MCC Theater has announced that Oscar and Grammy Award-winning music and culture journalist Cameron Crowe (Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Almost Famous) will moderate Behind the Lyrics, a special one-night event that will dive deep into the songwriting process for the Off-Braodway musical Space Dogs.
Immediately following the March 7 performance, Crowe will join actor-musicians Van Hughes and Nick Blaemire to discuss their creative process, artistic/genre influences, musical development, collaboration, cut lyrics, and more. The event is included with tickets purchased for that evening’s performance.
Cameron Crowe has covered music and culture as a journalist for a multitude of publications, including Rolling Stone, Playboy, The New York Times, Newsweek, and Los Angeles Times. His first book, the nonfiction study of a year in the life of a California high school, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, became a bestseller, and later a film. Almost Famous, released in 2000, was the culmination of a 10-year process to put Crowe’s experiences working for Rolling Stone on film. Almost Famous has been adapted into a stage musical, which received an out of town tryout in 2019.
Space Dogs tells the true story of Laika and the Chief Designer, a stray dog and the top-secret Russian scientist who sent her to space during the Cold War. Written and performed by actor-musicians Van Hughes and Nick Blaemire, this new musical is a tale of invention, betrayal, international political intrigue, and the immortal friendship that exists between man and dog as they journey together to the stars. Read the reviews for the production, which opened February 13, here.
Directed by Ellie Heyman, Space Dogs features scenic design by Wilson Chin, costume design by Haydee Zelideth Atuñano, lighting design by Mary Ellen Stebbins, sound design by Nathan Leigh, projection design by Stefania Bulbarella and Alex Basco Koch, and puppet and props design by Amanda Villalobos. Choreography is by Darrell Grand Moultrie and Justin Scribner is the production stage manager. Noah Kieserman serves as the understudy. Casting is by The Telsey Office's Geoff Josselson.
Space Dogs is produced in association with Tricia Small.
The original cast album of Space Dogs is now available through Ghostlight Records. The album is produced by Van Hughes and Nick Blaemire, with Kurt Deutsch serving as executive producer, and is available at GhostlightRecords.com.
For information on this, and other events related to Space Dogs, go to MCCTheater.org.
MCC Theater requires that all audience members provide proof of full vaccination and booster, if eligible, along with a government issued photo ID with matching name at the point of building entry on performance date. Masks must be worn at all times in the building. KN95/N-95 masks provide the strongest protection against COVID-19 and are strongly encouraged for audience members.
Nick Blaemire and Van Hughes in Space Dogs
Nick Blaemire and Van Hughes in Space Dogs
Van Hughes, Little Gnat, Laika, and Nick Blaemire in Space Dogs
Van Hughes and Nick Blaemire in Space Dogs
Nick Blaemire, Laika, and Van Hughes in Space Dogs
Laika and Van Hughes in Space Dogs
