Take Flight Has Landed!

After 6 weeks of rehearsals 7pm-11pm Monday-Friday and 10am-6pm Saturdays, "Take Flight," a rewritten musical has ended after 2 successful performances. The show was brought to UM Head of BFA Musical Theatre David Williams by Richard Maltby Jr and David Shire. The two are both Tony and Grammy award-winning writers and directors over their 6 decades in the industry. They have been working on Take Flight for the past 20 years, and decided to give it one more go with a reimagined script, now completely sung-through.

I was brought on the project at the end of the semester, when David Williams asked me to Assistant Direct the production. I immediately said yes. When else would I get to create a reimagined musical with Tony-winning writers at a beautiful museum during college? Probably never. So I took it, and the experience has been nothing short of special. The process has been learning brand-new music, and directing scenes that have never been directed before. I became a wearer of many hats, creating more aspects of the production like the logo on the left, used for the poster. I also got to source props for the production including antique planes and broken bicycle chains. I got to direct a couple scenes by myself which was such a rewarding experience.

Take Flight Premiered at the Perez Art Museum of Miami in a beautiful space. The original writer, Richard Maltby Jr, was in attendance and now thinks the production deserves to go further. That may be to Broadway or to more Museums, but either way it is incredible to say I was at the catalyst for expanding the show. This will forever be a memory and show that stays with me due to all the unique experiences it brought.