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Ghost Brothers of Darkland County

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  • The Variety review.  In short, they weren't fans. 



    Reproduced below as it could be behind a paywall.



    Ghost Brothers of Darkland County

    (Alliance Theater, Atlanta; 750, seats; $85 top)

    By Frank Rizzo

    An Alliance Theatre presentation of a musical in two acts by Stephen King. Music by John Mellencamp. Directed by Susan V. Booth. Music direction, T Bone Burnett.

    Joe McCandless - Shuler Hensley

    Monique McCandless - Emily Skinner

    Drake McCandless - Justin Guarini

    The Shape - Jake La Botz

    Frank McCandless - Lucas Kavner

    Dan Corker - Christopher L. Morgan

    Jack McCandless - Peter Albrink

    Andy McCandless - Travis Smith

    Anna Wicklow - Kylie Brown

    Jenna - Kate Ferber

    Young Joe - Royce Mann

    The pairing of roots rocker John Mellencamp and horror scribe Stephen King for a Southern Gothic musical may sound irresistible. But it takes more than a groove and gore to make this tedious tale of brotherly bile work on stage. Sketchy character development, awkward staging and unclear storytelling make prospects for future life iffy beyond this world preem at Atlanta's Alliance Theater.

    Tale centers on two pairs of young adult siblings, one duo in 1967 and the other in 2007. The '60s brothers Jack (Peter Albrink) and Andy (Travis Smith) battle over Jenna (an alluring Kate Ferber). All three come to tragic ends in a cabin in the Mississippi woods -- witnessed by little brother Joe (Royce Mann) -- as the tuner begins.



    The departed trio haunts the cabin, which is where the 2007 brothers -- the sons of the now-adult Joe (Shuler Hensley) and his wife Monique (Emily Skinner) -- also fight over a girl, Anna (Kylie Brown).



    Older Joe has gathered his family to tell the full story of what he saw when he was 10, but his hesitancy drags on for most of the show. When "the truth" is finally revealed, it isn't much of a surprise, though what comes after is -- because it is so poorly set-up.



    Presiding over the twin shaggy dog tales is a devilish spirit named The Shape (Jake La Botz), and there's a good ghost (Christopher L. Morgan) hanging around too, though his back story is less than a fleeting thought.



    Mellencamp's songs either provide character comment, action accompaniment or honkytonk atmosphere, and while giving the show some percussive power, they rarely lift the proceedings emotionally. T. Bone's Burnett's music direction and Andy York's arrangements are tops.



    Perfs struggle to find authenticity for one-note or contradictory characters. Hensley plays the single tortured-soul chord throughout; La Botz does slinky evil well but even this shtick grows tiresome; Skinner's character is all over the place but gets a boost from her solo songs. The quartet of brothers tend to blur in their constant bickering, though Guarini's singing is strong, as is Morgan's.



    But the principal weakness is King's unfocused storytelling. The pairs of brothers are ill-defined beyond a few broad strokes and the dialogue is clunky and crude. ("It's the heaven that's got lost and that's the hell of it.")



    Helmer Susan V. Booth, who is also a.d. at the Alliance, doesn't help matters with a lot of the playing done upstage, characters wandering in and out of the cabin for little purpose, tableau vivant poses and lovers' leaps that are almost comic. By the end of the show, you may yearning for "Carrie."



    Songs: That's Me, That's Who I Am, So Goddamn Smart, How Many Days, Home Again, And You Are Blind, What's Going On Here, Brotherly Love, My Name Is Joe, Tear This Cabin Down, Lounging Around in Heaven, And Your Days Are Gone, One Belle Reve Time, Jukin', Put Me in the Ground, What Kind of Man Am I, Away From This World, A Rose for Poor Anna, The Truth Is Here.



    Sets, Todd Rosenthal; costumes, Susan E. Mickey; lighting, Robert Wierzel, sound, Clay Benning; projections, Adam Larsen; music arrangements, Andy York; production stage manager, Pat A. Flora; choreography, Daniel Pelzig. Opened, reviewed April 11. Running time: TWO HOURS, 30 MIN. Runs through May 13.

    With: Jeremy Aggers, Lori Beth Edgeman, Gwen Hughes, Dale Watson, Joe Jung, Joe Knezevich, Rob Lawhon, Joseph Signa, Ryan Wortherspoon.
  • Great write up. Sounds like a splendid time was had by all.
  • Ghost Brothers I: The Long Road to Atlanta.



    Next week, in part II: my review.
  • According to Rolling Stone, the soundtrack will be released on March 19th, 2013. It's described as a CD/DVD deluxe edition, featuring the soundtrack, handwritten lyrics and a mini-documentary about the making of the musical,

    There was a recent table reading in New York for possible investors, but as of now there's no definitive plan for it to come to Broadway. "There's business people that want it to be on Broadway," says Mellencamp. "I can't speak for Stephen, but for me it doesn't matter. It's the process I enjoy, not the outcome."



    King has a different take on the matter. "We were talking about Broadway right away," he says. "John believes in reaching for the stars in everything he does. . . . But a lot of Broadway these days is crappity smacking Disneyland. It's blue-haired ladies from Westchester County. They come in buses and they want to see Aida or the Lion King. It's almost like an amusement park."



    They also think it might work as a movie at some point in the future. "I'd love to see that," says King. "One of the other reasons that I did that is that I'm a total whore for musicals. I love Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge, Bugsy Malone. You name it and I just love it! It appeals to a sentimental side of me."



