Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to April Alsup. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
April, so many exciting things to discuss, we can’t wait. Thanks for joining us and we appreciate you sharing your wisdom with our readers. So, maybe we can start by discussing optimism and where your optimism comes from?
My mother had a saying “if you don’t have something good to say don’t say it.” She would always say it to me when she felt I was being toxic about someone or something. She believed it was important to respect other people’s opinion and for me to know how to best interact with the people around me. We all interpret the things we say a bit differently. I think if you disagree with a friend on something you better have some pretty solid facts to base your arguments on or you may not have a friend for long (Note: avoid politics and religion). Too often people will use anecdotes and/or hearsay when discussing their opinions in public and the Internet has only acerbated the situation. I’ve found that a good way around these sorts of discussions with my professional colleagues is to always start with a strategy document and get buy-in from all the stakeholders at the beginning of a project. Then, use it as your manifesto in cases of disagreement, refer to it with your positions and be willing to accept it if someone supports the overall vision with a better solution. So, I wonder, was my mother right? I think she was, you can eat your cake and have it too! Stand your ground while respecting the positions of others and you’ll be seen as optimistic to everyone.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
After getting the idea for my most recent music theatre project, Eigg the Musical, I visited the tiny Isle of Eigg for a little theatrical research. I stayed at the Glebe Barn and made friends with a group of lovely people from Ayr, Scotland. During the day we explored Massacre caves, the singing sands of Laig Bay and hiked up Mount Squrr to Loch nam Ban Mora. In the evenings we drank scotch and discussed the history of Eigg. One of the members in the group was connected with Keith Schellenberg and later the Island Trust. It was very insightful and had a lot of impact on the Eigg show.
Afterwards, I knew we needed to supplement the score with traditional Scottish music. My goal would be to compose and perform the work with the ensemble, I like to call it method composing. I had never played an accordion before, but it felt so natural. Well, I searched the internet and found Sandy Brechin, a Ceilidh accordion maestro from Edinburgh. He knew all about the story of Eigg and of many others too, he’d even performed on the island and knew some of the locals. So over the next year we used the marvels of technology to connect with each other and he helped a lot with my playing.
A few years later my new friends came to see the results at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. It takes several years to write a full length music theatre work and this one included moments from our time together years earlier. It was so rewarding and truly one of the most meaningful moments of the trip to Edinburgh and one I will always cherish. I find traditional Scottish music to be comforting, honest and humble and I was happy to add it to the music to the Eigg show.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
It’s hard to say what the top three qualities that have had the most impact on my music theatre development process. It’s like peeling an onion, there are so many levels to this sort of thing, but I’ll give it try and elaborate on each quality as I can during our interview. First, if you want to create A+ work you’re going to need A+ people and you have to let them do what they do. So the first quality is “trust”. Be willing to let your teammates engage and flourish. Next, you’ll need to be “dedicated” to what you are trying to accomplish. It’s very important that your colleagues see how passionate you are. Keep in mind “actions are so much bigger than words.” People sense this sort of thing and if they feel it, you’ll have no problem getting them behind your leadership. Finally, be willing to enjoy yourself and don’t burn any bridges. The friendships you make in theatre can last a lifetime. The show won’t last forever, music theatre projects are ephemeral by nature and eventually come to an end. You never no when you’ll see each other again after the final curtain falls. Nothing can drag down a project as fast as toxicity. Make sure you are on top of this and don’t let anyone on your team get away with it.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
Napoleon Bonaparte once said “if you want a thing done well, do it yourself.” It’s funny, he may have conquered much of Europe, but he obviously wouldn’t be able to create a successful music theatre work. No-no, to do that you need to find qualified people who are good at what they do and work well as a team. I’ll admit, it doesn’t work as well as a slogan “if you want something done right, find qualified people who are good at what they do and work well as a team,” but I stand by my new quote and since I (unlike Napoleon) have created plenty of successful music theatre works I think it could stick. I’m always looking to find new talent and exploring what we can create together. There are a lot of stages you go through from start to finish on these sorts of things and each one has a unique set of skills to work through.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.alsup.org/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/aprilalsup
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@alsupmusic
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/aprilalsup
