Duncan Sheik and Kyle Jarrow Discuss Fear, Expectations and 'Whisper House'

Duncan Sheik is once again set to take the Theatre World by storm with the upcoming musical 'Whisper House'; but he's not letting past successes weigh too heavily on his mind. 'Whisper House' marks Sheik's first stage production since his critically acclaimed coming-of-age sensation, 'Spring Awakening'. And while some may feel inclined to surpass the already-high expectations, the clout of 'Spring Awakening' does not add added pressure, "I don't feel it personally at all," Sheik says in an interview with the San Diego Union Tribune, "Because the intentions of the two things are so different. With 'Whisper House,' frankly, the goals were more modest. Especially initially, it was this slightly small, tight little thing we were doing - hopefully this thing of beauty".

'Whisper House' is set in 1942, and tells the story of 11-year-old Christopher who lives with his Aunt Lilly in a haunted New England lighthouse following the death of his father. All of the songs in the musical are performed by the ghosts. With an underlying message of embracing the unknown rather than fear it, co-creator Kyle Jarrow explains that the concept of fear, particularly the type of fear experienced in the modern era, is one he felt needed to be explored. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Jarrow revisits the origins of 'Whisper House', "I first started writing this in the heat of the Iraq war -- that fear is something that guides a lot of life, that there is all this stuff telling us to be afraid," said Jarrow, "How do you process fear and not let it control your life? That's one of the biggest questions of modern living."

'Whisper House' opens at the Old Globe Theatre on January 21 with a run scheduled until February 21. Tickets are available via www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE or by visiting the Box Office.