This Machine Creates Peace

FUTURITY at HERE by Sam Hough

Dear Friends, Family, and Readers,

Since 2007 I've been working on a musical called FUTURITY. Some of you have seen it and many of you have heard me yammering on about it. In a few months it will World Premiere and run for 5 weeks at American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, MA. This is a HUMUNGOUS deal for me, my band, and everyone that's been working on the project all these years.

The musical is about a soldier in the Civil War who tries to invent a steam-powered mechanical brain, which, through its great intelligence, can solve all of humanities problems. The most pressing of these problems, from his perspective, is war itself. In the musical he proposes to invent a "Machine that creates peace." The central question of the piece is whether or not our imaginations can ultimately devise a more humane and peaceful society. It calls into question the role that we all have in designing the future we will inhabit. I think, and hope, that all of our imaginations working together could create a better and more peaceful world than we have now. And I hope that this musical helps to enliven that conversation.

We are currently in the process of recording all of the music I've written for the show (17 songs) into an album that will be pressed to Vinyl and CD. If you are interested in the the piece and would like to support us you can pre-order the album HERE. It is HUGELY helpful to pre-order because otherwise the entire bill for recording and pressing gets put on credit (boo). And just fifteen bucks gets you the album!

Follow the link to watch the Official Trailer and Pre-order: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thelisps/futurity-the-album

Thanks so much for reading. I hope you are well and I'd love to hear from you all.

Hugs and kisses,

César

Ontology of vibration: economics, music and number

Photo Cred

This is a podcast by Marcus Schmickler

"Is it possible to approach developments in music by its relationships with money? Can we gain insight into societies by means of their relationship to music? Music serves as a mirror, as a prophecy for society because it reflects developments faster than anything that materializes. 

There is an obvious simultaneity between music and economical developments, between music and mathematics and between mathematical and economical relationships. How better could we navigate through these dichotomies than through number, their common foundation? Ultimately, while we look at the connections between both number and music, how does music and its matter, frequency, correspond to (an ontology of) number? This mix revises some of the more recent musical works explicitly drawing from mathematics and number."

Listen HERE
Pdf HERE

List of Sci-Fi Musicals, Operas and Plays

photo of Via Galactica by John Michael Cox

Musicals:

Rocky Horror Show by Richard O'Brien (1972)
Via Galactica by Christopher Gore, Judith Ross and Galt MacDermot (1972)
Time by Dave Clark, David Soames, Jeff Daniels, and David Pomeranz (1986)
Starmites by Barry Keating and Stuart Ross (1987)
Return to the Forbidden Planet by Bob Carlton (1989)
Metropolis by Joe Brooks and Dusty Hughes (1989/2002)
Superbia by Jonathan Larson (1989)
Weird Romance by Alan Menken with David Spencer and Alan Brennert (1992)
Saucy Jack and the Space Vixens by Charlotte Mann, Michael Cridler, Jonathan Croose and Robert Forrest (1995)
Escape from Pterodactyl Island by Peter Charles Morris, Michael Jeffrey and Phillip George (1999)
Area 51 by Noel Katz and Tom Carrozza (2000)
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Richard and Robert Sherman and Jeremy Sams (2002)
We Will Rock You by Ben Elton, Brian May and Roger Taylor (2002)
The Last Starfighter by Skip Kennon and Fred Landau (2004)
The Brain from Planet X by David Wechter and Bruce Kimmel (2006)

Futurity by The Lisps, César Alvarez and Molly Rice (2012)

Operas:

Repo! The Genetic Opera (Original Stage Version) by Darren Smith and Terrance Zdunich (2002)

Death and the Powers: A Robot Opera by Todd Machover (2010)

Plays:
R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) by Karel Capek (1921)
Back to Methuselah by George Bernard Shaw (1921)
Unseen Hand by Sam Shepard (1969)
Illuminatus! Trilogy adpated by Ken Campbell (1976)
Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury (1977)
The Warp (22 Hour Play) by Neil Oram (1978)
Starstruck by Elaine Lee, Susan Norfleet Lee and Dale Place (1980)

Lunacy by Patricia Weaver Francisco (1984)
Henceforward... by Alan Ayckbourn (1987)
Comic Potential by Alan Ayckbourn (1988)
Darkside by Ken Jones (1988)
Dirk adapted by James Goss and Arvind Ethan David (1995)
A Number by Caryl Churchill (2004)
D is for Dog by Katie Polebaum, Sean T. Cawelti and Rogue Artists Ensemble (2004)
Coyote Trilogy by Don Elwell (2006)
Boom by Peter Sinn Nachtreib (2008)
Untitled Mars by Jay Scheib (2008)
Space//Space by Banana Bag and Bodice (2009)
Godlight Theatre Company's adaptations of 1984, Farenheit 451, A Clockwork Orange, and Slaughterhouse 5  (1994-2009)
What We Once Felt by Anne Marie Healy (2009)
Bellona: Destroyer of Cities by Jay Scheib (2010)
The North Plan by Jason Wells (2010)
Baby Universe: A Puppet Odyssey by Wakka Wakka (2010)
Futura by Jordan Harrison (2010)
The Annihilation Point by Berserker Residents (2010)

Samuel and Alasdair: A Personal History of the Robot War by Mad Ones (2010)
Galactic Girl by Jon Hoche (2011)
The Hallway Trilogy Part Three: Nursing by Adam Rapp (2011)
How to live Safely in a Science Fiction Universe adapted by Matt Slaybaugh and Jennifer Fawcett (2011)
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? adapted by Untitled Theater Company 61 (2011)
Frankenstein by Nick Dear (2011)
World of Wires by Jay Scheib (2012)

This is by no means a complete list, just a sample based on some basic internet research. These are works which as far as I can tell have been published, or had at least one full production/run at a regional or off-broadway theater. (there are a few that were off-off Broadway). I left off plays which are closer to the genre of horror, fantasy, or which deal primarily in the super-natural (eg Little Shop of Horrors, Spider Man, etc.) I don't have anything against horror, fantasy, or comic book genres they are just not what I'm currently investigating. If you know of other works that fit the criteria please post in the comments. I will try and update.

Here is the definition of Science Fiction I am using (from Wikipedia):

Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary that is more or less plausible (or at least non-supernatural) content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities. Exploring the consequences of scientific innovations is one purpose of science fiction...Science fiction is largely based on writing rationally about alternative possible worlds or futures. It is similar to, but differs from fantasy in that, within the context of the story, its imaginary elements are largely possible within scientifically established or scientifically postulated laws of nature (though some elements in a story might still be pure imaginative speculation).

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