Ralph Covert: The Flower Thieves
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Ralph Covert and his playwriting partner G. Riley Mills were commissioned to write a musical show for the theatrical troupe The Midnight Circus. The Flower Thieves album contains the music and songs that Covert created as part of the acrobatic circus production that told the story of an abandoned princess seeking truth in the wilderness of a war-torn country, the story told almost entirely through the circus acts and instrumental music. It was a bold and arresting production that was restaged multiple times and lives on through this vibrant recording featuring the original band that performed the score. Equal parts Nino Rota Italian film score music, Paul McCartney whimsy, and prog rock majesty, it is a majestic work that evokes the acrobatic circus acts and soul-searching story it underscored.
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--Chicago Reader
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--Chicago Reader
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Songs:
1. Tino's Penny Farthing 2. The Battle Of Tarnow 3. After The Battle 4. Salamander Green 5. Traveler's Music 6. Svetlana In The Trees 7. The Gypsy Inn 8. Jester To The King 9. Sneaking In The Shadows 10. Chased By The Guards 11. The Young Lovers 12. Enzo's Lament 13. Maricella And The King 14. Fanfare At King Ludar's Court 15. Got My Yo-yo 16. Salsero's Empty Bok 17. It's Easy 18. Tino's Penny Farthing (repreise) 19. Flower Girl |
Critics say:
Imagine a kingdom shrouded in permanent wintry gloom, its young king grown crabbed and selfish in his dark castle. But liberation is at hand in the form of a gardener-errant determined to restore the kingdom's purloined flora to its rightful home--a heroine whose comrades include acrobats, aerialists, rope walkers, jugglers, mimes, and a canine gymnast. The Flower Thieves, which premiered in 2001 at the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre, is G. Riley Mills and Ralph Covert's musical fable, an allegory of springtime rebirth, brought to splendid life by the Midnight Circus in this tightly integrated spectacle of movement and imagery. Far from upstaging the action, these elements enhance the tale of a melancholy monarch whose enemies are foiled and spirits restored by the band of wayfarers. Under the direction of Mitchell J. Fain (who also stars as young King Ludar), the 14-member ensemble maintains a brisk but never rushed pace--no small feat when the mere act of setting a table evolves into a showpiece for airborne objects. More gentle moments include a lovers' dance on twin ropes that lends fresh romance to the familiar balcony scene. By the time good triumphed in a burst of flowers and fireworks, the warmth and magic of these supremely talented players had won over even the most fidgety of juvenile spectators |