I am currently working on a new musical called Disturbance that is being adapted for the stage by Rachel Walzer. The production is based on the book of poems by Ivy Alvarez, with music by Tony Award-winning producer Mark Ferris. The book is based on a true story of domestic violence where a man killed his wife and son, before killing himself. The poems feature various family members and those involved in the aftermath of the tragedy, such as the neighbours, police officers, a

Rehearsals are well underway for TIP's May production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. The show has a cast of 38 that includes 11 children. It's been quite the experience and, as you can imagine, is a lot of work. I am fortunate in having a great team to work with. Directing can be a challenge. It can be hard to focus on the story as a whole and to make sure that everything serves the story. It can be difficult to describe the concept in your head in a way that the creative t

It's been a busy year. I've worked on 7 shows and spent more time at a recording studio than I ever have before. I've sang more Abba than I ever wanted to, but I'm hoping that I'm given other things to record next year. I'm already working on 4 shows for next year. I get to be a director, music director, vocal director, and involved with the making of props. Theatre has taken over my life in ways that I never expected, but it's been an enjoyable journey so far. I also get

I've been working as vocal director for Tokyo Theatre for Children. Their next show, The Big Bad Musical, will be taking place in November. The cast contains some actors who have performed in multiple musicals, and some who are in their first musical. We have vocal warm-ups at the start of rehearsals and also do work on projection. There will be no microphones used during the show and like any musical it is important that the words be heard. The cast are working hard and

I will be directing Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, as the season finale, for Tokyo International Players. It's a wonderful musical with some lovely melodies. Most people know the title song "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang", but my favourite is "Hushabye Mountain". It's a beautiful lullaby with and haunting melody and can sound almost melancholy. I can't wait to hear it sung. The auditions are taking place in November, so it won't be long now! #tokyointernationalplayers #musicaltheatre

I performed at Smash Cabaret this month. Many of the musical theatre songs I enjoy singing are for characters I can not play. So I do enjoy it when I am given the opportunity to perform them. I sang "Listen" from Dreamgirls and "Somebody to Love" from We Will Rock You The Musical. I'm not used to getting feedback on my performances, and this was the first time to receive feedback in Japanese as well as English. とってもパワフルでした！ super voice Wow, such a powerful voice!! Your w

I have finished working with TIP Youth for this season. I always learn a lot working with different groups of singers. They don't all like to warm-up in the same way, they find different ways to get the right sort of energy required for a musical, and each voice is beautiful in a different way. I also get the opportunity to learn new musicals in detail and it always surprises me which songs I learn to love by the time the shows are in production. When working with children

Work is well underway for my June production of Jason Robert Brown's Songs for a New World. The show is written for 4 singers but I am going to use 8 or 9. The singers have been cast and the cast announcement should be released by the end of the month. The show is an abstract song cycle, a series of songs all connected by the theme: the moment of decision. As the performers do not play the same characters in each song it is possible to expand the cast, though each singer

I started the New Year by attending a five day musical theatre improv workshop taught by the Showstoppers. I find improv hard when it doesn't involve singing and dancing, but it certainly is an amazing challenge adding it into the mix. We started the week by creating simple verse chorus songs and the course ended by creating a 30 minute improvised musical, with five other students, that had opening and closing songs, and scenes in the middle to connect everything. The music

After months of rehearsal we finally got to perform Sweeney Todd at Moliere Theatre in Tokyo. Playing Lovett was a challenge, but one I was happy to take on. I love the complexity of Sondheim's beautiful score and I imagine I will continue to hear the songs in my dreams for quite some time. As well as the challenge of singing the score I ended up having to deal with vocal issues just before the show. I'm not sure that I would have coped without the support of the members o

I'll be working as music director for the upcoming TIP Youth season. This will be my second season and I'm really looking forward to the program starting in November. The two musicals will take place in April at Theatre BonBon. TIP Youth aims to provide students with a solid foundation of knowledge and practical training in theatre and performing arts, culminating in performances of a fully staged musical. We believe that the experience gained from participation in the TIP

I've been cast as Mrs. Lovett in Tokyo International Players October production of Sweeney Todd, directed by Davina McFadyen. The show runs from October 12th-15th at Shinjuku Theater Moliere. #musicaltheatre

I'm currently working as Vocal Director for TIP Youth's 2016 / 2017 season. I hadn't heard the musical, before I started, and I'm incredibly impressed with the songs in "My Son Pinocchio Jr". I wasn't expecting them to be so beautiful or quite so challenging for young voices. The ensemble song "Toys" is one of the best I have heard. The 3 part counterpoint in the final chorus is difficult but really worth while. The solo songs for Gepetto are stunning, and strongly remin

I took part in Body N Voice Studios annual musical showcase at the start of the December. We sang songs from a number of musicals including "Songs for a New World", by Jason Robert Brown. I sang "The Flagmaker, 1775". The song is challenging with a passage that is right where the break of my voice wants to be. I wasn't keen on it, when I first started to look at it, but it has grown on me, and it's a good piece to have added to my repertoire. This was my last performance

I'm trying to decide what shows to go and see. There are so many choices in New York. Mind you, some shows are impossible to get tickets for. I saw a resale ticket for Hamilton today at just over $1000, so I won't be doing that. I did enter the digital lottery for a number of shows, but I'd be incredibly shocked if that worked. I am considering walking to the Book of Mormon theatre to enter their daily ticket lottery. I did that the last time I was here. I didn't win,

On Sunday night I took part in my last performance of Big River, with Tokyo International Players. There were many new experiences and challenges working on this project, but the stand out thing was the people I worked with. I was incredibly impressed by the director, stage manager, and the production team. It made such a difference working with people who had a strong vision for the show and were competent in facilitating that. I loved how the cast worked together. We ha

I'm finding it hard to connect with some of the lyrics in "The Flagmaker, 1775". The song is part of Jason Robert Brown's musical theatre song cycle Songs for a New World. The song is sung by "Woman 2", a mezzo-soprano using a belting vocal technique. Woman 2 portrays a number of different characters throughout the song cycle. In "The Flagmaker, 1775," she is the mother of an American Revolutionary soldier desperately waiting for the end of the war. She sits at home alo

The box office is open for Big River. Showing at Theatre Sun-mall in Shinjuku, May 19-22, 2016 #musicaltheatre

I have been working for a while on the songs that Mrs Lovett sings in Act 1 of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. This weekend I got to sing them at a small performance in Tokyo with Body N Voice Studios. There were are few hiccups, as there always are, but it mostly went well. I was a little concerned about having to belt the D5 on the last "London" in "The Worst Pies in London", but I managed to do that during the performance. Having trai