FABLE is a ‘quest’ or ‘search’ tale. One of its morals is: Man wanders the entire world only to return home to find that everything he needed was there. Capitalizing on the traveling nature of the musical, FABLE touches upon the many influencing musical periods and styles that have contributed to the sound of the American musical. This is presented in FABLE much the same way that journeys often are taken, going far away and then returning to the beginning sounds, in what is known in art and ballet as ‘arabesque.’

FABLE begins with a hymn-like song (Once Upon A Time) and a ballad duet (Love Is) to set the piece. The simple Village and its inhabitants is represented by ‘The Equinox’, which is of Celtic origin and which still exists today in our oldest American music and in Appalachian or Up-country music. ‘Battle Music’ is atonal, non-linear, and rhythmically uneven, representing the farthest reaches of American music, generally explored from 1920s-1960s. ‘Big Production Number’ is the quintessence of Broadway musical. ‘Celestial Lullaby’ is of New Age influence. ‘Home’ is a novelty number. ‘Kneel and Pray’ borrows from African-American Gospel. ‘Olology’ is a paean to British musical/operetta influences in the classic patter song. The music of ‘Love Is’ and ‘Once Upon A Time’ appear at the end in reverse order, to give a strong feeling of return and the completion of the arabesque. Journey set changes include calkwalk/ragtime & blues.

The orchestral requirements of FABLE have been made simple, including the most commonly-played instruments:

piano
drums with cymbals, vibraphone, chimes, wind chimes, and possibly bells
double bass
flute
clarinet
alto sax
trumpet

 

The eighth player is an electronic pianist. The keyboard instrument should have the following capabilities of synthesized or sample sounds:

piano
French horn
organ
orchestral strings
bells

The actors are required to play some simple instruments such as triangles, rachet, gong, and tambourines, and to pantomime playing others.

The book of the musical FABLE is included in a separate document. It is copyrighted, so that no public performance is allowed without the written permission of the author.