Songs of the Island (2002)

Songs of the Island (2002) is a musical tribute to L.M. Montgomery by Hank Stinson. This musical revue premiered at the Charlottetown Festival in Prince Edward Island, Canada in the summer of 2002. Songs of the Island was developed by The Castle Company, a Prince Edward Island-based musical theatre company.

Hank Stinson wrote the full text and lyrics, with the exception of the quotes and excerpts from L.M. Montgomery’s novels Emily of New Moon, Rainbow Valley and The Blue Castle. The revue also quotes the lyrics for "Peace," which was written by L.M. Montgomery in the article “Prince Edward Island” for the book, The Spirit of Canada: Dominion and Provinces (1939). In addition, musical includes five excerpts from L.M. Montgomery’s autobiography The Alpine Path.

In the musical’s dialogue, the performers explain that they consider the best way to learn about Maud is by reading her letters, poems, short stories, and novels, and that, “The key to understanding Maud is though her characters.” They emphasize that there is more to L.M. Montgomery than Anne of Green Gables. Thus, the musical revue aimed to show additional facets of Montgomery’s character by focusing on songs and scenes from Stinson’s previous musicals on L.M. Montgomery’s works: Emily of New Moon, Rainbow Valley and The Blue Castle. The music for The Blue Castle was by Hank Stinson with additional music by Helen MacRae. The music for Emily of New Moon and Rainbow Valley was by Dean Burry. Interspersed between the songs, the performers discuss the similarities between L.M. Montgomery and her characters.


Image Credit:
Graphic by The World of Anne Shirley.

References:
The Castle Co. Webpage (archived).
Songs of the Island at The Castle Co. (archived).
Dean Burry's Official Website

Created August 15, 2002. Last updated June 18, 2024.
© worldofanneshirley.com

Rainbow Valley (2000)

Rainbow Valley (2000) is a musical play by Hank Stinson and Dean Burry that was based on the novel Rainbow Valley by L.M. Montgomery. This musical was commissioned following the success of their collaboration in creating the musical Emily of New Moon in 1998. Hank Stinson wrote the script and lyrics for Rainbow Valley in the late 1990s, and Dean Burry composed the music. The musical was developed by The Castle Company, a Prince Edward Island-based musical theatre company.

Rainbow Valley premiered at the Stage Door Theatre in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island Canada in March 2000. Later, the musical went on to have a 140-show run at the Avonlea Village in Prince Edward Island. In 2002, portions of the musical were included as part of Hank Stinson’s Songs of the Island: A musical tribute to L.M. Montgomery at the Charlottetown Festival.

Rainbow Valley is a musical play in two acts. There is also a one-act version of the script for a smaller cast.

The musical is described as follows:
“Rainbow Valley centers around the lives of four boisterous children, their single father, his reluctant sweetheart, and a destitute home-girl, Mary Vance. The children lack the one thing that would make their house a home. The minister lacks the one thing that would make him truly happy. And Mary Vance? She finds the one thing she has been waiting for all her life. And in doing so she brings all the other things together.”


Image Credit:
Graphic by The World of Anne Shirley.

References:
The Castle Co. Webpage (archived).
Dean Burry's Official Website
Cole, Sally. (2018, November 3). Bringing L.M. Montgomery's 'Rainbow Valley' to the stage on P.E.I. Saltwire. Retrieved from: https://www.saltwire.com/prince-edward-island/lifestyles/bringing-lm-montgomerys-rainbow-valley-to-the-stage-on-pei-256118/

Created August 15, 2002. Last updated June 17, 2024.
© worldofanneshirley.com

Emily of New Moon (1998)

Emily of New Moon (1998) is a musical by Hank Stinson and Dean Burry that was based on the novel Emily of New Moon by L.M. Montgomery. Hank Stinson adapted the story for the stage, writing the book and lyrics, and Dean Burry composed the music. The musical was created by The Castle Company, a Prince Edward Island-based musical theatre company.

Emily of New Moon premiered at the Stage Door Theatre in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island Canada in 1998. Shows continued throughout the summer of 1998 at the historic Beaconsfield House in Charlottetown. In 2002, portions of the musical were included as part of Hank Stinson's Songs of the Island: A musical tribute to L.M. Montgomery at the Charlottetown Festival.

Emily of New Moon is a musical in one act. It is approximately 60 minutes long.

The musical is described as follows:
“Emily Byrd Starr, recently orphaned, goes to live with her stern Aunt Elizabeth Murray, her loving Aunt Laura and her whimsical Cousin Jimmy. She makes friends and enemies among the children in her new community and uses all her experiences as grist for her burgeoning writing career.”


Image Credit:
Image from The Castle Co. Webpage (archived).

References:
The Castle Co. Webpage (archived).
Dean Burry's Official Website
 
Created August 15, 2002. Last updated June 17, 2024.
© worldofanneshirley.com

The Blue Castle (1993)

The Blue Castle: A Musical Love Story (1993) is a musical by Hank Stinson adapted from the novel The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery. Stinson composed the musical and it featured additional music by Helen MacRae. The musical was created for The Castle Company, a Prince Edward Island-based musical theatre company. In 1992, the musical won the Theatre Prince Edward Island New Voices Playwrighting Contest.

Following workshops at the Muskoka Festival, the first community production of The Blue Castle took place in Prince Edward Island in 1993. There was a larger community production in 1994 at the Confederation Centre in Charlottetown. In 1995, the professional debut took place at the Oakville Summer Theatre in Oakville, Ontario, Canada.

The Blue Castle is a two-act musical. There are two versions of the script for either a small or a large cast. The musical length runs for 1 hour and 20 minutes for the small cast version and 1 hour and 30 minutes for the large cast version.

The musical is described as follows:
“Based on the L.M. Montgomery novel, The Blue Castle tells the story of spinster Valancy Stirling's escape from her stultifying home life, her quest for identity, and her awakening as a woman. She is a true hero; a glowing example of courage and determination in the face of the unknown; ‘It's only when you realize that no one else is going to take care of you that you begin to take care of yourself.’”


Image Credit:
Adapted screencaptures from The Castle Co. webpage (archived).

Reference:
The Castle Co. webpage (archived).

Created August 15, 2002. Last updated June 17, 2024.
© worldofanneshirley.com