ABOUT
DEMOCRACY: AN AMERCAN MUSICAL

“No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise.
Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government...
except for all those others”
Winston Churchill

Democracy: An American Musical was created to illuminate the promise, practice, imperfection, and opportunity of democracy as it has been historically practiced in the United States. There are forces seeking to fundamentally change our representative republic from democracy to autocracy or even theocracy. The goal of this musical work, therefore, is not only to engage and entertain audiences but to reach deep into their emotional core with a non-partisan message that we cannot take democracy for granted, and to encourage community discussion, reflection, and positive political and social action to support and defend democracy.

Democracy: An American Musical consists of twenty original songs totaling one hour and thirty-five minutes with each preceded by introductory monologues totaling approximately twenty-five minutes. And, there is a fifteen minute intermission giving us a total performance time from curtain up to curtain down of two hours and fifteen minutes. This show departs from traditional approaches to form and structure for “musicals.” As stated in the libretto, there is no story, there is no plot. Rather, there is a “theme” that ties the twenty songs in our show together. That theme is, of course, democracy.

The “characters,” four (or more) women and four (or more) men, are real people and are simply identified as “THE PEOPLE.” They do not carry on dialogues with each other; rather they speak directly to the audience as the traditional “fourth wall” is not just broken but eliminated. And, unlike in traditional scripts, soloists for the show’s twenty songs are not pre-assigned leaving it up to the musical director to choose the best voices for each song.

All the songs are introduced by a brief monologue that set-up context. These monologues are simply designated “Speaker” in the libretto and will usually be the first soloist in the following song; however, these speaker lines may be assigned differently by the director.

This work for musical theater is designed to reflect the principle of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, aka DEI. There are no “lead actors or singers,” all performers share solo and chorus roles. Producers and Directors as encouraged to assemble a diverse cast especially with regard to gender, age, ethnicity and physical abilities.

THE MUSIC

The music of Democracy: The Musical is written for soloists, four part chorus, and a four piece band consisting of keyboard (strings & organ), piano, bass and drums. The musical style reflects elements of rock, country, and traditional musical theater collectively known as “Americana.” The show may be performed with a live band or with pre-recorded tracks provided by the composer. Also available for download are practice tracks, scores, and scripts.