Village Theatre's Beta Series Welcomes Audience Members into the Developmental Process for New Musicals

Today marks the start of frozen performances for the new musical Cubamor at Village Theatre's First Stage Theatre, though the production has already been on stage in front of public audiences for nearly a week. That's because Cubamor is the inaugural musical in Village Theatre's brand new program, The Beta Series, an unprecedented expansion to the theatre's renowned Village Originals program of readings and workshops and a testament to its ongoing dedication to the development of new works.

Headed by Associate Artistic Director Brandon Ivie, The Beta Series is a testing ground for new musicals in the middle stages of development, filling the gap between a reading (which can be seen during Village Theatre's Annual Festival of New Musicals) and a premiere (which can be seen during Village Theatre's Mainstage season). "This new program puts Village Theatre in only a handful of other companies across the country that would take a risk on a program like this," Ivie explains. "It gives new musicals the chance to be tested in a fully-staged, designed, and executed production, free from the pressures of press and reviewers. It provides new shows with professional artists, top-notch production values, and, most importantly of all, a smart, knowledgeable, sophisticated audience."

Cubamor, which is the first of three musicals on stage in The Beta Series this season, is a passionate, cross-cultural love story that transports audiences to Havana, Cuba with a jazz-based, Afro-Cuban score. The show features book and lyrics by James D. Sasser and music and lyrics by Charles Vincent Burwell, and is based on the film of the same name by Joshua Bee Alafia. After workshopping the show during the 2015 Annual Festival of New Musicals, the creative team behind Cubamor is now seeking the in-depth level of development unique to The Beta Series, one that focuses on the incorporation of design and choreography, as well as changes based on audience feedback. "Cubamor has grown exponentially in the weeks we've been here," says Sasser. "We've added a new song, cut another one entirely, rewritten and re-choreographed at least four others, added two new scenes, and fine-tuned almost every other scene in the show. Being able to test new ideas and see immediate daily implementation in the preview process has been beyond valuable. It's allowed us to take risks in the process that we wouldn't have been able to otherwise."

Since Cubamor opened to public audiences on December 2, it has been in a continuous state of evolution. "Our audience feedback sessions have been incredibly helpful," Sasser says, "not just from a clarification standpoint as writers, but also letting us know what dramatic points were landing, and what needed to be expanded, or in some cases left out. This component of the process is the one thing you can't replicate - audiences don't lie. This living, breathing experience tells us almost more than any workshop or rehearsal ever could." Now, with the show frozen, audience members will have the opportunity to see the full results of this exciting new developmental process.

Cubamor is on stage in Issaquah through December 18. For tickets to Cubamor or to Subscribe to The Beta Series, visit www.VillageTheatre.org or call the Box Office at (425) 392-2202.

About Village Theatre's Village Originals Program

Village Theatre's mission stipulates a dedication to the development of new musicals that achieve national exposure. The Village Originals program of readings, workshops, and developmental productions represents one of the strongest commitments to new musicals in the nation, developing such musicals as Pulitzer Prize-winning Next to Normal, Tony Award-winning Million Dollar Quartet, Drama Desk Award-winner Cupid & Psyche, Stephen Schwartz's Snapshots, and the Drama Desk Award-nominated It Shoulda Been You, After the Fair, and Making Tracks. Village Theatre is one of the few resident theatres to provide regular opportunities at every step of musical development, from first table reading to full-scale premiere production. Each season, new works are included as part of Village Theatre's Mainstage five-show lineup alongside the classics. Anchored by the Annual Festival of New Musicals, the Village Originals program is dedicated to the continued growth and evolution of musical theatre, and a determination that the form will remain vibrant and relevant for generations to come.

About Village Theatre
Based in Issaquah, WA, with operations in Everett, Village Theatre is a leading producer of musical theatre in the Pacific Northwest. Producing entertaining, quality productions for the entire family since 1979, Village Theatre has grown into one of the region's best-attended Equity theatres, with over 19,000 Subscribers, 200,000 projected total attendance each season, and an annual operating budget of over $12,000,000. Through its Village Originals program, Village Theatre is nationally recognized for its contribution to the development of new musicals, having launched over 150 new works to date. Village Theatre also takes pride in nurturing tomorrow's audiences through its youth education programs, Pied Piper and KIDSTAGE, serving over 60,000 young people, families, and schools annually.

To post a comment, you must register and login.