HARP Theatricals to livestream virtual reading of new musical THE YELLOW WALLPAPER

New York based theatre company HARP Theatricals will present a virtual reading of new musical The Yellow Wallpaper on 18 March.

With music by Eliza Randall and a book and lyrics by Sam Norman, the musical is based on the 1892 feminist classic by Charlotte Perkins Gillman and has been written entirely in lockdown.

The musical tells the story of a young woman (Charlotte) who has just given birth to her first child. Charlotte is suffering from some kind of postpartum disorder and is to be confined here until she recovers. She’s hesitant, but her husband John and sister-in-law Mary are firm: doctor’s orders. She’s not allowed to see her baby. That night, while the rest of the house sleeps, Charlotte becomes convinced that she’s not alone: something, someone, seems to be moving inside the yellow wall… But, the next morning, she dismisses it from her mind and focuses on getting better. The days turn into weeks, the weeks into months; the confinement slowly becomes a prison sentence. Her mental health deteriorates under her forced separation from her baby, until, one day, Charlotte finally snaps.

Directed by Max Mackay, the cast includes Mason McDowell as John, Hannah Fernandes as Mary, and Vaibu Mohan as Charlotte.

The reading will premiere on Youtube here on Thursday 18 March at 6.30pm EST and will remain available for 24 hours afterwards.

A preview of ‘Woman in the Wall’ from The Yellow Wallpaper can be streamed here.