Projects
Current Projects:
HALF THE SKY
Music by Tidtaya Sinutoke
Book & Lyrics by Isabella Dawis
Directed by Desdemona Chiang
HALF THE SKY tells the story of an Asian American woman climbing Mount Everest — a contemporary American musical on a global scale, infused with the sounds of traditional Thai and Himalayan folk music.
A year after her sister’s death, Aurelie sets out to fulfill her childhood dream of climbing Mount Everest. She joins an international group of mountaineers from around the globe. As Aurelie embarks on her path to the top of the world, memories of her Thai American past and the unresolved rift between her and her sister begin to surface. Borders between countries and cultures, past and present, and waking and dreaming blur in this epic journey of ambition, survival and reconciliation.
Production/Development History:
• Musical Theatre Factory Joe's Pub Concert (2022)
• The 5th Avenue Theatre's 2020-2021 Digital Season (2021)
• Richard Rodgers Award Finalist (2021)
• Rhinebeck Writers Retreat (2020)
• Weston-Ghostlight New Musical Award, with director Nana Dakin (2020)
• Eugene O'Neill Center's Independent Writer Residency (2020)
• The 5th Avenue Theatre Showcase (2019)
• Theater Latté Da's NEXT Festival (2019)
• Theater Mu's New Eyes Festival (2019)
• Commissioned by the 5th Avenue Theatre's First Draft: Raise Your Voice Program (2018-2019)
• First Draft Story Summit at the 5th Avenue Theatre (2018)
Music by Tidtaya Sinutoke
Book & Lyrics by Isabella Dawis
Directed by Nana Dakin
with Producer/Cultural Consultant Ikumi Kuronaga
The brilliant Japanese solar scientist Hisako Koyama was as groundbreaking as Galileo, yet she has remained a “hidden figure” — until now. Sunwatcher is an inventive new musical about one woman’s unsung genius, and her drive to advance science in the face of immense obstacles.
In 1944, a young woman in Tokyo dares to stare at the sun. Despite oppressive gender roles which limit women to the kitchen, and though the violence of WWII rages around her, Hisako fights for an impossible dream — to widen our understanding of outer space. Her struggle leads her to the guidance of an unexpected teacher, the mighty Japanese sun goddess Amaterasu.
Through an innovative musical score which uses electronic live looping and traditional Japanese musical instruments, Sunwatcher animates Hisako’s story with a cast of all Asian women.
Production/Development History:
• Minnesota State Arts Board Grant (2024)
• Musical Theatre Factory Residency (2024)
• Berkeley Rep's Ground Floor Summer Residency Lab (2023)
• Loghaven Artist Residency (2023)
• Ancram Opera House's Summer Play Lab & Residency (2022)
• Weston Theater Company's Spring Artist Retreat (2022)
• Tofte Lake Center's NEAP Residency (2021)
• The Civilians' FINDINGS Series (2021)
• Ancram Opera House's Summer Play Lab & Residency (2021)
• Rattlestick Playwrights Theater's Global Forms Festival (2021)
• Johnny Mercer Writers Grove at Goodspeed Musicals (2021)
• The Civilians R&D Group (2020-2021)
• EST/Sloan Foundation New Commission Finalist (2020)
SUNWATCHER
DEAR MR. C
Book, Music and Additional Lyrics by Tidtaya Sinutoke
Lyrics by Lily Ali-Oshatz, Naomi Matlow
A story about love, family, grief, immigration, and cancer.
DEAR MR. C, is an intimate, verbatim, indie-pop memoir with a hint of traditional Thai lullaby. It is a memory play that tells the story of a Thai immigrant writer who's trying to find peace after one phone call turns her world upside-down.
Production/Development History:
• Chelsea Factory's Rehearsal Program, with director Sanhawich Meateanuwat (2023)
• Rhineeck Writers Retreat (2022)
• The Crossroads Project, with director Janet Wilson (2022)
• Polyphone Festival, with director Marina Montesanti (2022)
• Diverse Voices Playwriting Initiative Award (2022)
• NYFA's City Artist Corps Grant, with director Marina Montesanti (2021)
• The Voices of America Writers Workshop at the PlayGround Experiment (2020)
THE ADVENTURES
OF SKY AND FRIENDS
Written and Composed by Tidtaya Sinutoke
Inspired by Sudsakorn, a beloved character from a Thai epic poem, "Phra Aphai Mani," THE ADVENTURES OF SKY AND FRIENDS is a children's musical that tells a story of Sky, an immigrant girl in America dealing with her struggle with the language barrier and making new friends.
