#Dragon spring phoenix rise nyc the shed cracked#

And if the results had been different, it would have been painful for me but something I’d understand because the writer is always at the front of the conversation. There are many ways to talk about why the piece resonates with me and why it’s important for me, but it was Michael’s decision. There was pressure, and there were voices that said, “We want a black director for this piece.” That was feedback that Michael got and still made the choice to collaborate with me, and I am extremely grateful for that. I want to put him at the forefront of this conversation because ultimately it’s his piece that we’re all translating to the stage.

The first thing I’ll say is that the people who were in that room were chosen because of Michael. How have you approached the work through the lens of your own racial identity as a white man working with this exceptionally talented group of black artists? Race permeates through A Strange Loop, along with many other emotionally resonant topics. Stephen Brackett (Photo courtesy of Playwrights Horizons.) Once we arrived at the idea, the piece started to open up. Once we started to buy into the idea that the action and flow were about the pressure of Usher to write a gospel play - not only from his agent and the world around him but his family (and specifically his mother), it helped lock in the arc, culminating in that big gesture. The narrative wasn’t screamingly apparent. For a long time, we were struggling to find the show’s container. Slowly, Michael started writing toward that concept. Michael, in a beautiful way, took to that idea, and said, “Let’s try it.” We learned pretty early on that there was merit in the concept and helped to unlock the piece. It tapped into the psychological portrait of Usher that we wanted to build. I proposed the possibility of running with that concept, casting queer black actors to play all of the roles in the show. I talked to him about how moving I thought the concept was, which started the conversation about the other characters in the piece being Usher’s perceptions.

#Dragon spring phoenix rise nyc the shed cracked#

I thought it was gorgeous and impactful and cracked into the identity politics of the piece. When I first read the piece, there was a casting concept that had the lead character Usher’s mother played by a queer black actor. Part of that is about Michael’s loyalty to me and the project. I’m grateful to be able to stick with the project. Opportunities are not plentiful, and it costs a lot of money, so these long gestation periods are not uncommon. Musical theater development takes a long time. How has A Strange Loop evolved since that first workshop seven years ago? Through that relationship, we were introduced to Playwrights Horizons where it is now playing in association with. I signed on fairly immediately and started working with him, and that was in 2012.Īfter that, there were multiple years of development with Musical Theater Factory through several readings and a staging of an excerpt from the show. I knew he was working on a project called A Strange Loopand there was a moment when he was looking for a director and brought the piece to me and said, “If you’re interested, I’m doing a really low-key reading at NYU.” The thing that drew me to Michael - his authenticity, his own singular voice, his lack of fear, and his intellect through humor - were all powerfully reflected in A Strange Loop. I directed a couple of concerts at Joe’s Pub and got to know Michael through disparate songs. She thought we shared similar sensibilities and there was an artistic match. She was directing his thesis project for a production at NYU. I met Michael Jackson through a mutual collaborator, an amazing director named Emma Griffin. How did you become connected with the project? Director Stephen Brackett chats with Broadway Blog editor Matthew Wexler about the seven-year creative process of bringing this dynamic new musical to life. Jackson’s A Strange Loop follows Usher, a black, queer writer, working a day job he hates while writing his original musical: a piece about a black, queer writer, working a day job he hates while writing his original musical. The cast of ‘A Strange Loop.’ (Photo: Joan Marcus)