    Whatever happens, King and Mellencamp are confident they're nearly done fiddling with it. "At this point I don't know what else we could so," says King. "Unless we set it in crappity smacking outer space. Hey, that's not a bad idea! It could work!"







    Here's the track listing. Visit Rolling Stone's website to hear Elvis Costello's version of "That's Me" (at the bottom of the page).



    "That's Me," Elvis Costello

    "That's Who I Am," Neko Case

    "So Goddamn Smart," Dave Alvin, Phil Alvin, Sheryl Crow

    "Wrong, Wrong, Wrong About Me," Elvis Costello

    "Brotherly Love," Frank and Drake

    "How Many Days," Kris Kristofferson

    "You Are Blind," Ryan Bingham

    "Home Again," Sheryl Crow, Dave Alvin, Phil Alvin, Taj Mahal

    "What's Going On Here," Rosanne Cash

    "My Name Is Joe," Clyde Mulroney

    "Tear This Cabin Down," Taj Mahal

    "And Your Days Are Gone," Sheryl Crow, Dave Alvin, Phil Alvin

    "Jukin'," Sheryl Crow

    "What Kind of Man Am I," Kris Kristofferson, Phil Alvin, Sheryl Crow Dave Alvin, Taj Mahal

    "So Goddamn Good," Phil Alvin, Dave Alvin, Sheryl Crow

    "Away From This World," Sheryl Crow

    "Truth," John Mellencamp



    Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/john-mellencamps-musical-with-stephen-king-nearing-completion-20121114#ixzz2CDQkj0eF
  • Ghost Brothers of Darkland County will be available across a variety of formats. The (enhanced CD) Standard Edition features the complete soundtrack, dialog excerpts and digital libretto. The (2CD/1DVD) Deluxe Edition contains the complete soundtrack (with and without dialog), deluxe art work, handwritten lyrics, specially printed libretto and the “Making of Ghost Brothers” mini-documentary DVD featuring in-depth interviews with King, Mellencamp and Burnett along with other bonus material. Ghost Brothers of Darkland County digital editions for tablets, smartphones and e-readers will allow users to interact in unprecedented ways with the complete soundtrack + digital libretto, as well as exclusive video and graphic materials.



    http://www.ghostbrothersofdarklandcounty.com/
  • I've seen this is now available to pre-order at Amazon.  It finally seems real that it'll be published.
  • This listing is apparently just for the "book," but I haven't been able to get any independent confirmation that they will be releasing this apart from the CD/DVD set. I'll check again.
  • According to Amazon, this has been delayed again (shocking!). They now list a release date of June 4, the same as Joyland.
  • Ms Mod says it's been a shifting target. I've been in touch with them and hope to get an advanced copy for review.
  • Trailer above and, from Esquire, an exclusive stream of one of the songs, "That's Who I Am," performed by Neko Case. Enjoy long before the album is released, on June 4
  • Rosanne Cash premieres 'Ghost Brothers' song



    A new Rosanne Cash track would be exciting all by itself. But make it a collaboration with Stephen King, John Mellencamp and T Bone Burnett, and it becomes something altogether more impressive.



    You Don't Know Me, premiering at USA TODAY, is Cash's contribution to the all-star recording of Ghost Brothers of Darkland County, a musical featuring libretto by King, music and lyrics by Mellencamp and production from Burnett. The album is set for a June 4 release.



    "You Don't Know Me is a great song, whether you hear it within the Ghost Brothers story or all by itself," says Cash, who sings in the character of Monique, the wife of a man whose brothers died in an apparent murder/suicide. "Whenever John, Stephen and T Bone ask you to be a part of something, the answer has to be yes, doesn't it?"



    The Ghost Brothers of Darkland County album also features Elvis Costello, Sheryl Crow, Neko Case, Taj Mahal, Ryan Bingham, Kris Kristofferson and others. King, Mellencamp and Burnett spent 13 years collaborating on the music, which premiered last spring in Atlanta.
  • Starts off a bit slowly, which becomes less of an issue on re-listens. A haunting song with a dash of sorrowful soul to it. Sounds atmospherically appropriate for the story.



    Looking forward to hearing the entire album even more!
  • AEG Live is pleased to announce that the southern gothic, supernatural musical Ghost Brothers of Darkland County, written by Stephen King, with music by John Mellencamp and T Bone Burnett, has confirmed a tour of 20 American cities throughout the Midwest and Southeast beginning October 10 in Bloomington, IN, and ending November 6 in Grand Rapids, MI. Tickets go on sale Friday, May 17 at 10am at aeglive.com. This extraordinary collaboration, 13 years in the making, is a haunting tale of fraternal love, lust, jealousy and revenge, which will be performed by an ensemble cast of 15 actors and a four-piece live band. The album of the musical will be released on June 4 via Hear Music and the Concord Music Group.



    >>> Read more, including list of locations/dates
  • Bev, do you know if King was the sole "author" of the lyrics? It this truly a King writing?



    John


  • I'm pretty sure King didn't write the lyrics. He wrote the story (based on a story Mellencamp told him). From time to time, he'd tell Mellencamp that they needed a song here to develop a character or a plot point and Mellencamp would do so. I believe the songs are completely Mellencamp.



    So, think of it as a King script (that's how the libretto is formatted) with Mellencamp lyrics injected every so often.
  • Thanks, Bev. Do we classify this as a King book or not?



    John
  • I would, I guess -- like Christine with all of its lyrics!
  • Okay. I wasn't sure.



    John
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