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Interview: Kyle Jarrow
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With Whisper House having its first preview at The Other Palace last night (6th April 2017) we took the opportunity to catch up with its writer, Kyle Jarrow, to find out more about the show.
Your musical, Whisper House, is at The Other Palace in London, how would you describe the show?
It’s a historical ghost story. Set during WWII, it tells the story of a young boy named Christopher who’s sent to live at a lighthouse with an aunt he’s never met and the mysterious Japanese man who works for her. Before long, Christopher starts to hear strange music seeping through the walls… and he wonders, is this place haunted? And are the ghosts trying to warn him of a real danger?
At its core, Whisper House is a story about the role of fear in our lives – especially the fear of difference – and how we choose to deal with it. All of it set to a rich, beautiful score by the awesome Duncan Sheik.
What were your influences when you were writing Whisper House?
I read a lot of ghost stories – and went on a couple of “historical ghost walks” too! I also took inspiration from all those classic books about children being sent to live with distant relatives: like The Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe and The Secret Garden. In addition, I looked at stories of war seen through a child’s eyes, especially the great movie Pan’s Labyrinth.
As for Duncan, I know he took a lot of inspiration from his own childhood, growing up on the lighthouse-lined (and ghost story filled!) South Carolina coast.
How did you start working with Duncan Sheik?
Duncan and I were first introduced by a mutual friend, and soon after we started work on Whisper House. Since then we’ve collaborated on a couple other projects too—a musical called Noir, which is in development, as well as the digital series Lost Generation.
Lost Generation sounds interesting, what can you tell us about that?
Lost Generation is an original series we created for Verizon’s new go90 digital network. It’s twelve episodes, each with an original song by Duncan (writing in an electronic music vein for this one). The series tells the story of a year in the life of a group of American expats in Berlin. Each episode is a snapshot from a different month of the year – with time jumps in-between – so it’s really about how people change over time. Sadly for UK folks, it’s currently only available for streaming in the U.S. For those who’re in the States, you can find it at http://www.go90.com/LG_S1E1.
You also wrote the book for The SpongeBob Musical, do you think people who see Whisper House would be surprised about that?
Hahaha – well, the tone of the two is very different, that’s for sure! But I enjoy writing in different tonal modes. I feel like it stretches me creatively, and it keeps my slightly-ADD brain from getting bored. And despite the difference in tone, Whisper House and The SpongeBob Musical are actually pretty similar when it comes to theme. Both of them are about the ways that fear can turn us against each other, and how important it is to resist that. It’s a topic that strongly resonates with me, especially in the world we live in today.
You’re well known for writing for TV and film as well, do you follow a different process than when you’re writing for theatre?
For theater, I usually write it on Microsoft Word. For TV and film stuff, I use Final Draft. But beyond that there’s not a ton of difference, at least in my mind. The pacing tends to be slightly different in the different forms, but they all come down to the same three elements – characters, theme, and plotting. I will say that certain stories lend themselves to different forms, so I try to choose the right one for the particular tale I’m trying to tell.
You write for, and play in theatrical rock band Sky-Pony, where do you find the time to fit it all in?
There’s that ADD brain of mine again, I guess! The band is a collaboration with my wife, singer/actress Lauren Worsham – as well as six other very talented musicians. It started as something that was just for fun, a way for us all to hang out and make music together. As we started to get a following, we got a bit more professional about it. But at its core, Sky-Pony is still about the fun of spontaneous collaboration. Television, film and theater projects can take years to get from page to fruition. With the band, we can write a new song and perform it for an audience in the space of a week. There’s something refreshing and exciting about that – it’s a nice break from the slower pace of those other pursuits. By the way, the band’s website is http://www.sky-pony.com if you’d like to check it out.
What’s most exciting about having Whisper House produced in London?
I love London – it’s such an amazing city for theater. It’s an honor to have Whisper House be part of that rich theater scene, especially with such a fantastic cast and creative team. I can’t wait for Londoners see it!
Whisper House is at The Other Palace until 27th May.
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