Have you ever stayed up nights pondering the life and fate of one Johannes Gutenberg? You know or may not know, he’s the guy who invented the printing press and produced the first copy of the Bible. This all happened way, way back in 1454 and, according to records, only 180 copies were engraved and stamped, with color added by the purchasers. Just 49 remain of this first large-format typographic book printed in Mainz, Germany, with just 42 lines on a page. Moveable type in Korea accounts for the first printed book nearly a century before.
I have always maintained one can write a musical on any topic, from giant ships that hit icebergs to people who successfully and/or fail to assassinate presidents, from ears of corn that like to be shucked to green skinned ogres who live in a swamp. Nothing is beyond immortalization. So why not a musical about Johannes Gutenberg, a literary marvel living and working in 1454?
Thanks to the Ty and Tay Theatre at Cabaret on Main, 597 Main Street, East Haven, from Friday, January 26 at 7 p.m. for four performances to Sunday, January 26 at 2 p.m., you are comically invited to the theatre’s debut performance (as in first ever), to the mostly imaginative journey to the world of Johannes Gutenberg, without benefit of Wikipedia or Google or any historical documents of “Gutenberg! The Musical!” Originally written in 2005 by Scott Brown and Anthony King, it centers on Bud Davenport and Doug Simon who deliberately and determinately want to create a play about this guy named Gutenberg who is the only one in his depressing German town named Schlimmer who can read. One night this inventive lad decides to turn his wine press into a printing press and Bud and Doug find themselves off and running making stuff up, from A to Z, to create a highly fictional version that may or may not have a page or fact of truth.
Bud and Doug want to become producers on Broadway and set about “selling” their concept to any one with money enough to fund it. They stretch their talent and their truth, overlooking the facts as minor in significance. With a limited amount of talent, the pair are forced to play all the cast, using a series of hats with their characters’ names on them and switch the caps like Dr. Seuss’s story about Bartholomew’s 500 hats.
Aiding Gutenberg is his less than brainy but beautiful assistant Helvetica (note the pun on a printing type) and Monk, the villain of the piece, who is determined to foil Johannes in his quest by distorting the Bible verses and destroying the printing press. The new theaters founders Tyler Gay (Ty) and Devont’e Campbell (Tay) will star as Bud and Doug in this musical spoof, singing all the songs and enthusiastically playing all the parts. Their hope and dream is to persuade the producers to fund their crazy project straight to stardom.
These new founders Tay and Ty who have been acting for years are, incredibly, still teenagers in high school and are each working on second playa, “Seussical the Musical” and "The Addams Family.” Fortuitously Ty’s father has aided with financial advice and his mom has experience fashioning dozens of caps. Hats off to Phyllis the amazing pianist and Patrick for artwork.
For tickets ($20 adults, $18 students and seniors)go online at cabaret-on-main.com.
A hearty Bravo and Hats Off to Tay and Ty for their exciting new adventure, and hope they break a leg or three along the way.
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