Spark of Creation

When I was deciding what shows to write about I could not quite decide where to start. So to make things easy I decided that my first post on this particular subject would be about my favorite show that I performed in, and this would be Children of Eden. It is not a show that has been on Broadway, so not many people have heard of it. I actually had never heard of it when I auditioned. But it is popular within the theater community. Before I begin, the titles of my blogs will be songs from the show I am writing about.

Children of Eden was the not first the show that I performed in. But I consider it the first major production I did. The theater company I was with, The Performance Project, worked out of a warehouse that my director had turned into a small theater. Up until this show, I performed on the small wooden stage in this warehouse that sat maybe sixty people and the rest standing room only. It was sometimes difficult performing here cause one would feel like they were dancing on the people in the front row, that's how close they were to the stage. And the lights were so close to the stage that we would sweat all of our overdone makeup off. It was also very difficult to put on large productions in such a small place. Luckily, our director started working with The Broward Center for the Performing Arts, which is equivalent to our Tampa Bay for the Performing Arts Center. This sounded very exciting to me, to have the chance to perform on a large stage in front of hundreds of people and to have a dressing room like the professionals, although I did share it with other people. At fourteen I was starstruck at this idea, so I auditioned for the show and made it.

Children of Eden is of course based on the book of Genesis from the Bible. The first act depicts Adam and Eve and the second act of Noah and the flood. I felt familiar with the show before I read the script since I had been in christian schools for most of my life. The music and lyrics were written by the amazing Stephen Schwartz (Wicked, Pocahontas, Hunchback of Notre Dame), and I am sure the theater community would agree with me on this opinion. He has written some of the most famous songs to grace the audiences of Broadway.

This show certainly brings the Bible to life, and also makes it interesting for those who do not know the stories. The music in this show is amazing and also very emotional, due to the nature of the story. If anyone has seen this show they what I am talking about. Watching God sing about how His creation disappointed Him can be very powerful. I was always moved when performing some of these numbers and I am sure it had the same effect on people in the audience.


I thought it was also a very meaningful show. There are themes that the audience can relate to, like consequences of disobedience and learning to let go of something you love. Even though this show is based on the Bible, there were obviously creative liberties that were taken. This is drama. Brigham Young University recently showcased Children of Eden and the schools blog site (BeyondTheUniverse) has a post concerning the show. The writer of the blog discusses how Steven Schwartz did not portray these stories exactly how they were told in the Bible. I agree with her that this is not "a Sunday school lesson", a point that needs emphasizing since so many people watch this show and believe that that is how it happened or they are offended because it is not true. People should just enjoy theater for the art that it produces and not look too far into the meaning of things.

Children of Eden is a beautiful musical and I encourage anyone to see it if they have the chance.

Center Stage

Blogging is something I never thought I would do. Not because I have anything against it, but because I do not express myself through written word. Writing does not come naturally to me, no matter how many writing classes I have taken. What does come natural to me, what I find a passion in, is performing. This blog will be about incorporating my passion into writing.

One of my favorite plays, The Importance of Being Ernest by Oscar Wilde, has a line that always stuck out to me, "memory...is the diary that we all carry about with us". For me, this line has always been true since I loathed the idea of keeping a diary. My memory is all I have to look back on when I want to recall my days of performing, or of a night at the theater seeing my favorite musical. Now that I think about it, it would be nice to have written down these experiences that have shaped me into who I am now.

Wikipedia describes blogs as an online diary. So, a diary is what my blog will be, or atleast what it will be for me. I will use this blog as a forum to recall, write down, and discuss my favorite shows, specifically musicals. I understand that this is not an interesting topic for many people. When it comes to musicals you either love it or you hate it, not much room for inbetween. But those who love theater, also love to talk about it. I am one of those people, and though I might not be able to discuss theater on the level of say New Yorkers who frequent 42nd and Broadway, I do believe I can relate to other bloggers who share the same regard for theater as me.

Like I said, I do not have an affinity for writing. But writing this blog about musicals that I have seen and that have meant something to me will hopefully produce something I will enjoy. People may read this, or they may not. I will write for those who love theater, but I will also write for me.