Concept – Where will all the penguins go??

THE CONCEPT:

What is it?

It’s a 35 min long musical, created for and performed by children (and adults) with the underlying theme of climate change.

It’s a journey story of two brothers into an ecologically dystopian future – which, as we now know, is a very real possibility.

The show informs, entertains and asks questions about our current unsustainable practices.

Why does it exist?

Because it was 2015 and people were still debating whether ‘climate change’ was real!!

Because children are the next generation – and they will inherit this mess.

This is a global* awareness project, in the ancient tradition of song and dance and theatre – to tell a moral tale, to raise awareness, to ask questions.

*The big picture: After the shows in Sydney – the plan is to make the script and music available to students across the globe – to perform locally in their schools – in their native language!!! (These translations will cost a LOT of money.)

It’s fun, it’s dark, it’s real, it’s current and it’s important.

How you can help / get involved:

If you are a school, college or community theatre group – then you are welcome to download the script & music for FREE, and put on your very own production.

If you are able to send a portion of your profits (if any) – the money will be put directly towards taking the project to a global scale*

If you are a professional theatre group then please email us to BUY the rights for putting up a production. The small fees will go towards paying towards the thousands of dollars I’ve spent getting the project ready. The script and music are all copyright protected, all copyright and ownership belongs to Adil Jain © 2020.

At the individual & corporate level: We urge you to take out that credit card and help us raise as much money as possible. You can contribute directly via PayPal/ online bank transfer – for account information please send me an email – sydneycontentcreator@gmail.com

The Timeline:

2015

It all began when a dear friend Dr. Arunabha Ghosh (CEO – CEEW India) published a science and policy paper Climate Change: A Risk Assessment – which I read one weekend like a fast paced thriller.

A few days later I found myself composing a couple of songs about climate change, while driving on a quiet highway outside Delhi – and the rest as they say is history. Not really – it was sometimes slow, sometimes spontaneous bursts of creativity and content.

I converted my photography studio into an audio studio and spent many hundreds of hours developing the script and creating melodies in Garageband.

My advisors:

Ann Rooney – NY
Amy Stebbins – Chicago
Dr Arunabha Ghosh (CEEW)

2016

By early 2016 I had written most of the story and a lot of the songs, but I was stuck. Stuck for ideas, stuck for advice, running out of motivation. But how does one finish the project and make the writing better without brining on a co-writer (thus diluting ownership and sharing authorship)? The solution – in a classroom setting.

So I decided to take myself to Oxford University for an ‘advanced, intensive summer writing course’ at the gorgeous Exeter College.

While at Exeter in July 2016 – I finished my first draft and made some essential changes to the plot and characters.

Later that year I moved bag and baggage, back to Sydney.

My advisors:

Prof Shaun McCarthy
Philothee M
Emma
Kanika Chawla (CEEW)

2017

Settling into my new life in Sydney. A few script revisions. Shared the latest drafts of the script with friends scattered in different parts of the world. Trying to get feedback, trying to get children to read it.

My advisors:

Annette Phillip (Berklee School of Music)
Andrew Kitchen
Mihir Shah (CEEW)

This is the cute little granny flat I lived in for the first couple of years in Sydney.

2018

LISTEN

NEWS:

10 min showcase at the Hayes Theatre – Mar 26th, 2018

Presented 5 songs from the musical at the Hayes Theatre’s “New Musicals Australia – First Look”

Applied to the Sydney Fringe Festival 2018

Entered submission end April. Got accepted.

CEEW

12th July, 2018: We have officially partnered with CEEW as our knowledge and outreach partner. The founder and CEO – Dr Arunabha Ghosh is also a dear friend, he co-authored Climate Change: A Risk Assessment – the inspiration for the musical

Website: www.ceew.in

CEEW Ranked as South Asia’s Top Think Tank Operating Under $5 Million Budget

2ser Radio Sydney

June 22nd I was interviewed by the Sydney radio station 2ser. It was a fun, lively Q&A about the musical, why I’m working on it, what it’s about, and why it’s important.