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PLEASANT GROVE — A musical fully developed in Utah by Utah artists is getting a chance at fame with a two-day concert debut at one of the most famous London theaters.
"Little Piece of You: An Atypical Musical" will be performing at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane in London on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.
The musical, originally named "Relative Space," tackles mental health through a lens of generational trauma by following a mother and daughter who deal with a wall that has been built between them and learn how events in the past are affecting both of their futures.
The show premiered at the Liahona Theater in Pleasant Grove in June where several award-winning Broadway music producers flew in to attend. Sixteen-time Broadway producer Van Dean called it "very unique and very powerful" and quickly signed onto the show as a lead producer.
Since that performance, the musical evolved through more than five rewrites and readings before negotiations with London theater companies. Dean suggested the show try the concert pathway, instead, to "make the leap to the next level."
He said it's more challenging than ever — and more expensive — to get a show to Broadway, which is why "Little Piece of You" is trying to make it in London, first.
"(It's) artistically comparable to Broadway, but a lot less expensive to get it on its feet and get it where it needs to be before going to step beyond that," he said.
A few theaters in London's West End only have shows running five days of the week — compared to the typical six days a week — because their casts are largely made up of children. Developing shows take advantage of the two "dark days" in the theaters by applying for and getting selected to perform two-day concerts.
These concerts can range from staged readings to off-book performances with lighting, costumes and sets. Although with only two days being in the theater, these concerts have minimal time to get the stage ready or have tech and dress rehearsals.
The West End has seen a rise in developing shows attempting to establish themselves through the concert process. Musicals such as "Treason" and "Death Note" have secured short West End runs after a concert.
"Little Piece of You" will be performing a slightly abridged version that better fits the concert format. Dean said it'll be professional looking, but there's still further they could go with the show if they get the chance.
A unique accomplishment
"Little Piece of You" is the first musical to be solely developed in Utah that has made it this far in the journey of becoming a first-class production.
Getting a spot at Drury Lane is a "pretty big deal," Dean said.
Drury Lane has been hosting the musical "Frozen" since 2021, but the show closed on Sept. 8. Soon the theater will be hosting "Hercules" — meaning it will return to a six-day show week and no longer be available for concerts.
With theaters already having months-long backlogs of concert applicants, it's becoming nearly impossible for shows to get in.
Dean said "Little Piece of You" just happened to be the right show at the right time to snag one of the final few spots at Drury Lane.
"It's been gratifying that top people are really taking to the material and feel that it's worthy of their talents. That's a very good sign," he said.
Dean said the "Little Piece of You" cast will work with a team of professionals at the Drury Lane theater to refine visual and audio effects "to present the next level of the vision of it."
The cast is rehearsing before the show to get it ready and test all the changes that have been made since the last time it was performed.
With less than a day to get everything set up for the show, it was crucial to have people on the team who intimately know the theater, Dean said. Many of the Utah team members are being paired with Drury Lane professionals to help the show be as successful as possible.
"The team we are working with over there is one of the primary concert producers of this type, so they have kind of perfected the model of how to do this in a way that makes financial and artistic sense," he said.
What makes the show so special?
"It's a really interesting piece and it's unique in many ways. I'm just excited to see how the London audiences receive it," Dean said. "It's really top, top professionals who are coming together to do this."
The way the show addresses and handles the subject matter, however, is what really makes it shine, Dean said.
The musical originated as 10 songs a teenage girl named Kjersti Long wrote. After Dean listened to her music and called them "theatrical," Kjersti and her father Jeremy Long had a "light bulb moment" and decided to find a playwright to turn the songs into a musical.
"(Kjersti's music) is what started it all," he said. "It seems full circle that I'm now involved with it. She's an incredible talent who I think has a very, very bright future ahead of her."
The show has a largely female creative team portraying female generational trauma and experiences through the mother and daughter characters. The story being told through music written by a teenage girl brings authenticity, Dean said, adding that Kjersti is "the core" of the musical.
"I'm super grateful for all of the blessings and everything that's come out of this," Kjersti said.
Big names in the industry are starting to take notice of the show. "Little Piece of You" is in final negotiations with some "big stars" who will be leading in the cast alongside Kjersti. Those stars will be announced soon.
Although big names have latched onto developing shows before, Dean said it's pretty rare for stars to leave their contracts and shows to go to a new one for only two weeks.
"It shows their belief in the material so it's very exciting," Dean said.
Kjersti said performing with the stars in London is "super intimidating" but also really exciting.
"I'm really excited to get to learn from them and watch how they take my music and make it better. It's very intimidating, but also I think it's going to be a great opportunity to learn and grow and hopefully help the musical itself," she said.
Depending on the reaction from the concert, "Little Piece of You" producers will decide where to take it next, whether that's regional theaters in London or the U.S., a full run in the West End or even looking to get to Broadway.
"Every step you take like this, it reveals something new about the piece and where it should be headed," Dean said.
