Musicals with Book, Lyrics and/or Direction by David Schechter (Partial List):
Soul DoctorCreated and Developed by David Schechter and Daniel S. WiseBook by Daniel S. Wise Lyrics by David Schechter Music by Shlomo Carlebach Directed by Daniel S. Wise
Slated for Broadway in 2013
New York Theatre Workshop Space Folksbiene Theatre NYC (Directed by David Schechter) Colony Theatre, Miami Parker Playhouse, Ft. Lauderdale, Museum of Jewish History, NYC (Directed by David Schechter) Roundabout Theatre Black Box (Staged Reading Directed by David Schechter)
The true story of Shlomo Carlebach, often called “The Rockstar Rabbi”, told through his
own music. A controversial spiritual leader and composer, Shlomo was instrumental in
reviving the spirit of the Jewish people after WW 2.
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A Letter To Harvey MilkBook by Jerry JamesMusic by Laura Kramer Lyrics by Ellen Schwartz Based on the short story by Leslea Newman Directed and Dramaturged by David Schechter
AWARDS: Winner of Five Top Jury Prizes, including Most Promising Musical,
at the New York Musical Theatre Festival.
Signature Pershing Square Theatre, NYC A surprising letter to the martyred gay politician sparks an unusual friendship between a retired kosher butcher and a young lesbian writing teacher, a relationship influenced by
the ghosts of his feisty late wife and of Harvey Milk himself. The show is both poignant
and laugh out loud funny.
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Hannah Senesh
Written by David Schechter |
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Almost SeptemberBook by David SchechterMusic by Steven Lutvak Lyrics by David Schechter and Steven Lutvak Directed by David Schechter
AWARDS: Winner of Eight Bay Area Critic Circle Awards (including Best Director and
Score) and Seven Dramalogue Awards (including Best Director and Score)
Repertory Theatre of St. Louis Missouri Rep Theatreworks Palo Alto
A sophisticated family musical of whimsy, fantasy and wit.
Gathered in Grandmother’s Victorian attic, six cousins act out The Wind in the Willows, and in the midst of their play, unexpectedly discover what growing up really means. |
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The Jungle BookBook and Lyrics by David Schechter and Barry KeatingMusic by Barry Keating Directed by David Schechter
Commissioned and Produced by TheatreworksUSA
"Schechter’s work is a knock out! An original and inventive treat." – Newsday, NYC Broadway’s New Victory Theatre
A retelling of Kipling’s classic tale, moved to the urban jungle of NYC.
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EsmeraldaMusic and Lyrics by Steven LutvakBook by Kathryn Placzek and David Schechter Directed by David Schechter
National Endowment for the Arts Opera/Music Theatre Grant
"Compelling…the actors move about like a pride of lions." – St. Louis Post-Dispatch Repertory Theatre of St. Louis
A passionate chamber musical rendering of The Hunchback of Notre Dame,
told within the framework of a Catholic mass.
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A Little Night MusicMusic and Lyrics by Stephen SondheimBook by Hugh Wheeler Directed by David Schechter "Schechter’s visionary staging seduces the audience completely into his special world."
– Richmond Times Theatre Virginia
Sondheim’s most romantic show, based on the Ingmar Bergman film Smiles of a Summer
Night.
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BrechtspielText by Bertolt BrechtMusic by Kurt Weill Created by Lynne Greene and David Schechter Directed by David Schechter Peformed by Rita Gardner, KT Sullivan,
Lynne Greene and David Schechter
Cited by the Dramaturg for Brecht’s Berliner Ensemble as one of the two best theatrical Brecht revues seen outside of Germany. The Writer’s Theatre Manhattan Theatre Club (Staged Reading)
A theatre piece constructed of Brecht’s poems, essays and testimony before the House
Un-American Activities Committee, interspersed with Brecht/Weill songs.
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A Talmud TaleBook by David Schechter and Ned Paul GinsburgLyrics by David Schechter Music and Additional Lyrics by Ned Ginsburg Directed by David Schechter
Published by Ben Yehuda Press
JCC of Manhattan, NY JCC of Houston, TX
While preparing for her Bat Mitzvah, a young girl gets swept back in time to ancient
Jerusalem, where she witnesses how a unique May/December romance spawned the
creation of the Talmud, the most important book of commentaries in Judaism.
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The White RoseWritten and Composed by Uto ZimmermannDirected by David Schechter Performed by Lauren Flanigan and Peter Kazaras
American Premiere "Unforgettable. Schechter realizes nothing is more powerful than the imagination" – Omaha News Opera/Omaha
An opera about the martyrdom of Sophie and Hans Scholl two German university
students who formed a secret organization to debunk Nazi anti-semitic propaganda.
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The Diary of One Who VanishedSong Cycle by Leos JanacekLibretto by Ozef Kalda Directed by David Schechter Performed by Lauren Flanigan and Peter Kazaras
Opera/Omaha
An erotic tale of a mysterious love affair.
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RiversCreated and Directed by David SchechterMusical and Vocal Arrangements by Dianne Addams
Commissioned by River Barge Productions
"Brilliant theatre, …an incredibly gifted writer and director" – Watertown Daily Times, NY Clayton Opera House
A musical journey through the songs and mythology of the world’s great rivers.
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The Slick of '76: A Musical CatastropheBook by David SchechterLyrics by Barry Keating and David Schechter Music by Barry Keating Produced by John Burt, River Barge Productions and Save The River. Directed by David Schechter Commissioned by River Barge Productions
The Clayton Opera House, Also performed in boathouses and on barges along the St. Lawrence Seaway.
A serio-comic look at the ecological and human impact of one of the largest inland oil
spills in North American history.
