MUSIC DIRECTION
The orchestra is the heartbeat of the show and I have been a conductor and director of music for both community music ensembles, professional chamber music groups, stage, pop and rock music, and sacred music. His work centers around promoting a trusting and encouraging environment for musicians of all skill levels to thrive and has a special passion for community music making. I’ve served as musical director for more than 20 stage productions and musical revues, and has most notably worked with organizations such as Heart Music (Athens, GA), served as maestro for Kishi Bashi at the Georgia Theatre, and established performance learning programs including Hit The Pit as musical director at Athens Creative Theatre, and the Music Leadership Program in his time with The Bridge Community Church (formerly Young Harris UMC).
Storytelling through music
Fostering safe, and welcoming spaces for musicians of all abilities to collaborate
SELECT MUSICAL PROJECTS
Hunchback of Notre Dame: In Concert
Athens Musical Theatre Orchestra 2019
In 2019 I launched a brand new theatre program with Athens Creative Theatre called the Athens Musical Theatre Orchestra also known as the AMTO. The program featured a concert production of a full length musical theatre production offering participants from choral and instrumental backgrounds the opportunity to explore musical theatre and create a bridge from classical music to the theatrical stage. The production featured a combined chorus and orchestra of more than 70 individuals.
The production was housed in a lovely stage design showcasing oversized buttresses suspended from the fly system to create a sense of a cathedral space. The production also included a stage thrust built out over the existing orchestra pit to provide additional floor space for actors to perform on and to bring the action out into the audience.
Tuck Everlasting: In Concert
Athens Musical Theatre Orchestra 2023
The heartwarming story of Winnie Foster took the stage in 2023 in the form of a concert production. The orchestra situated on risers upstage with an abstract canopy positioned overhead to give the sense of the woods around Treegap. The concert was enhanced with lightly furnished scenes that helped to solidify the transitions from scene to scene. The concert was enhanced with video projections to help illustrate the stories of the the songs and the final dream sequence.
Live Art ‘22
Musical Revue 2022
A contemporary musical revue exploring romantic attraction across the spectrum of sexual orientation. To elicit a sense of the unapologetic and visibility of love in all its shapes ans forms a graffiti motif comprised of symbols and text from the lyrics of the songs was selected to encapsulate the action. The revue featured a small cast of 12 and a chamber ensemble with accompaniments arranged by myself. The actors portrayed a range of experiences through song exploring falling in love, heartbreak, infatuation, loss of a loved one, unrequited love, and what it means to love oneself.
Oh, Kay! In Concert
Athens Musical Theatre Orchestra 2024
A 1926 musical romp with charming tunes by George Gershwin in a concert setting. The scenes were lightly blocked and choreographed to give motion and life to this time capsule comedy with a cast and orchestra of just over 30. The production took place in front of a dynamic jazz era inspired bandstand with the band acting as the backdrop for the concert.
