Previews: HIMSELF AND NORA at FreeFall Theatre

freeFall Theatre launches 2026 with Himself and Nora, Jonathan Brielle’s romantic musical about James Joyce and Nora Barnacle, running January 30 through March 8. The show traces the couple’s passionate, complicated 37‑year relationship through a score that blends Irish folk influences, pub songs, and contemporary musical‑theatre ballads.

Director Eric Davis was immediately drawn to the musical’s sound and spirit. “The score is a major entry point for this piece. It's very tuneful and harkens to many traditions of Celtic and musical theatre music while also creating a unique voice for the show that is all its own,” he said. “Beyond the music, the playful style of the dialogue and the way it explores the relationship between the enigmatic James Joyce and his muse, Nora Barnacle seemed a perfect fit as a type of lesser-known musicals we often like to explore.”

freeFall’s commitment to rediscovering overlooked works made the piece feel inevitable. “Himself and Nora is an example of one of these ‘hidden gems’ that is hard to believe isn't more well-known,” Davis said. “It's truly a captivating evening of musical theatre.”

The production embraces the emotional sweep of Joyce and Barnacle’s life together. “While the great challenges they faced are deftly explored, the great majority of the evening is devoted to celebrating the depth of their love and these funny and dynamic characters who were at the heart of modernism in literature,” Davis said.

Robert Teasdale returns to freeFall as Joyce. “Robert's voice sounds incredible on this music,” Davis said. “And as one of the finest singing actors we've worked with, we were so fortunate that Robert agreed to create this role for our production.” Katie Davis makes her freeFall debut as Nora. “She brings a spontaneity and freshness to the role that will woo audiences, and you simply could not hear Nora's music sung better.”

Davis also choreographs and designs costumes and video elements, shaping a unified world for the story. “I often like to realize several elements of productions I direct which allows me to directly impart my vision for that element of the show,” he said.

Music Director Michael Raabe and a five‑piece band perform onstage, becoming part of the action. “I always like to think of each musician as a character in the story we are telling,” Raabe said. “With this show we are on stage, which enhances the storytelling even more musically. We are among the actors sharing in an Irish anthem, a spirited pub song, or emotional theater ballad.”

The ensemble—Julia Rifino, Drew H. Wells, and Michael Gregory—slips in and out of roles such as Ezra Pound, Sylvia Beach, Harriet Weaver, and members of the Joyce family. “The goal is not to present a wax museum look-alike or a historical reenactment,” Davis said. “The tone is much more that of a long yarn of tall tales that make up some approximation of memory, fish tale, and one's life flashing before one's life in the moments surrounding death.”

Though Joyce’s writing is often seen as dense, Davis emphasizes that the musical is about the man, not the text. “This piece never seeks to present moments from his writing,” he said. “Rather, this show explores his enigmatic and charming personality, his relationship with his parents and his children, the Church, his home country and city, and most importantly his relationship with the woman he considered his muse, Nora Barnacle.”