MUSICALS
The Pout-Pout Fish
Book, Music & Lyrics Christopher Anselmo & Jared Corak
Direction, Design & Book Matt Acheson & Fergus Walsh
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The Pout-Pout Fish was commissioned by TheatreWorksUSA and premiered at the New Victory Theater on 42nd Street in the fall of 2019 before embarking on a national tour. Though temporarily halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the tour has since resumed with dates through 2023.
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An album of the music—featuring Bonnie Milligan, George Salazar, Cathy Ang and others—is currently in production and will be released soon!
Fountain
A New Musical Adventure
Book, Music & Lyrics Christopher Anselmo & Jared Corak
When her grandfather’s memory begins to fade, twelve-year-old Andi must brave a looming hurricane and embark on a perilous odyssey through the oddities of Florida in search of the one thing that might save him: the Fountain of Youth. A raucous folk-rock celebration of the healing power of family folklore, Fountain looks at love and loss through the eyes of a child—and encourages us all to find the wonder in the weird.
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Fountain won the 2023 Pipeline Arts Foundation Prize, and was presented at the O'Neill Theater Center's 2023 National Music Theater Conference and the 2023 NAMT Festival of New Musicals.
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Visit fountainmusical.com for demos and more information about the show!
Discovery of Fire
Book, Music & Lyrics Christopher Anselmo
This fantastical, electro-folk musical aims to blend aspects of augmented and virtual reality to explore the integration of technology into our everyday lives and the way we mourn loved ones' deaths in the technological age.
The Discovery of Fire is currently in development, and has received a presentation through Musical Theatre Factory in New York City.
Atlantic: America & The Great War
Music & Lyrics Christopher Anselmo
Book & Lyrics Ryan Bernsten & Desiree Staples
The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and Chicago's American Music Theatre Project teamed up to produce a unique world-premiere musical, Atlantic, at the 2017 Edinburgh Festival. The musical's first half, A Scottish Story is by Scotland-based writing team, Noisemaker.
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On the eve of WWI, two sisters uncover their complicated ancestry, but when one disappears while tracing their lineage overseas, the other must leave home for the first time to find her. Part two of the exciting collaboration, America and the Great War is an ensemble-driven adventure with a rousing folk score that explores the timely uncertainty of what it means to be American.
★★★★★ - The Herald
★★★★★ - British Theatre Guide
★★★★★ - Pocketsize Theatre
★★★★★ - One4Review
"There is beautiful music at the heart of Atlantic: America & The Great War ... epic, intimate, and touching throughout. The songs are frequently funny, moving and memorable ... a treat to listen to" - Broadway Baby
Fable
Music & Lyrics Christopher Anselmo
Book H.S. Kaufman
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Cast Michael Luwoye, Dan Rosales, Madison Micucci, Marissa O'Donnell, Gerianne Perkins, Alex Walton
*Official Selection of the NYMF's 2014 Next Link Project, where it received two extensions and sold out its entire run.
It's graduation time. When a mysterious classmate crashes their last epic night of celebration, a group of childhood friends is forced to confront the secrets they've been keeping from one another. Will their friendships survive the night?
With an imaginative and passionate contemporary score and a charming book, Fable is a modern American reworking of this timeless storytelling form. Explore the moments when we are forced to change, whether we like it or not. What happens when the stories we were told as kids are revealed for the fictions they truly are?
"Anselmo's music is by turns soaring, jaunty, and hard-rocking ... His lyrics are among the cleanest I've ever heard at NYMF" - Chris Caggiano​
"Further assets are Anselmo's clever and oddly endearing score" - Stagebuddy.com