Musical Theatre Radio presents "Be Our Guest"

‘Nun the Wiser’ is an irreverent new musical from the mind of Kat Carson. It is a satirical look at an imagined past where Italian nuns sing gospel music and dream of fame. It focusses on the lives of seven musical nuns. On the surface, they appear devout and ordinary, but beneath that exterior lies a world of interpersonal relationships, conflicts, love, and repressed emotion. Within the convent, the only permitted form of artistic expression is composing and performing religious music.

Their lives are thrown into turmoil when the famous composer Antonio Vivaldi comes to hear their compositions. As a man, he has the power to change their lives and introduce their music to the outside world. The nuns ask Mr. Vivaldi to review their own works, but what will he make of their explicit writings about love and desire?

Drawing on her extensive work on the music of the 17th and 18th centuries, and on her experiences in an all female education system, Kat has used the genre of musical theatre to examine LGBTQIA issues and to draw a picture of womanhood that is both funny and challenging. The nuns in the story are people first and foremost, and have their own dreams, lives, and troubles. The musical explores issues of sexual identity, living within a patriarchal society, and a love of music through the absurd lens of nuns in an 18th century convent.

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Writer, composer, and producer T.J. Armand announces the release of Happy Hour Blues – Volume 2 (Demo Sessions), the latest chapter in his three-volume recording project exploring queer life, immigration, and identity through the lens of New York City nightlife.

Happy Hour Blues is a multidisciplinary project anchored by a developing musical that follows Adam, a queer immigrant navigating love, exile, and belonging inside a country-themed gay bar in Hell’s Kitchen. Conceived during the isolation and cultural upheaval of the pandemic, the project introduces a vivid ensemble of characters shaped by longing, survival, and chosen family — including the bar’s sharp-witted female bartender, a role Armand is developing with Tony Award nominee Mary Bridget Davies in mind, known for her electrifying portrayal of Janis Joplin.

With the release of Volume 2, Armand expands the sonic and emotional scope of the project, further defining its Blues Rock, Roots, and Americana direction while deepening the world introduced in Volume 1.

A QUEER + IMMIGRANT AMERICANA STORY BORN IN ASTORIA

The Happy Hour Blues project was conceived in Astoria, where Armand wrote during the height of the pandemic. What began as private late-night notes and lyrical sketches evolved into a larger narrative shaped by Armand’s interest in blending queer life with country-esque storytelling. The material naturally gravitated toward the raw emotional language of Blues Rock, Roots, and Americana.

The companion book, Happy Hour Blues: Lyrics, Notes & Reflections, contains more than fifty lyrics, notes, and reflections that outline the world of Adam and the bar’s community. Core themes include: queer life and nightlife culture, immigration and self-reinvention, exile and the search for home, chosen family, New York City as both refuge and pressure cooker

The book is complemented by street photography from Astoria and Manhattan, grounding the project in the visual textures of the city that shaped it.

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THE RECORDINGS: A THREE-VOLUME SOUNDTRACK TO THE STORY

The recording project unfolds as a three-volume series of demo sessions that chart the evolution of Happy Hour Blues:

•Volume 1 introduced the project’s musical and lyrical foundation, featuring early demos created with the assistance of AI as part of the development process.

•Volume 2, released today, builds on that foundation, expanding the emotional palette and further defining the project’s Blues Rock / Roots identity.

•Volume 3 will follow in Spring 2026, completing the demo-session trilogy.

Together, the albums and book form the first complete expression of the Happy Hour Blues universe — a world that will continue to evolve as the musical develops around Adam’s journey.

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ABOUT T.J. ARMAND

T.J. Armand is a Turkish-American writer, composer, and producer based in New York City. A Berklee College of Music scholarship recipient and protégé of Arif Mardin, Armand’s two-decade career spans songwriting, global beats, concert production, and theatrical storytelling.

He has produced concerts for Chaka Khan and The Manhattan Transfer, and produced albums for The Queen’s Six and Tony Award nominee Mary Bridget Davies. Along with his partner Carl H. Paiva, Armand was an investing producer on Broadway productions including Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 starring Josh Groban and Stephen Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along.

His original work frequently explores queer identity, immigration, and the cultural pulse of New York City — themes that anchor Happy Hour Blues.

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BOOK & MUSIC AVAILABILITY

Happy Hour Blues: Lyrics, Notes & Reflections

Paperback available now on Amazon.

Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0G5V6SQ7T?ref_=pe_93986420_774957520&dplnkId=370a7816-ff8f-4a69-a5af-b048c2f2a09d&nodl=1

Happy Hour Blues — Volumes 1 & 2 (Demo Sessions)

Streaming on Spotify, Apple Music, and all major platforms.

