Melissa Faith Hart's SCARLET LETTER....THE MUSICAL Makes World Premiere at PACE, Now thru 9/16

A new work, Scarlet Letter…the Musical, comes to the Parker Arts, Culture and Events (PACE) Center tonight, Sept. 13-16.

Placed in puritan Boston in 1642, this musical adaptation of Nathanial Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter” depicts the story of a sinful choice of two unrequited lovers, and how they disrupted a utopian society and its’ religious expectations. Audiences today will appreciate this tale of a repressed society rocked by secrets, fear and hypocrisy.

Created by Colorado resident Melissa Faith Hart, Scarlet Letter...the Musical is designed to inspire emotion, motivate change and challenge a culture to rise above. Hart first had the idea to compose a musical based on the classic novel at age 19 while attending college in Boston. She drew on her training as a musician and performer as well as her love of Broadway to write more than three dozen original songs for the musical. “Be Still My Child” was the very first song for what has now become a full-fledged musical.

“‘Scarlet Letter’ became an obvious choice to communicate a story of grace through failure, and nothing speaks louder to the soul than music,” said Hart. “If an encouraging phrase married to a beautiful melody inspires human growth in one soul, then I have fulfilled my life’s purpose with this musical.”

With her diverse background as an actress and a director, Hart is thrilled to once again be involved in theater to introduce the world to a new musical, telling a timeless classic tale.

Scarlet Letter…the Musical is Hart’s life’s opus. As a career-driven woman who works by day at Xerox Corporation and by night in the theater and music world, she is also a mother and in many ways understands Hester’s road and drive for her daughter Pearl. “The human condition often opts to place others or believes into a box and stamp that box with a letter. My journey is to utilize Hawthorne’s convictions through music to challenge lives to live beyond the box, to seek to understand rather than judge,” said Hart.

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel “The Scarlet Letter” was written in 1850 and set in 1642. But its story of love and loss, judgment and redemption, courage and cowardice is timeless. Now, a new adaptation brings Hawthorne’s message – and his unforgettable characters Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale – to the stage in Scarlet Letter…the Musical.

Directed by the renowned Wayne Kennedy and orchestrated by Broadway veteran Mitch Samu, the show stars Erik Bryan, Lisa Finnerty, Colin Alexander, Thadd Krueger, Brian Murray, Sue Leiser and Mark Middlebrooks and introduces Anna Landsdon and Lexi Lubotsky. Another Broadway veteran, Candy Brown, is the choreographer.

Tickets for start at $18 at www.PACEcenteronline.org, 303.805.6800 and the PACE Center Box Office at 20000 Pikes Peak Ave. in downtown Parker.

Located in historic downtown Parker, the PACE Center is home to a 536-seat theater, 250-seat amphitheater, art gallery, event room, dance studio, culinary kitchen and several classrooms. PACE provides a wide variety of local, regional, national and international cultural, arts, scientific and educational programming to the region and serves as a rental venue for community, business and social events.

More Articles by This Author...