'- I was working at home in the studio at Hadeland, and got the idea to make a Christmas musical, says composer Tor Ingar Jakobsen. Now the musical "Time of Nick" is ready to be staged on Broadway.
/ 05/09/2017 / Willy MartinsenAll photos: private, text: Willy Martinsen
It takes more than artistic quality to get a musical on Broadway. It takes money. A lot of money.
– Broadway stages are privately run, so investors and producers need to be involved in the projects in order for plays to be staged there. We are talking about large sums of money. Our musical will cost up to 100 million kroner, says Tor Ingar Jakobsen, and it sounds as if he himself thinks it is outrageous stuff.
Investors on view in September
Tor Ingar & Co. has already secured a handful of investors, but more money is needed. To raise the remaining dollars, "Time of Nick" will be shown in a closed performance on September 15th in "The Big Apple." There will be wealthy producers and investors in the audience, and Tor Ingar's goal is to convince them that the musical has great commercial potential.
– The moment of truth is approaching, and those of us who have been working on this for so long are very excited now. We had a screening in North Carolina last fall, and one in Oslo with help from Musikkteaterforum. We have received very good feedback, both from established producers and Broadway legends. Now we hope that we will receive the same feedback after the screening on September 15th.
Skype, Facebook and travel
It's a long way from Hadeland to Broadway. From the writing room and studio of the artist collective Glasslåven in Hadeland, Tor Ingar began 3-4 years ago to take seriously the ideas he had had about combining music and storytelling in the form of a Christmas musical.
– I find the stories behind mythical characters like Santa Claus fascinating. After some research online, I came across a book called “Nicholaus Clause: The Story of Young Santa”. I contacted the authors and got permission to write a musical based on it. Then Hanne Brincker and Ketil Kolstad, who have extensive experience writing for the theatre, began to create a script inspired by the book, says Tor Ingar.
But scripts are one thing, lyrics are another:
– I have written music for a New York-based musical before as well (“Under her hat”, editor's note), and through my American contacts we came into contact with Abraham Tetenbaum, who joined us to write the lyrics.
With the team in place, the work of putting together music, script and lyrics began. With Tor Ingar living in Hadeland, scriptwriters in Kongsberg and Abraham Tetenbaum in New York, there has been a lot of working via Skype and Facebook. But there have also been many trips to America for Tor Ingar, even though he, with his family and two small children, tries to be at home as much as possible.
– Along the way, we have had 4-5 workshops with singers in New York. We also had a workshop in Oslo under the auspices of Musikkteaterforum last fall. It resulted in a screening of selected scenes, where American collaborators flew over to see. It was really nice to be able to have something here at home too, so I would like to give a big thank you to Musikkteaterforum for making this possible, he says.
- A musical song must drive an action
The musical genre is easily recognizable. Tor Ingar, who is a trained jazz pianist and has also previously written pop and country songs with songwriters in Nashville, summarizes the most important characteristics:
– In a pop song, you might sing that you are heartbroken, to take a somewhat banal example, but you typically have just as much heartbreak at the end of the song as at the beginning. In a musical song, the situation should either worsen or improve during the course of the song. The plot should be driven forward. The music can be diverse in musicals, from rap to big band to more typical Disney-like music. The name “Broadway” also gives some associations.
– But there are similarities between the music for "Time of Nick" and, for example, Alan Menken, who has written a lot for Disney?
– Sure, and part of the initial considerations was where we should go musically. This is going to be a family show, and it was natural to draw some inspiration from the Disney musicals. So people like Alan Menken and Steven Schwartz have definitely been inspirations.
– Regardless of how the screening in New York on September 15th goes, you have proven that the path from a small studio in Hadeland to Broadway is within reach. Do you have any good advice for other aspiring musical composers?
– The most important thing is to gain the knowledge of composing in this genre. Find someone who likes the same thing as you, and work with them. Cultivate the genre, study and analyze a lot. Get friends and acquaintances to try out the songs on the living room floor. Knead it up from paper. Feel free to also join workshops arranged by Musikkteaterforum or “musicals unplugged” events in Oslo, where new material is presented from people who write theater music. Be active in the community, and perhaps also on online forums for musicals. And although I haven’t done it myself, there are also musical festivals in New York that you can sign up for. That may be one place to start, but there are so many paths, he says.
Whitney Houston's keyboardist
– And finally: have you had any particularly funny episodes while working on "Time of Nick"?
– In the 90s I played in a cover band in Gjøvik, and then I sat and picked the keyboards on songs by Whitney Houston, among others. At the closed screening in New York in a couple of weeks, there is a lady named Bette Sussmann who will play the keyboards. And it was Sussman who played the keyboards on the Whitney Houston recordings that I sat and picked. It is a little extra fun that she will now play my songs, and I will tell her that when I meet her soon, chuckles Tor Ingar.
We wish Tor Ingar the best of luck, and in the meantime you can listen to the songs yourself on the website. www.timeofnick.com. (link, opens in new window)