Shadows Stories
RC: Why did you stay?RJ: Well, London’s really the home of theatre. The traditions and skills that you can tap into are just unbelievable, and it’s nice to be part of that. The other added advantage is that despite the fact that there’s a lot of anti-Americanism feeling -- it’s always been the same, it’s not because of this war -- to be a foreigner in a country where you didn’t grow up, every day is an enlightening experience. You get to appreciate the world a lot more. And I’ve lived here so long now that when it’s a sunny day I’m kind of shielding my eyes and complaining it’s too hot. When the grey clouds of London come flying over I always breathe a sigh of relief -- that’s how long I’ve been here!
RC: But you’re from New York, which people think of as the heart of the theatre scene.
RJ: Well you always want to be where you’re not. I grew up through the 80s and all the music I was listening to was from here. It was an unbelievable burst of creativity -- The Smiths, Depeche Mode, The Cure. So before I got here I was completely turned on by the music scene and the culture. In New York we think about musical theatre differently; it’s considered an art form, something legitimate. Here in England you read reviews of shows that open in the West End and critics say things like “the well-drilled cast” like it was an army or something. It’s just rare that they’re taken seriously. And I saw a niche in the market. I think that if I was in New York I’d be one of 500 people trying this, while here in London I’m maybe one in half a dozen.
RC: What other projects are racing around in your head?
RJ: I run a little production company and we're working on several things, including a show called Tick Tick Boom by the guy who wrote Rent. That could happen late this year or early next year. There’s also a show called Elliott Ness in Cleveland that I’m working on with Hal Prince’s office in New York. He’s only the biggest musical theatre director in the world and I’m helping his office assemble a production here in London. So it’s thrilling. But as with all freelance jobs you can’t predict too far into the future.
RC: Are there any pet projects?
RJ: Well the most unbelievable thing I’m working on is a musical based on Reanimator, which is one of the most fantastic horror films of the 80s. It’ll probably be incredibly bloody and violent, and I don’t know of any other shows with someone that loses his head but still manages to come back and sing a few songs. So that’s been rumbling around in my head for years. I’ve assembled the most amazing composer and lyricist team that they’re going to be huge stars when that show goes up. The goal is to try and do a big environmental production, not in a standard theatre but somewhere where the audience gets quite close and sprayed with blood. It’s not just to shock or titillate, it’s to make people think, "This is the kind of lives we live, where we’re just so callous." Hopefully this show will kind of snap people out of that. Who knows? We’ll see. It’s my mission.
