I know it’s kind of a tease to tell you about an event that you probably can’t attend,   but I’m so excited about this that I want to share it!

On Sunday. Nov. 16 at 6:30pm, ??there’ll be a private, unstaged reading of my original musical “The Golden Cage” in a very tiny theater just outside of Boston

The theater holds no more than 10 people.  And I just created it.

Until last week, it was my studio.  Now it’s probably the world’s tiniest theater, complete with backdrop, piano, stage area and chairs.

The reading on Sunday evening is the first phase of a multi-phase project, the first step of a journey to Broadway.

Actually … my friend Lable said to me last week: “Don’t say ‘Broadway’ … because you never want to limit where it could go.”

So this is the first step of an amazing journey …

I’m telling you this because if you’re passionate about musical theater, you might want to sponsor one of the development phases of this project! So here is more info about the project!

>> What Is “The Golden Cage”?

It’s an original one-act, two-character musical by Deborah Henson-Conant about a birdman and an drama-queen, who go to battle over the golden cage that one sees as the epitomy of success, and the other as an impenetrable prison.

>> Why are you having this Reading?

This reading is the first phase of preparing “The Golden Cage” for production. It includes a week of rehearsals, an invited reading on Nov. 16th, videotaping, recording and photographing that reading, and a studio recording of the score the following week.

This process allows me to make minor revisions in the script and score in an organic way – through rehearsals and performances (which is why I havent’ gotten much sleep lately) – and at the same time create the materials for a website that will represent the musical to potential producers, theaters and investors.

>> What Happens After That …

Sponsoring this first phase also brings you in on the ground floor of the larger process of “workshopping” in which we partner with a theater and a director to take the musical through a longer revision process to prepare it for production.

>> Who’s Who?

I’m thrilled I was able to get two actor/singers for this reading who I’ve been working with for years:  Teresa Winner Blume and Robert DeVivo.

Both have been working with me on “The Golden Cage” for several years in the Advanced Writer’s Lab of Boston’s “New Opera & Musical Theater Initiative.”

The original work is scored for piano, cello and percussion – and this first- phase reading will be performed on piano by music director Timothy Maurice.

The drawings – the poster and the scene you see above are by the incomparable artist Ellen Lebow.

I am the composer, lyricist & playwright, Deborah Henson-Conant  — so I’ll be sitting in the audience (with you if you’re there!), likely mouthing all the words … but feel free to ignore me, and just enjoy the characters unfolding the play.

To get more info about sponsorship opportunities,  email me at info@hipharp.com

Here’s a rehearsal shot:

And a cast selfie: