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Jim_L
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bullet Topic: finished (for now) comedy with songs
    Posted: 7/05/06 at 8:36am

The Tavern& The Storyteller: http://home.comcast.net/~castle.walls/tavern/
I've got it down to 169 pages (from about 300). 2 acts, 20 scenes, 10 songs, 10 males, 5 females, there's doubling for both M&F parts or add the extra people for a larger cast.

Readable PDF on the site and songs at http://helloconcord.com/Music/Band.Cfm?MUID=2625 

 
The format/layout of the script may not be perfect, but it's my first time.
Hopefully the website has enough info.
-Jim

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Carissa
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bullet Posted: 7/13/06 at 1:48am
Well, I'm about half way through it and so far I'm thinking it is pretty good. It is kind of confusing because sometimes it is very modern and sometimes, not so much. Or at least it doesn't seem that way. I have mixed feeling about the whole thing. I'd like to hear that the songs are more noticbally different from one another and maybe add more choruses to some of the songs and more verses and a bridge. Sometimes the humor is played a little, ever so slightly too much, in my opinion. Although I have to commend you for writing something very unique (the whole fairy scene was pretty bizzarre, with the kid in the diapars). Taha!!:) I'm asuming it is you who is singing, very nice job. If you would like a females voice for the Lily songs I would be happy to record some (I sing), that is if you posted background music, and would actually want it. I think it might help people who are reading it to understand the plot more (mainly in the love song)!!:)


Well good job and I hope you take my comments in a good way (they are only meant to help).

I'll read more of the script tommorrow probably!!:)
-Carissa
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Jim_L
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bullet Posted: 9/01/06 at 8:23am

Thanks Carissa!
Sorry for the late reply, been busy with things. I wasn't trying to stay in any particular 'age' with the writing - past or present. I wrote the songs with high school musician 'talent' in mind, so I kept the songs relatively simple and short - no solo's and such (except 'In Me' where I hope I can find a student flute player). I should probably call the script 'a comedy with songs' rather than a musical. The songs are there to help the story along, except 'Fish' which is just a fun batch of absurdity (I hope).  

The drama teacher finally read the darn thing (took him over a year...;>) but he loved it. There's been a lot more editing (down to 161 pages now) and I've scrapped the Fairy Godmother scene for time - which also gets rid of 3 extras and 2 lighted props and a 7 minute song, so I guess that helps. I rewrote the scene bringing in Lily's friends earlier than act 2 and had them interplay a bit with William which works out overall better for the storyline.

The drama teacher wants to do the play this fall so I expect to be doing a lot of work soon (set construction, musical direction/teaching/hoping/praying). I know the songs sort of sound the same but I'm just one guy doing all the parts on my home recording equipment. I can 'hear' all sorts of different instruments that i'll <sadly> never be able to play (banjo, flute, piano, harpsichord, etc...) so I can only hope there will be some students who CAN play such things and want to. For some songs, the guitar will be the main voice, others, the piano.

Thanks for the vocals offer but I'm on dial-up so there's really no way for me to send large wav/track files. I've also changed my recording setup from a Tascam DP01FX 8 track to a 32 track Korg recorder (I don't use computers - no big honkin' knobs to turn - gotta have knobs!) so all the masters to those songs are un-accessible, stored on my computer.  

I also got rid of the drum machine (the only thing that wasn't 'me' on the demos) and picked up an Alesis electronic drumset and a proper condenser vocal recording mic (I used my old band vocal mic on the demos and had to sing 'across' it instead of into it). There's a new pic of my [ahem, cough-cough] 'studio' on the Tavern site if your interested.

All the songs are now on Soundclick (link via the tavern site) but you'll have to sign up for free before you can download the 3-7 meg mp3s. There's also a few other new tunes I've been fooling around with (mostly ideas with some form of structure). The mixes aren't that great especially since I only had headphones to mix down with at the time). I'm still learning the new mixing/recording board so it'll be awhile before i really get anything new recorded and posted.

So now (and for awhile actually) you can read the script and listen to the songs. Obviously, the actual music will be somewhat different when it starts and stops during the play as such things will need to be worked out a bit. I've probably rewrote the script over a hundred times (bits here and bits there...) but I always seem to find something wrong with it (my wife found some spelling/grammar errors just yesterday...) so the printer is always going (and it's really starting to go too! The paper jams, ink smears, it's tired...).

