Williamstown Composer Premieres Poe Musical at NY Fringe Festival

Williamstown, MA - Williamstown native Sarah Hirsch, a 2005 graduate of Mt. Greylock Regional High School and a member of the class of 2009 at Yale University, is excited to announce the premiere of "Usher" a musical based on Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Fall of the House of Usher," for which she composed the score and Yale classmate Molly Fox wrote the book and lyrics, at the New York International Fringe Festival this August. The show was first presented this past February at Yale and the NYC production will feature an all-Yale cast and a professional production team.

Poe’s short story comes to life in this haunting musical adaptation. The House of Usher is home to the dark secrets of a dying family. The only remnants of the Usher clan are artist James Cleary’s childhood love Madeline and her twin brother Roderick, both of whom suffer from a mysterious inherited illness. After a long absence, James returns to the house, only to discover a sinister vein running through the Usher line. His discovery rocks the house to its very foundation and makes for a spectacular fall.

"Usher" is directed by Becca Wolff (Yale School of Drama) and music-directed by Brian Valencia (Yale School of Drama).

Performance dates/times:

Thursday August 14th, 10 pm
Sunday August 17th, 4:15 pm
Tuesday August 19th, 4:30 pm
Wednesday August 20th, 7 pm
Friday August 22nd, 10pm

The show runs about 2 hours. The venue is the 500-seat Michael Schimmel Center for the Arts at Pace University (in Lower Manhattan, on Spruce Street).

Tickets cost $15 (you can go to www.fringenyc.org to find out how to order them).

You can also visit www.usherthemusical.com for more information about the show and its production at the Fringe Festival.

Comments

[ronald petrie]

This is THE play to see at the Fringe Festival in NYC now...the music is touching and beautiful and the lyrics or meaningful, and so thoughtful....the efffect is a very moving and beautiful production...far better than I expected ....I suspect this play wil go on long past the Fringe!