CENTER STAGE RECORDS has announced the release of The Lightning Thief: Original London Cast Recording on CD today, Friday, December 12. The album is also available in streaming and digital formats. This dynamic musical adaptation of Rick Riordan’s bestselling The Lightning Thief has a book by Joe Tracz (Be More Chill) and music and lyrics by Rob Rokicki (Monstersongs). Presenting the show in its most complete form to date, the new album features 15 minutes of musical material not on the original cast recording. The album brings to life the recent record-breaking West End production at The Other Palace, directed and choreographed by Lizzi Gee (Groundhog Day) and presented by Bill Kenwright Ltd and Paul Taylor-Mills. The new album reflects the updated orchestrations and arrangements first introduced on tour and Broadway but never previously recorded, in addition to cut material restored for the London run, expanded vocal moments, and a larger ensemble. The Lightning Thief cast recording is produced by Michael Croiter, Rob Rokicki, and Ben McQuigg. Stream or download the digital album or order the CD at orcd.co/lightningthief.

In a giant endless airport where souls await their final departure, Iris has been granted the rare opportunity to return to earth and live another life. Before she can return, she must choose which life she would like to live next. Live each night, audience members will determine Iris’s journey by selecting 8 acts of 20 to be performed in the order they are selected– meaning every night is a completely unique performance! 

Kevin McLachlan was born and raised in Whitehorse, Yukon and began performing at a very young age. 
After perfecting the fake cry to get his older brother in trouble, and practicing his fight moves against imaginary armies, he soon started pursuing it in a more formal setting and began getting involved in high school musicals. 
A proud graduate of Whitehorse's MAD (Music, Art, and Drama) program and a former member of the Yukon's longest running Vaudeville Show "Frantic Follies", he left Whitehorse and studied Music Theatre Performance at Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario where he received his bachelor's degree in Music Theatre Performance with honours.
Since then Kevin has been performing across Canada in various musicals, plays, and touring shows. 
Kevin spent three seasons at the Charlottetown Festival as part of the Confederation Centre of the Arts Young Company, and two seasons on Vancouver Island performing at the Chemainus Theatre Festival. He also completed a season at the Stratford Festival, and is currently in his 6th season at the Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the-lake Ontario.
​Maybe one day he'll even have a permanent address.Yukon born, Calvin Laveck is an enthusiastic vaudeville performer who graduated from the Music Theatre Department at Sheridan College. Stage credits include: Spring Awakening, Chicago, Merrily We Roll Along (Sheridan Theatre); Leading Singer (Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines); Dogtown (Nakai); Million Dollar Quartet (Magnus Theatre); Once (Neptune Theatre); Million Dollar Quartet (Thousand Islands Playhouse); Million Dollar Quartet (Sudbury Theatre Centre)

Kevin Wong is a composer-lyricist, singer/musician, and dramaturg. His musicals include: Recurring John: A Song Cycle; STAR!(ving): A Collection of Songs; Polly Peel (with Julie Tepperman); Out of Stock; Drama 101 (with Steven Gallagher); In Real Life (with Nick Green); Believers (with Ali Joy Richardson), Take Me Back (with Amir Haidar); and Soft Magical Tofu Boys. Kevin streams online concerts weekly on the streaming service Twitch (twitch.tv/kevinywong).

He is a member of the vocal group Asian Riffing Trio (with Chris Tsujiuchi and Colin Asuncion), is currently part-time faculty at Sheridan College, and is a three-time winner of the Playwrights Guild of Canada’s Tom Hendry Dan School of Drama & Music Award for New Musical. As of 2023, he is the Creative Lead on the Musical Stage Company’s UnCovered concert series.

Most recently, he can be heard on his albums Small Ways to Move and Covers (available on streaming services everywhere).Amir Haidar is a PhD student at the Centre for Drama, Theatre and Performance Studies. Hailing from Lebanon, Amir has enjoyed performing since his inception, which led him to be a part of several theatrical productions, workshops and concerts in and around the country before he earned his BA in Mathematics from the American University of Beirut. He moved to Canada in 2009, earned his BFA in Music Theatre from Sheridan College. Since graduating, he has been working as an actor in Canada, performing in such works as Sweeney Todd, Rent and Oklahoma!, working with many theatre companies like Talk is Free Theatre, YPT and he was most recently a cast member of the Toronto production of Mirvish’s Come From Away. 