I can only hope that 10 males and 5 females will be in drama this year or it'll never happen...!

-Jim

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Jim_L
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bullet Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:20pm
Well, things are going good, the set is under construction and is easier than I had hoped. There are a few set pics here: http://home.comcast.net/~castle.walls/tavern/set.html with more on the way...
 
The school's music director has got most of the song 'books' done (is that what the sheet music for each/total songs are called for multiple instruments?) and the rehersals are going well (and sometimes hard to get through from the laughing).
 
I've been learning a lot, missed some things (errors in the script, etc) and plan to do some rewriting when it's all over!
I've learned to let go of my baby and let the director do some wonderful things with direction (but that doesn't mean I'm happy with everything, but the other points of view are great to have and made me see things differently).
 
Overall this is going to be pretty cool.
One important thing I was told that has 'opened' my eyes was to 'Show the story, not tell it'.
 
Wish us luck!
-Jim
 

http://home.comcast.net/~castle.walls/tavern/
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Jim_L
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bullet Posted: 4/03/07 at 8:03am
Added some more set pics on page 2... with some wall stone covering.
A local newspaper is coming by this week to do a story - so far, so good (crunch time!). I'm still hoping to get the wall mounted stuffed singing fish put together but so far it doesn't look good (time, i need more time!).
 
The Fairy Godmother Rap has been pre-recorded (sans vocals) and will be played through the PA system, there's just no way the orchestra can do it. I'll be building the wall lights as there's no way to afford the real ones at the store.

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Jim_L
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bullet Posted: 4/22/07 at 4:59pm
A 25 meg WMV file of 'Some Late Arrivals' - the last Tavern scene of Act 1:
http://www.mydatabus.com/5z/pbzpnfg.arg/ca...clip_online.wmv

http://home.comcast.net/~castle.walls/tavern/
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EddyZ
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bullet Posted: 4/23/07 at 10:26pm
Jim, how'd the fish turn out?

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Jim_L
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bullet Posted: 4/24/07 at 7:55am
They are on the video clip (ain't I a stinker?). They aren't the one's I originally tried to design nor are they the expensive stuffed fish I ordered online (thisplaceisazooDOTcom) to see if I could modify them (too small).
 
One of the actors mom's went to a local 'house of cloth' store and picked up 2 fish pillow cases for $5 each, re-sewed the mouths and sewed some cloth tubes to the inside of the mouth area (for the puppeteers arm to go through) and had it come out a slit in the appropriate wall mounting side.
 
I then took a 1/8th thk piece of that craft foam paper stuff and cut out 4 large egg shaped 'washers' or borders (2 per fish, instead of circles, this way the arm can go through the wall and fish at an angle to better reach the mouth) and Elmer's wood glued one to the inside and outside of the side of the fish. This helps to provide stiffness and also let me (when dried) poke 4 holes with a nail through the border and then use 1.25" long bolts & washers/nuts through the holes and through the set walls to mount the fish (bolt w/large flat washer from the inside of the fish through the wall with another washer & 2 nuts 'casue you'll never be able to tighten it enough & the 2nd nut locks the first in place).
 
I kept the paper template i used to make the egg shaped 'border' and traced that on an oval piece of cardboard (from a dishwasher box I believe) somewhat centered, poked the holes through the cardboard to coincide with the puppet mounting holes. Painted the cardboard to look like a wood plaque (Stephanie did that) and when dried, mounted the whole thing to the wall - oops, and also used the paper template to trace the arm hole on the set wall beforehand & sabresawed the hole out - then mounted it all...
 
Sadly, I didn't take pics of the assembly and it probably sounds more complicated than it really was...  oh, and the fishes mouths also had stiff triangles of that white craft plastic canvas grid stuff sewed in & covered with cloth. You can see reasonable close-ups in the video. It was kind of a good thing that the fish also came with floppy fins and the audience never saw it coming! The fish didn't start singing until the 2nd chorus and you can hear them break out laughing when they finally realized what was happening... 

http://home.comcast.net/~castle.walls/tavern/
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