​In part two of our special on Metro Theater Company, I chat about the brand new musical Spells of the Sea with director Julia Flood and composer Guinevere Govera.

Discover how the magical new musical transformed from a dorm room quarantine project to a podcast and then became a fully fledged state musical! Hear how the University of Texas facilitated the project, the challenges of creating new work in the age of covid, and how actor-musos helped to solve a tricky problem!

The world premier of Spells of the Sea opens at the Metro Theater Company in St Louis on February 10, 2023. Streaming details will be announced soon. Purchase tickets here!

Julia Flood has directed Digging Up Dessa, The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show, It’s a Wonderful Life, The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus, The Hundred Dresses, Frida Libre, Bud, Not Buddy, Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, And In This Corner: Cassius Clay, Out of the Box, Talkin’ Trash, Afflicted: Daughters of Salem, Unsorted, and Say Something, Do Something! for Metro Theater Company since she moved to St. Louis to become artistic director in February 2014. Julia served on the national board of directors of Theatre for Young Audiences/USA from 2011 to 2019, and brings more than 40 years of experience to her role as artistic director of Metro Theater Company. Learn more at MTC.

Guinevere Govea is an award-winning actress, writer, and composer from Austin, Texas. She is a recent graduate from the University of Texas at Austin, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in theatre and dance as well as a bachelor’s degree in journalism. Guinevere’s first musical, Trash! The Musical, was a semi-finalist for the O’Neil National Musical Theatre Conference in 2021. Her second, Spells of the Sea, won Best Original Script at the B. Iden Payne Awards in Austin. Learn more at www.guineveregovea.com and follow on Instagram.

In the first of two episodes featuring Metro Theater Company in St Louis, host Luisa Lyons chats with Joe Gfaller, MTC's Managing Director.

Tune in to this fun and informative chat to discover:

• Joe’s fascinating journey from high school theatre to working for theatre and opera companies across the United States, 
• How Metro Theater Company fast forwarded their plans for streaming during the pandemic,
• Why and how they have worked to make productions more accessible to young audiences, and,
• Metro Theater Company’s upcoming world premier of new musical Spells of the Sea will be available to stream Feb 16 - March 5, 2023. 

Purchase tickets to Spells of the Sea here. 

Joe Gfaller joined the Metro Theater Company team in 2019. During his tenure to date, Metro Theater Company has seen dramatic growth in both its audience base and its donor base. In partnership with Artistic Director Julia Flood, he has co-led the company through its recent evolutions during the COVID-19 pandemic, from its virtual programming to its safe return to live performances. Prior to joining the MTC team, Joe received national recognition for his work in building young, diverse, and national audiences for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis during his tenure as director of marketing and public relations – and for expanding OTSL’s civic footprint as the producer of the company’s Opera Tastings series, through artist community tours, and the creation and growth of its Engagement + Inclusion Task Force. His career has also included roles with the American Repertory Theater, the Alliance Theater, and 7 Stages, and consulting projects for the National Blues Museum, the Utah Symphony, and the documentary film Flint: The Poisoning of an American City. He has directed over two dozen professional or university productions, including regional premieres by David Mamet, Caryl Churchill, and others. A graduate of Harvard University, he also serves as adjunct faculty at Webster University in the Arts Management and Leadership MFA program. 

Show Links:
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​Filmed Live Musicals is created by Luisa Lyons, an Australian actor, writer, and musician. Luisa holds a Masters in Music Theatre from London's Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and now lives, works, and plays in New York. Learn more at www.luisalyons.com and follow on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.