HERE I FALL UP
a new musical folktale
here i fall up, or ( ! ), is a new musical folktale
about a girl navigating her relationships with her sisters, her lover, the earth, and a ghost. With music pulling from folk and jazz, this piece is performed by five actors to play a Girl, her Friend, and her Sisters/Storytellers.
In an abandoned house on a cold shore, a Girl hides from her rambunctious sisters to dream up stories for the weathered walls. When she meets the Friend, she experiences her first love, and invites them into her imaginative worlds. But the Friend hears whispers in the walls. The Girl never thought much of these, but the Friend can’t rest until they know what (or who) they are. The Friend becomes too terrified to stay, but the Girl is too attached to leave.
When the Friend leaves, the Ghost reveals herself to the Girl. They become close, so close that now the Girl never goes home. She devotes her days to completing tasks to break a curse on the Ghost and free her. However, when all of the tasks are complete, the Girl becomes trapped in the house in place of the ghost, and must dig her way out of the collapsing mud underneath.
Inspired by folk stories from many different cultures, the world of this piece is hazy and gloaming, humming with more magic than our own. The air is cold but the people are warm.
In 2019, this piece was first developed as a devised student project at Playwrights Horizons Theater School. In 2021, a concert of this piece was presented as part of PRIDEFEST! at The Tank. In 2023, this piece was presented as part of the final ICE Factory at the New Ohio Theatre.
water i
featuring Sophia Drapeau and Rose Tablizo
here i fall up
“here i fall up is one of the most pure and perfect shows I've seen in a long time. Golison's script is as sweet as morning rain…” -Erin Kahn, StageBuddy
creative team
Writer/Composer: Beth Golison (she/her)
Directors: Annabel Heacock (they/she) and Maiya Pascouche (she/her)
Producer: Cam Pileggi (they/them)
Music Director/Orchestrations/Sound Design: Kyle Brenn (he/him)
Photos:
Natalie Powers (she/her)
Charlie Anderson (they/them)
Stage Management: Grace Zofia Alberti (any pronouns)
Set Design: Jessie Baldinger (she/her)
Costume Design: Max Han (he/him)
Lighting Design: Chris Voegels (he/him)
CAST
Sophia Drapeau (she/her) – Girl
Rose Tablizo (they/them) – Friend*
Samantha Medina Chachra (she/her) – Sister/Storyteller
Lauren Rose Quigley (she/her) – Sister/Storyteller
Gianna Milici (she/her) – Sister/Storyteller
*Equity Member appearing with permission of Actors’ Equity Association without benefit of an Equity contract in this Off-Off Broadway production.
Drums/Percussion/Keyboard: Kyle Brenn (he/him)
Guitars: Tia Dizon (she/her)
Bass/ 12-String Guitar: Lotus Rogers (they/them or ze/zir)
Cello: Samantha Medina Chachra (she/her)
Sound Engineer: Julian Moller (any pronouns)
( ! )
at PRIDEFEST! 2021
written/composed by Beth Golison
directed by Kate diRienzi
music direction + orchestration by Kyle Brenn
guitar performance and arrangement by Kiara Negroni
featuring
Sophia Drapeau as The Girl
Rose Tablizo as The Friend
Rachel Keteyian, Kiara Negroni, and Jenna Szoke as The Sisters/Storytellers
originally created in collaboration with Erin Browning, Emory Kemph, Rachel Keteyian, Marissa Joyce Stamps, Lizzy Walther
production design by Delaney Teehan
( ! )
at Playwrights Horizons Theater School
written/composed + directed by Beth Golison
in collaboration with + performed by Erin Browning, Emory Kemph, Rachel Keteyian, Marissa Joyce Stamps, Lizzy Walther
costumes by Chris Moseley
dramaturgy by Noah Burgess + Kelsey Stevenson
lights by Jack Dahill
set by Lucas Castro
sound by Kiara Negroni