Daron Hagen

Music Text
Book and Lyrics by Daron Hagen

Scoring
solo voices: S, T, Bar; Onstage / Offstage Piano or jazz trio

Publisher:
Peermusic Classical(Burning Sled Music)

Territory
This work is available from Peermusic Classical for the world.

World Premiere
Staged Premiere : spring 2014 / Broadway Theater Center, Milwaukee, WI
Daron Hagen, director
Music Director: Robert Frankenberry
Company: Skylight Music Theater

Filmed Premiere:9 May 2024 / Rauh Studio Theater, Pittsburgh, PA
Daron Hagen, director
Music Director: Robert Frankenberry
Company: The New Mercury Collective / Aria412 Productions

Roles
Robbie Doerfler (T)
Rose Marie Modjeska (S)
Roger Tomchek (Bar)

Time and Place
Robbie's apartment on New York City's Upper West Side, present day; and a black box theater which may or may not be in his imagination.

Synopsis
“Either we’re in my mind, or I am out of my mind; either this is thirty years ago, and I am 22, or its tonight,” explains composer Robbie Doerfler. Is it a dream, a mid-life crisis, a reunion, or an intervention? Are his old friends and the brutal documentarian interviewing him literally there, or is he imagining them? Will music hold him together as it has in the past, or is this his swan song?

Production Stills
Here

Links
Score | Official Website | Swag

Selected Press
"Hagen has composed a message that ‘love abides,’ whether in love of art, country, music, personal relationships or self. In this inventive production that defies conventional definitions, each of the 18 original musical numbers fuses musical genres with sincere inspiration that uncovers the buried meanings to the word love." — Peggy Sue Dunegin, Broadway World

“The words and music are both clever and compelling. The harmonies are rare and exciting. This is a work where you have to pay attention. I Hear America Singing is the kind of impressive, unique and fascinating production that deserves a full house every night.” — Dave Begel, OnWisconsin.com

"You are correct if you sense that this piece is intensely sung, but the story is indeed told with conversations, shared memories, jabs, and jokes among the three friends. The cohesiveness of Hagen’s book, lyrics, and music serves the story well. He’s a masterful writer and musician. Here, his music evokes the American canon: traditional hymns, ballads, love songs, story songs, and patriotic. The songs themselves could be a stand-alone recital, from art songs to arias and other popular forms. Considering the score alone, the show is a testament to how a composer learns and applies their own experiences of life and others’ music. Some beautiful American melodies are referenced with nuance in this lovely study about songwriting and singing." — Yvonne Hudson, Onstage Pittsburgh

Skylight Music Theatre is singing an old song ... no, wait, that's a new song ... no, it's an old one. Actually, the folks over at the Skylight are whipping up a mix of show tunes, arias and art songs, mixed with songs from the Civil War to World War I that have been reworked by composer Daron Hagen for his new show, "I Hear America Singing." The show, which opens Friday, uses the tunes to support a plot in which three music-school friends reunite for a show a few decades into their careers. But that show isn't what Hagen set out to write. "This show started out as a little cabaret," he explained. "Then I got really interested and saw this new way in — taking old material and making it new again." About half of the songs are reworked. Hagen, who grew up in New Berlin and cut his proverbial musical-theater teeth on Skylight productions, is known today as one of the country's most successful opera composers. He explained the reworked songs, saying, "What you'll hear is that I've altered all of the melodies. It's a little like looking as a photo of someone you haven't seen for 20 years. You're reminded of what they looked like. It's the musical version of a line drawing of a photograph." He has also rewritten lyrics to advance the plot. He said writing the show was, for him, a matter of "geeking out" on song styles. "Every American pop and theatrical tradition is essayed in the show, from about the Civil War on," he said. "It's a show about shows." But that doesn't mean that one has to be a musical theater or pop music geek to enjoy the show. He explained that for someone who doesn't know a thing about the genres and the songs, seeing the show will be a matter of "sitting back and enjoying." But for those who do know the music, it will be a little like listening to the brilliant musical humor of Peter Schickele, widely known for his P.D.Q. Bach shtick. The more you know, the more you'll hear. If assembling a playlist that tells a story and then reworking some of those tunes in creative fashion sounds tough, think for a moment about the singers who have been tasked with bringing those songs to life: Robert Frankenberry (who doubles as music director), Carol Greif and Rick Pendzich. "The challenge for these acting singers is that every song has been chosen because it goes for the emotional jugular," Hagen said. "These songs are a post-doctoral course in method acting." The other challenge for the singers is that songs cover more than a century of musical styles and types of vocal production. Hagen explained that every song in the show has been coached with an eye to the vocal production of the era. A Victorian ballad, for instance uses a very different vocal production than a 1970s pop ballad. The script itself, Hagen said, shifts styles as well, "from fast Aaron Sorkin-style television writing to slower music theater dialog and back and forth." The through-line is that all of it — words, music and plot — "goes straight for the heart." —Elaine Schmidt, Special to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel , 2 May 2014