This new musical explores recovery from opioid addiction within a family and asks, does one moment define a life? Come to the public reading so you can join the workshop process and help us bring this show to life!

This challenging drama about relationships, within families and with ourselves is a deep dive into the effects of trauma, opioid addiction, and a journey towards renewed life. Sarah, a recovering addict, grapples with her past as she strives to reconnect with her estranged teenage daughter, her own mother, and walk a path towards healing.

MICHAEL COLBY is the librettist/lyricist of such musicals as CHARLOTTE SWEET (Drama Desk Award nomination), TALES OF TINSELTOWN, NORTH ATLANTIC (Show Business Award), SLAY IT WITH MUSIC (off-Broadway & London), MRS. McTHING, THEY CHOSE ME!, and LUDLOW LADD. He was chief writer for the Drama Desk Award-winning New Amsterdam Theatre Company and has been a writer for The NY Festival of Song and Theatre By the Blind.

He is the author of the well-received autobiographical book “The Algonquin Kid: Adventures Growing Up at New York’s Legendary Hotel.” Jay Records has released CDs of TALES OF TINSELTOWN, CHARLOTTE SWEET (the complete show), and LUDLOW LADD. DANGEROUS, a musical he co-wrote, has recently been optioned for Broadway.

Michael wrote continuity for two benefits at the 92nd Street Y: STANDING OVATIONS (starring Carol Channing, Nell Carter, Elaine Stritch, Leslie Uggams, and other great ladies of the theatre) and THE LONGEST RUNNING SHOW ON BROADWAY (a tribute to Maurice Levine, hosted by Angela Lansbury). He also wrote STEPHEN SCHWARTZ: A MUSICAL CELEBRATION, a benefit for the Directors Company, starring Betty Buckley, Paul Shaffer, Kathy Najimi, et al.

He created special material for ANIMAL CRACKERS (Paper Mill Playhouse/Goodspeed), lyrics for MEESTER AMERIKA (The Garage Theatre, NJ) and THE HUMAN HEART (at Marymount Manhattan College), and the narration for THE MAYOR MUSICALS, a benefit for Musicals In Concert hosted by Sheldon Harnick. Among the personalities for whom Mr. Colby has written material are Linda Lavin, Tony Randall, Tovah Feldshuh, Andrea McArdle, Robert Cuccioli, Savion Glover, Dina Merrill, Susan Stroman, Michael Feinstein, Natalie Douglas, Jack Gilford, Sharon McNight, Tom Wopat, Tony Yazbeck, Kristin Chenoweth, Bruce Adler, Lainie Kazan, Jane Powell, Julie Wilson, Alison Fraser, Donna McKechnie, & Cicely Tyson.

Michael’s movie credits include writing the title song for the film HEART OF THE BEHOLDER.

He currently serves as Vice President of the acclaimed off-Broadway company, Urban Stages. There, he has written, produced, and often hosted annual benefits for their Winter Rhythms series.  These include: The Algonquin Kid, Ludlow Ladd in Concert, Other Lives: The Story Songs of Michael Colby (also an album from JAY Records), The Algonquin Retrospective (Nights at the Algonquin and Created at the Algonquin), Holiday Regards (MAC Award nomination), and the upcoming Cast of Characters.

A member of BMI and the Dramatists Guild, Michael has a BA in English from Northwestern University and an MA in Drama from NYU. He lives in Metuchen, NJ with his wife Andrea.

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Route 66

Music - Fred Stark

Lyrics - William Squier

Book - William Squier & Jerold Goldstein

 Route 66 is a musical romantic comedy about a charmingly neurotic freelance journalist from Chicago and a laid-back cowboy photographer from Arizona that team up to do a magazine piece about the historic old highway. In the process of rediscovering America, they fall in love with one another --- and with all the colorful characters they meet along the way. The show sports a spirited country/pop score and featured roles for a small ensemble of strong actor/ singers. Route 66 recently had it's World Premiere at The Depot Theatre and a 7 week run at Circa 21 Dinner Playhouse.

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Camelton

Twenty years ago, Award-winning musical theatre writer Stephen Cole met his first camel...and he hasn’t been the same since. Stephen tells his hilarious story of writing a musical for the Emir of Qatar. Picture this! Two Brooklyn Jews, some Middle Eastern producers, flying carpets, Croatian acrobats, Russian ballet dancers, an Italian director, the desert, camels (a lot of camels!) and, of course, music. You will laugh and you will cry (from laughing) in this outrageous, once-in-a-lifetime, unbelievable-but-true tale of how Stephen and his collaborator wrote the first American Musical to premiere in the Middle East.Ticket Info Here