When Sky needs to draw her favorite fairy tale for the class assignment, she tries to retell a famous Thai beloved character, Sudsakorn, who lives on a magical island and goes on an adventure with his Dragon Horse bestie. As Sky goes on her own adventure with her pet, a gray Chinchilla named Mochi, she gradually finds friends and the courage to overcome the language barriers. This results in a learning experience for everyone, teaching that nothing is possible if we help, embrace and accept each other!
Production/Development History:
• New Victory Theater's LabWorks (2023-2024)
KHAM (Crossing)
Written and Composed by Tidtaya Sinutoke
ข้าม (English pronounciation - Kham)
v. crossing
Formerly known as "365 Days," "KHAM" (derived from the Thai word for 'crossing') is a self-discovery journey that investigates the history and archaeological studies of the Death Railway in Thailand.
The piece employs an investigative documentary format, intertwining a verbatim play with a sound installation. It weaves together storytelling elements through a series of interviews, captivating visuals, and original musical compositions.
Production/Development History:
• Dramatic Question Theatre's Playtime (2023)
• Chelsea Factory's Rehearsal Program (2023)
• Dramatic Question Theatre's American Woman (2022)
LITTLE DUGONG AND
HER SEAGRASS SONG
Music by Tidtaya Sinutoke
Libretto by Isabella Dawis
Based on the Thai folktale “The Bruised Fish,” LITTLE DUGONG AND HER SEAGRASS SONG is an opera for kids about sea creature – using traditional Thai Southern folk music, dance, and shadow puppetry to educate young audiences about marine biology and climate change.
A lost young dugong arrives at the shores of the Thai island of Phuket, separated from her mother because of human fishing activity. She meets a monkey and an elephant, chasing a lost jade bracelet which has been carried out to the ocean. All three animals agree to work together to find what they’re looking for. But the destructive behaviors they’ve picked up from humans threaten to undermine their teamwork. The dugong, monkey, and elephant must learn to appreciate their differences and help each other in the spirit of generosity and kindness.
Production/Development History:
• American Opera Project's Composer & the Voice Fellowship (2021-2023)
Past Projects:
CLOUDS ARE PILLOWS
FOR THE MOON
Music by Tidtaya Sinutoke
Book & Lyrics by Ty Defoe
A coming-of-age story about teenage Ella Horses who runs away from her Native American reservation. Due to the recent death of her mother, Ella Horses runs away to the city of Chicago. There she meets her kindred best friend, P, a girl from Thailand. Together these two girls embark on a rite of passage from girlhood to womanhood.
Production/Development History:
• Kilroy's Honorable Mentions List (2015)
• ASCAP Musical Theatre Workshop in New York (2015)
• CAP21 Writers Residency (2015)
• Collaborative Development Production (CDP) Workshop (2014)
• Yale Institute for Music Theatre (2014)
• B-Side Production (2014)
• New York University (2013)
Music by Tidtaya Sinutoke
Book & Lyrics by Ty Defoe
Hart Island, the United States' most documented potter's field is located in the Bronx, NY, where an estimated one million people are buried from 1869 to present day. This investigative theatre piece depicts stories of dead people who gather, at an abandon theme park to remember their lives and deaths. A series of stories was gathered, imagined, and stitched together to highlight people who were undocumented, living in poverty, or lost. HART ISLAND REQUIEM asks: what happens to those souls when they are unable to rest in peace in "America"?
Production/Development History:
• Drama League Residency (2019)
• Polyphone Festival (2019)
• Johnny Mercer Writers Colony at Goodspeed Musicals (2018)
• Apples and Oranges Studio THEatre ACCELERATOR (2017)
• One Company Writer's Residency Retreat (2017)
• CATWALK Art Residency (2016)
• EtM Con Edison Composer-in-Residence (2016-2017)
• Anna Sosenko Assist Trust Grant (2016)
• Robert Rauschenberg Residency (2016)
• CAP21 Writers Residency (2016)
• The Civilians R&D Group (2015-2016)
HART ISLAND REQUIEM
© 2024 by Tidtaya Sinutoke.