The First Stage: Fetching Water and Yeti or Not
This past year has seen the start of quarterly concerts, The First Stage, that bring new works and works-in-progress to the stage. The concert series is run by New Musical Theatre Nashville (NMTN), a collective of writers that fosters the creation of new works through meaningful collaboration to connect art with audiences in Music City. These concerts take place at Analog’s performing space and are produced with the help of ASCAP. Their goal is to launch new musicals into existence by connecting writers with performers, musicians, audiences, and ultimately producers that can take them to their next stage of development.
While NMTN hosted their first presentation of The First Stage earlier this year, September 12th’s production was my first time seeing the show. The concept and execution are excellent. The stylishly retro performing space, Analog, is an intimate venue at the Hutton Hotel. A lounge space with a bar, it was a pleasure to sit at a table and sip a good Manhattan while enjoying the show.
Since the musicals are in development, we see a roughly 45 minute preview of each show. How the creators decided to preview their show varied: the first, Fetching Water, gave us an abridged look at Act 1 with limited staging. The creators of Yeti or Not told us a quick summary of the plot before singing through the musical’s songs, concert style.
The show began with a brief introduction to the concert series by the NMTN leaders, then the cast of Fetching Water joined the band on the small, slightly elevated stage. Each performer had a stool, a microphone, and their music.
Fetching Water is classic musical theater, the lyrics moving the plot forwards sometimes faster than simple dialogue could have, and giving each character a heightened expressive range. Like Into the Woods, the play features storybook characters: a couple, Jack and Jill; and a set of siblings, Dick and Jane. The Narrator (played by Leslie Becker, who wrote the book and lyrics) gives additional zest to the story, and in this production, occasionally summarized scenes they had cut for this performance.
Jack and Jill live the perfect life all by themselves at the foot of their hill. Elsewhere, Dick and Jane find out they’re about to be cancelled (reading education has moved on without them) unless they find a new fresh story. On the lookout for new possibilities, they come across Jack and Jill, and decide they can manipulate the naive couple to their own advantage.
Fetching Water is a fun story and was performed by a talented set of musicians. My favorite song by far was the finale, “Tumble Down.” Adding to the fun of this song were the experienced performers on stage. Dustin Davis and Erin McCracken had obvious fun giving Dick and Jane dorky edginess. Ben Laxton gave Jack such good-natured cluelessness that it was no surprise to discover that he was in the ensemble of the original Broadway cast of The Book of Mormon. Allison Bailey wowed me with her complete mastery of the character, each lyric emphasized by her gestures and expressions. Her fake-perfection coming apart during the finale was frenetically hilarious.
Like all children, we enjoy teasing old stories we used to love, and Fetching Water pokes good-natured fun at the idyllic naivete of Jack and Jill and the G-rated temptations of Dick and Jane, while still enjoying adult humor at one character’s unfortunate nickname. I can’t give you spoilers on the ending because we only saw as far as the end of Act I, but I can tell you that I welcome any future opportunities to see the musical fully staged and in its entirety, and I wouldn’t want any changes to the cast, either.
There was a brief intermission as the stage was reset and the audience ordered more drinks. Then the cast of Yeti or Not took the stage. As in Fetching Water, no one was in a full costume, but they wore flannel shirts or attire that generally matched their characters. W. Scott Stewart, whose burly voice was just right for the role of Bigfoot, wore camouflage waders.
The creators of Yeti or Not did some comic banter and gave us the “sparknotes” of the plot of their musical before getting straight to the music: Henry discovers a mysterious map left behind by his late father, an accomplished Bigfoot searcher. He leaves his job and sets off into the Pacific Northwest woods, chasing a legend with the help of a possibly nefarious companion. Since Yeti or Not is a rock musical and the songs focus more on expressing the immediate emotions of the characters than in moving the plot forward, this story-overview was helpful.
The music genre is pop folk-Americana, which pairs well with the pop folk-cryptid. There were six singers, including creator and guitar player Sean Richards, and the band was augmented by some backing tracks as well. Despite the many people on a small stage, the balance of sound was good, except for some over-exuberant drumming that occasionally drowned out the lyrics. The funniest song is “Would You Believe That,” when conspiracy theorists explain their wild beliefs. My favorite song is the duet “Here in the Office,” sung by James Richardson and Abby Nelson. They both have wonderful voices and skilled delivery, giving additional emotional complexity to the lyrics and melody of what could be a hit song.
Since the format of the preview of Yeti or Not was purely its music, I can’t give a full judgement on its potential quality as a musical. I can say I enjoyed the music (I might be biased because I usually enjoy the genre). The creators’ sense of humor was strong on stage and in many lyrics, so I assume the dialogue of the play will also be fun, sincere, and humorous.
I had a great night at The First Stage. The amount of time spent on each musical is enough to give us a good idea of the work. Getting to see two different pieces in one sitting allows us to assess the shows, as well as the act of creation, more thoughtfully. Live musical theater is an art form that requires cooperation from a mixture of different art forms and performers, and it is fascinating to see works in progress while enjoying the comforts of a well-run production. And since the creators carefully watch the audience reactions to their works, we even get to participate in the endeavor, too.
NMTN will have its next concert in December (keep an eye on their socials). Before then, you can check out this interview with the founders of NMTN, browse future events at Analog and learn more ASCAP, Fetching Water, and Yeti or Not.
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A Nashville native and MTSU graduate, Grace Krenz is a reader, a writer, and an arts enthusiast. She lives in Nashville with her husband and two children.
