Daniel: an Ordinary Tragedy

Daniel was really my first undertaking as a writer. It came from a lot of different places but it started as a story of a young musician, go figure, and a set of abusive relationships he commits himself to. It was workshopped at Long Island University in the schools season my sophomore year of undergrad. The following summer it was accepted as a New Voices Finalist for the Academy for New Musical Theatre (ANMT) in Los Angeles. They workshopped some scenes and songs within the show and after another rewrite I had another workshop of it at a different theatre at LIU but I self produced it and played the title roll Daniel. After that workshop there were two cabarets of the Daniel music; one at the Duplex and one at the West End Long. It is currently under another more substantial rewrite.

Mamma Laudicina

Mamma Laudicina was my graduate thesis musical at NYU. I wrote the lyrics and the book and one of my collaborators, Dak Van Vranken, wrote the music. It was our attempt at opera meets musical theatre meets Shakespeare. Taking place on a hundred year old vineyard in Sicily, Mamma Laudicina the mentally ailing matriarch is giving away the vineyard to one of her three sons. Little does she know none of them are looking to take the vineyard- only dethrone her in many different ways. We are led through this wild world of wine and lies, murder and incest by Elissabetta, the grape picking whore of Castellammare del Golfo, Sicilia. Mamma Laudicina is currently being workshopped at North Carolina School of the Arts this upcoming March. Dak and myself are over the moon to be working and shopping out this fabulous piece unlike ANYTHING I have ever written in the past. Keep your eyes on it!

Staten Island Holiday

Imagine a house with far too many people living there. Some stable, some not. SO you have a broken marriage that fights non stop, an Aunt on the run from the police, a closet-case writer with nothing to say, a compulsive gambler, a hot deli counter stud who’s in and out, three crazy sisters and a dying grandmother…where can we be? At the Rubino house not far from Arthur Kill Rd in beautiful and luxurious Staten Island. Staten Island Holiday is a play for all those who’s family living situations have outstayed it’s welcome, it’s also for anyone who dreams of a way out of somewhere. There has been one reading of this play at Pearl Studios and after another rewrite this spring it will have another workshop planned for the summer.