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The Wind In The WillowsBook by David SchechterMusic by Steven Lutvak Lyrics by Steven Lutvak and David Schechter Directed by David Schechter Inaugural production of the newly reconstructed Clayton Opera House
Commissioned by River Barge Productions
The classic children’s story, re-enacted by a group of cousins in their Grandmother’s
Victorian attic on the last night of summer. This is an earlier incarnation of Almost
September.
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Peter PanAdapted from the play by J.M BarrieMusic by Jeffrey Lunden Lyrics by David Schechter Directed by David Schechter
Commissioned and Produced by TheatreworksUSA
Town Hall, NYC and U.S. Tour
The classic tale of the magical boy who wouldn’t grow up, retold as a children’s game, where the children use toys and puppets to help create the fabled Neverland and its motley inhabitants.
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Sundiata: The Lion King of MaliBook by David Schechter and Barbara PasternakLyrics by Scott Davenport Richards, Kirsten Childs and David Schechter Music by Scott Davenport Richards and Kirsten Childs Directed by David Schechter
Commissioned and Produced by TheaterworksUSA
Town Hall, NYC and U.S. Tour
Influenced by traditional African dance, costumes and puppetry, the show is a festive
retelling of the mythic tale from West Africa of the crippled young prince who finds his
strength after being adopted by a pride of lions.
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Just So StoriesBook by Mindy DicksteinLyrics by Helen Chayefsky Music by Brad Alexander Adapted from Rudyard Kipling Directed by David Schechter
Commissioned and Produced by TheatreworksUSA
Town Hall, NYC and U.S. Tour
How the elephant got his trunk, the leopard his spots and the hippo his skin, etc. all
played out in a colorfully designed world inspired by the magical art of Henri Matisse.
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The ButterflyBook and Lyrics by Barbara Zinn KriegerMusic by Charles Greenberg Based on the book by Patricia Polacco Directed by David Schechter
Produced by Making Books Sing
Symphony Space, NYC
A young French girl in the Occupied France of WW2 discovers that her mother has been
hiding a Jewish father and daughter in their attic. She befriends the girl and when the
Nazis start to suspect something, she finds wellsprings of courage she didn’t know she
had.
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The Orphan SingerBook by Barbara Zinn KriegerMusic by Vivaldi Based on the book by Patricia Polacco Directed by David Schechter
Produced by Making Books Sing
Symphony Space, NYC
In old Venice, a young orphan with a golden voice surprisingly becomes the creative
muse for the musical genius, Vivaldi.
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The Upside Down BoyLyrics by Juan Felipe HerreraMusic by Christian Amigo Book and Additional Lyrics by Barbara Zinn Krieger Based on the book by Juan Felipe Herrera Directed by David Schechter
Produced by Making Books Sing
NYC Tour
A young Mexican American is traumatized when his family leaves behind their migrant
farm workers’ life to make a new start in the city.
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Bird WomanWritten by Ric AverillDirected by David Schechter
Produced by Making Books Sing
Queens Theatre in the Park and NYC Tour
The story of Sacagawea, the young Native American translator who accompanied Lewis
and Clark on their epic transcontinental journey. The show uses puppetry by Ralph Lee
and traditional Native American music, dance and ritual.
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Guarding the GardenBook by David SchechterMusic and Lyrics by Margot Stein Directed by David Schechter
Commissioned and Produced by New Legends
Published in Lilith Magazine and "Torah of the Earth: An Anthology" - Jewish Lights Books Northeast U.S. Tour
A revised telling of the Garden of Eden story with the snake and Lilith (Adam’s first
wife) as the heroes, fighting against the ecological destruction of Paradise.
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Jimi and Mr. BBook by David Gonzalez (OBIE award winner)Music and Lyrics by John Foster Directed by David Schechter Commissioned by Empire State Arts Council
The Egg/Center for the Performing Arts, Albany
The Spirit of Leonard Bernstein teaches a teenage rock and roller all about the NY State
performing artists who came before him.
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The Love Song of J. Alfred PrufrockPoem by T.S. EliotAdapted and Directed by David Schechter
Featured in the N.Y. Post Page Six Section
The Open Space, NYC
A dance/music/theatre adaptation of T.S.Eliot’s signature poem.
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East Towards HomeWritten by Billy YalowitzSongs by Woody Guthrie Directed and Dramaturged by David Schechter
Created with a grant from Temple University
Museum of American Jewish History, Philadelphia
A music theatre piece that traces a young man’s struggle to find his place as an artist in
the Left Wing political tradition he was brought up in.
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Paganini (a masque)Written by Robert RudieDirected and Dramaturged by David Schechter
U.S. Tour
A concert/theatre piece about the life of the flamboyantly famous violinist.
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Waking This MorningCreated and Directed by David SchechterPoems by Emily Dickinson, Diane Wakoski, Muriel Rukeyser, Music by Various Composers
Invited to perform at August Moon Festival
The Open Space, NYC
A dance/music/theatre piece using the poetry of female poets to explore the experience of
breaking up with a lover.
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The Seabirds Of Isabella (a daydream)Created and Directed by David SchechterMusic by Bela Bartok
Invited to perform at the New Theatre Festival, Maryland
Baltimore Theatre Project Theatre
Comparing a typical suburban family to an island of birds, this experimental music
theatre piece crosses Bartok’s vibrant 4th string quartet with an episode of The Undersea
World of Jacques Cousteau to produce a surreal and compellingly entertaining event.
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SeenBook by David Schechter and Bill Von HoeneMusic and Lyrics by Bill Von Hoene and David Schechter Directed and Performed by David Schechter
Produced by Wet Rock Productions/ Murphy Cross and Paul Kreppel
Can the most intimate relationship in your life be with a lover you never see (with your
eyes)? The true story of a love affair begun with one lover blindfolded for four months, a
relationship that continues full force after the sudden death of one of the two.
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