AUGUST 25, 2010 It has been an exciting summer as we prepare for the world premiere of THE LAST SMOKER IN AMERICA at CATCO. Though we do not officially begin rehearsals with the cast until August 30th, the authors, designers, creative team, and CATCO staff have been hard at work all summer with pre-production planning.Many of us have actually been working on SMOKER for years, guiding this new show through its early developmental stages. Birthing a new musical is often described as being more challenging than birthing a child. I personally have no experience with the latter, but I can attest to the fact that bringing an original work to life is an incredibly gratifying labor of love. Though the development process is not without its twists and turns, I would like to think it’s less painful than childbirth.
SMOKER was last presented as a workshop in the New York Musical Theatre Festival in the fall of 2009. The audience response was excellent, and since then, we have worked tirelessly in developing the show further, constantly making cuts and writing new material. We presented a successful New York reading in May. Subsequently, we’ve spent the summer back-and-forthing on notes, making further revisions, and preparing for the CATCO premiere.
I have recently found myself thinking back to when I first started working on THE LAST SMOKER IN AMERICA in the fall of 2006, and it is exciting to see it finally coming to life in a full production this fall. We look forward to sharing this show with our new friends in Columbus and the greater Ohio area. To our existing fans and followers in New York, it’s only an hour-long flight or a nine-hour road trip to Columbus, so we look forward to seeing you in a few weeks!
