Singing On Through Tomorrows and Yesterdays

Singing On Through Tomorrows and Yesterdays

Flourish Productions and the songs of Matthew Robinson are explored by Coral Drouyn.

When Sing On Through Tomorrow was first produced in 2011, Catherine Langley, a twenty-year-old aspiring performer, sent a fan message to Matthew Robinson, composer and star, via Facebook. Now, five years older and a producer with her own company Flourish Productions, is about to present a new production of the show, with a whole new cast.

“Matthew’s musical is wonderfully lyrical and beautiful to sing,” Catherine says, and she should know because she started her career as a singer. Catherine saw a niche in the market in presenting revues featuring the songbooks of great composers and lyrics.

“This is the first time we have presented a fully formed show, that has already had a production” she explains, “and it’s a perfect fit for Flourish, so we’re very excited.” The show, which opens tonight at Chapel off Chapel, is directed by Stephen Wheat who, not-so-coincidentally, has been a friend of the composer’s since they were WAAPA together.

“I think…I hope….I have a good idea of Matthew’s intent with each of the songs, and I’m familiar with all of them. And I also know what Catherine expects because I was in the cast of her last show. We’ve been lucky to get a terrific cast of professionals too, which makes the whole process so much more enjoyable.”

The cast - Eddie Grey, Genevieve Kingsford, Alana Tranter and Joe Kosky - have a wealth of experience. Eddie has been playing Boq in Wicked; Genevieve Kingsford is currently with The Australian Opera Company and trained at the London School of Musical Theatre; Alana Tranter has just completed a season in Georgy Girl and Joe Kosky is part of the cast of the forthcoming Tony Award winning production of Kinky Boots which opens in Melbourne in October. And with the super experienced Lucy O’Brien as Musical Director, the cast is in safe hands musically.

But, for Australians, the real star is Matthew Lee Robinson’s songbook, and he himself, back in Australia from his current home base in New York, plans to be there tonight for the opening. Given that Robinson is the most likely Australian composer to crack the astonishing Broadway market with a show entirely of his own making (music/lyrics/book) it’s a joy to know that he will share tonight’s opening with the rest of us.

So what makes this show different, and how did it come into being? Matthew himself tells the story.

“After Metro Street was produced and picked up quite a lot of awards, Director Neil Gooding approached me. He said he was tired of people auditioning often using little known songs from obscure Off Broadway musicals. He had this vision that people should be auditioning using Australian songs, and so we put the revue together from my songbook,” Matt explains. “And I discovered that the style and feel of the songs was very different, depending on my age when I wrote them, and so it seemed that the thread, the idea holding Sing On Through Tomorrow together, was these four people at various stages of their lives, from teens to mid thirties.

All of Matthew’s best songs are there, including “Princess” and “Boyband”, which have indeed become great audition pieces. They are delicious Musical Theatre songs worthy of any stage or composer, including Matthew’s mentor Stephen Schwartz. “I sang Colours of The Wind at an Eisteddfod when I was in my teens,” Matthew explains, “and I know he only wrote the lyrics for that song but it really resonated within me. And I just hoped one day I could write like that.” The mountain climb to reach that pinnacle isn’t over yet but Robinson gets closer every day and the word is spreading. With so much Musical Theatre talent in Australia, what advice does Matthew give to those following him?

“Something I’ve learned in the last ten years especially,” he tells me. “Surround yourself with people who are better than you.”

Playing at Chapel off Chapel from June 21 - 24, 2016.

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