Andrew London and April Phillips combine to create stage musical

Andrew London and April Phillips.

Fundraising is well under way for a new stage musical, writes Wayne Mills.

The performing arts sector is one of only a few to suffer almost 100 per cent loss of revenue since the Covid lockdowns began.

Perhaps surprisingly, Kāpiti is home to New Zealand's fourth highest per capita number involved in the arts and craft sector, so this sudden downturn is likely to be felt even more keenly in the region.

Well-known Otaki-based singer /songwriter Andrew London is one such person affected.

He's spent much of the past decade touring around the country with his trio, playing at live venues where he's attracted a loyal following for his original songs that feature quintessential Kiwi humour.

Not to be discouraged by the brutal economic downturn, and with his typical energy and optimism, London has decided to use the enforced lay-off to co-write a stage musical featuring many of his songs.

He's collaborating on the project with April Phillips, who is one of New Zealand's leading playwrights.

The stage musical is tentatively titled Let's Talk About Me, which is one of London's most requested songs.

The vision is to write and produce a stage musical in which the central storyline will be a conduit to link his songs.

Humour and satire will be the central themes.

Both have previously worked extensively together writing and performing musical tribute shows in theatres and at national jazz festivals.

These include shows like Blue Eyes (a tribute to Frank Sinatra) at Circa Theatre in 2003, The Glory of Gershwin, Unforgettable, and The Retro Pack which had a sold-out season at Circa Theatre in 2019.

The stage musical is budgeted to cost $27,800 for scriptwriting, musical arrangements, set design and construction.

Kapiti-based financial services firm The Edge Business Services, recognising the importance the of performing arts sector to the regional economy, is an enthusiastic supporter of the project and has become a seed sponsor contributing $5000 towards the funding target.

For people interested in helping them to achieve their vision, the pair are using the Boosted crowdfunding platform https://boosted.org.nz/projects/lets-talk-about-me to raise the required funding for the project.

The campaign closes on October 5, and if the target is not reached, then money will be refunded to donors.