Fractured
Full-length musical
Book & original concept by Leya Graie
Music & lyrics by Danielle Keiko Eyer
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Status: In development
Fractured is the story of two young people: Nadia, who has been severely depressed from a young age, and Aidan, their best friend who prides herself in her ability to take care of them. The show begins with Nadia dying by suicide while Aidan is away at school and deals with the aftermath of Nadia’s death. Nadia is present on stage, existing in a dark reflection of the living world (much like the mirror world in her favourite book, Alice Through the Looking Glass), as she desperately tries to lead Aidan to the suicide note she addressed to her but that was found by Alison, Nadia’s mother, first. Despite her child's death, Alison is frantically trying to keep up the outward image of a perfect family—an image that certainly does not include a suicide note with no mention of herself—and decides to keep the note from Aidan. Meanwhile, Aidan is equally desperate to discover why Nadia decided to end her life, convinced that there must be a reason she can pinpoint or a person she can blame.
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Fractured addresses the misconception that depression and suicidality always have a direct cause or a simple answer, when in reality, there is often no easy fix to these issues. It also delves into how one’s ability to make art or be creative can be influenced by one’s mental state—particularly a negative mental state—by showing how Aidan, a trained dancer, loses the will to dance while processing her grief. Finally, Fractured is a story about the importance and complexity of found family when one’s biological family isn’t loving and supportive, and it aims to center friendship as a relationship that can be just as vital to a person’s life as a romantic one, a concept that is rarely represented in media.
Unashamed
Full-length musical
Music, lyrics, and book by Danielle Keiko Eyer
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Status: In progress
Unashamed (working title) is a semi-fictional, semi-documentary musical inspired by mid-century lesbian pulp fiction novels. Lesbian pulp fiction as a genre took off in the 50's and 60's, with the caveat that these stories had to end in tragedy in order to be published. These books were tools of survival for real queer women, many of them closeted and living in rural areas. Unashamed reimagines these iconic fictional moments with happy endings, and although the true stories may delve into the struggles of being a lesbian in the mid-twentieth century, the show ultimately has an optimistic outlook, showing love persevering.