TAPESTRY is a dramatic operatic musical based on the life and times of Martin Luther, the 16th century Protestant reformer. Though historically accurate, a fresh uniqueness to this theatrical production is really through the dramatization of rarely told joys and sorrows of the reformers. God was indeed working His plan through their intimate relationships with one another during a very tumultuous time in world history.
TAPESTRY DRAMATIC MUSICAL
Premier Performances
August 5 and 7, 2016
at
The First State Bank Center for the Performing Arts
Gainesville, Texas
directed by Shane Studdard and Sunny Yeatts
“My continuing hope is that TAPESTRY will be worthy of future stage performances that perhaps may already have the resources for additional staging effects and projected scenery. To visually bring the audience into the actual historical settings will further enhance this unusual story, while adding an exciting new dimension for our modern audiences.”
I never dreamed that a musical endeavor that began primarily as a learning project in orchestration would transform itself into a “magnum opus” and become a constant companion for ten years. As I began to research Martin Luther I realized how very little I knew of his relentless search to know a personal and loving God despite having grown up in the church. My enthusiasm and fascination grew by leaps and bounds as I began to express, through music and drama, the story behind the monk who turned the world upside down and ushered in the Protestant Reformation with the cry “By faith alone!” A trip to Germany and a walk down the streets of Wittenberg brought a visual inspiration that a dramatic musical production could be brought to realization.
I owe thanks and appreciation to so many for their contributions and encouragement, but especially to Dr. Ovid Young for sharing his wonderful gifts of composition and orchestration through the years...and not growing weary of “just one more Luther piece!” Also, a debt of gratitude is owed to International Dramatic Baritone, Robert McFarland, for his genius in bringing Luther to life with his rich baritone voice in my “make-shift studio”. His support and belief that this endeavor was worth carving out the time from his busy schedule of opera performances was invaluable.