It’s been a long time. I’ve been busy! “Manuel versus the Statue of Liberty” is a #NYMF2015 #NextLink show – all the work that goes into the show before you see it on stage – that’s what’s been keeping me so busy. Rewriting, fundraising, finding a choreographer, more rewriting, the fantastic Next Link Weekend that NYMF put on for all us emerging writer/producer teams. Now we are casting.
I wrote an article for Howlround/Café Onda (article link here) about the process of the musical, I made a website (www.ManuelvsTheStatueofLiberty.com), I did some fun fundraising events with the help of dear friends (Blue Door Studios, Tom and Doug, and Melanie – save the date June 6th! another musical bash!). This sounds so small when I write it out, but the amount of time, and planning that each event takes requires energy. No small feat when this is your first musical. Add to it the winter we’ve had, and oy….I don’t have to tell you….so here I am writing on my own blog for the first time in months.
The show is taking on a life of its own: it has its own Facebook Page (Facebook.com/ManuelvsStatue), its own Twitter account (@ManuelvsStatue). Soon it will have more friends than I do.
And of course, I just finished a major rewrite: I cut two actors from the previous version, and I improved the Statue of Liberty’s character – made her stronger. David Davila and I have been hard at work on new songs. The beginning of the show is clearer. Major milestones accomplished! More boxing, more fun, more music, more madness!
But I still need help with the fundraising – every donation is an important step forward. My goal is to raise $66,000 and I’ve raised $13,000 so far with the help of generous friends and family. I am hoping even more generous friends help make this dream come true. You can donate through the secure NYMF site. All donations are tax deductible. NYMF is my fiscal sponsor – just one more of the many things they do for teams like ours.
And just because a picture is worth a thousand words, here are a few fun pictures from the last fundraising concert (special thanks to Tom and Doug, and Sharyn Alice Murray and Joe Bezek)…
Naughty puppets and Sharyn above, the Band in action below.