected to be smarter, work harder, prove my worth, and prove my goodness," she paused and quipped. "Of course, I was Catholic."

At 50, Janet went to therapy and finally admitted the façade of perfection, living up to a standard to validate herself as "the good girl" was a difficult mask to wear.

"Though I raised 5 children, earned my Ph.D., was outwardly driven and motivated, I denied the voices that were most important - which were my own. The only way to find my truth is to look in the mirror. By listening to other people who tried to tell me who to be and how to be, I got lost in that process. This is my redemption and resurrection."

Janet insists that the only way to freedom is to speak your truth, and her truth has been up for public scrutiny since it debuted to an appreciative sold-out audience. The show closes on July 21 and many shows in its short run are sold out.

"It's one woman's struggle to get straight with the voices in her head," she said. "Afterwards, I hope people are talking about truth, the power of truth, how truth can set you free. And courage - you have to be brave if you want to be free."

It's About Time is through July 21 at Powerstories Theatre, 2105 West Kennedy Blvd. To learn more or to purchase tickets, visit https://thebroadsway.live/the-musicals or follow Janet and The Broad's Way on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thebroadsway.

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