AAPEX Book Review: THE MUSICAL THEATRE: A CELEBRATION by Alan J Lerner

To the short list of the coolest books I have ever read, I have to add THE MUSICAL THEATRE: A CELEBRATION by Alan J. Lerner.

Born in 1918, over the span of his lifetime, Lerner knew intimately the founders of the American musical. The stories he tells of such folks as Jerome Kern and Cole Porter are mostly first hand.

I came across his wonderful book while doing research for a workshop on writing musicals ("Finding Your Inner Musical") which I will give at The Nashville Songwriters Association on August 23rd. Of the many books I have read so far, this is the one from which I have learned the most.

Come to Nashville and Go to the Theatre.

And don't miss UMBRELLA by Steve Leslie and Len Cohen coming Upstairs @ Bongo Java.

Jaz Dorsey
The Nashville Dramaturgy Project

Jaz Dorsey to facilitate a workshop on writing musicals for songwriters at the Nashville Songwriters Assoc (8/23)

I am very excited to be facilitating a workshop on writing musicals for songwriters at The Nashville Songwriters Association on Thursday, August 23.

It has also been my honor to have been connected to or involved with the development of quite a few new musicals by Nashville songwriters over the past decade, from Mike McFaden's AIN'T WE GOT FUN which started here and went on to New York and Cleveland, to Sue Fabisch's MOTHERHOOD, which just closed in Atlanta and is running in Australia, to Parrish Stanton's ONE KISS CAFE which had a three week run at The Country Music Hall of Fame and is now in revival down on Second Avenue, to the Steve Leslie/Len Cohen collaboration UMBRELLA which is one of three finalists in the Boiler Room new musicals competition to Randi Michaels' GUESS WHO'S COMING TO SEDER which just premiered in Tulsa after readings in Nashville and NYC.

And I am in awe of the success of THE DOYLE AND DEBBIE SHOW which continues to run on Tuesday nights at The Station Inn in one of Nashville's coolest "urban" districts, The Gulch.

The musical in it's various manifestations is an ideal vehicle for songwriters to share a greater body of work with a greater public. The Nashville Writes Musicals Workshop will provide an orientation to songwriters on how to approach and develop the creating of a work for the musical stage.

Come to Nashville and Go to the Theatre!

Jaz Dorsey

The Nashville Dramaturgy Project

Jaz Dorsey to workshop on writing musicals for the Nashville Songwriters Assoc

The Nashville Songwriters Association has invited me to give a workshop on writing musicals, which is pretty cool. Here's an example of what I've done in the past: EXTRAORDINARY WAITER is from my "Songs from the Cafe Escargot." It features Tony Domenico and Pam MacQuarry. I'm banging on the piano off-stage.

Jaz Dorsey