Rising - a new Irish Musical

·37 min·3 clips

A new musical reimagines the 1916 Dublin Rebellion through the hidden queerness of its enigmatic leader, Patrick Pearce.

Stuart Brown opens with a reunion. Tom James McGrath and Amy Claire Tasker are back on On Broadway after their earlier interview about The Queen is Mad, and Brown gives the conversation a bit of shared history. He remembers meeting both writers on a London trip, including a chat at the cafe at the National Theater. The Queen is Mad is still part of the story. The guests say it went to Edinburgh Fringe last year, where new musical theater found a loyal audience. Then Rising takes over. Brown wonders whether the show could have a recurring life around a holiday. He brings up Evil Dead the Musical, which he says gets produced 80 to 100 times a year in October around Halloween. That gives Rising a practical dream: finish the London development, then maybe bring it to the States. Irish heritage is close to the center of the pitch. The guests talk about making something meaningful for audiences with Irish roots while keeping the door open for people who are simply curious about the culture. Brown also digs into structure. He notices that both musicals lean toward large central figures with urgent wants and serious obstacles. The writers agree. They like protagonists who are flawed but easy to follow for an evening. Patrick Pearce is their example: someone who does not fit his world and wants an Irish society where he can be accepted and free. Brown ends warmly, calling Rising a musical with real heft and promising to keep playing songs on Sounds Broadway.

As heard by us

A measured, craft-focused conversation about Rising, Irish culture, and writing characters with a strong want.

Stuart Brown welcomes Tom James McGrath and Amy Claire Tasker back to discuss Rising, their new show after The Queen is Mad. The conversation first catches up with that earlier musical's Edinburgh Fringe run, then turns toward the pair's developing work on Rising and the kind of…

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Why you'd press play

You want a measured Broadway-podcast visit with the London-based creators of Rising as they talk about bringing an Irish story toward wider audiences.

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