On The Radar: On the Heir

On The Heir. Thurs., April 20-Sat., April 22. 8 p.m. Agassiz Theater. $7; $5, student/seniors. Tickets available at box office.



When Allegra M. Richards ’09 and Nathan D. Johnson ’09 came to Harvard, neither of them had experience with full-length musicals. In fact, Richards, the executive producer of this year’s freshman musical, “On the Heir,” had never even been a producer before.

“We started to work on this project about the beginning of October,” says Richards. “We really didn’t know what we were doing…But now that it’s all coming together, it’s really, really exciting.”

According to Richards, “On the Heir” is different from its predecessors. “The freshman musical in the past has been very focused around Harvard, and appealed to Harvard freshmen,” she says.

However, her concern was that the show usually caters only to freshmen: “Outsiders from the greater Boston community don’t really understand it. And that’s not something we want to do with this musical.”

The musical this reflects this intent; it has nothing all to do with Harvard. “I think that has been a really important aspect of making this production different,” adds Richards. “It really does appeal to a wide audience and we did try a few new things, breaking away from the Harvard focus.”

According to Johnson, the musical is about a boy who tries to escape his unpleasant family by selling a precious heirloom at the Antiques Roadshow.

“It’s accessible to the entire community,” says Nicholas N. Commins ’09, the lyricist and composer. “We tried to make this play accessible to everybody who has ever watched public television.”

But the show has raised a few eyebrows. “It initially seemed very bizarre—why would you do a musical about this bizarre antique?” Johnson says.

The show itself spans a broad range of themes and time periods. “We wanted all of the characters to be the heartland of America. It’s kind of folksy, it’s definitely not all business suits or all cowboy hats,” Johnson explains. “The look of the characters adds to its very nostalgic, kind of classic American feel.”

In addition to the folksy feel and primary plot, the musical includes flashbacks into different time periods. “At one point we actually have a cabaret scene from when the antique was owned by a previous owner,” says Richards. “Suddenly you’ll have grandmothers on stage—all of a sudden they’ll turn into cabaret singers, and it’s a totally different set, totally different mood, in the 1920’s in a smoky, old bar.”

The cast and crew are made up of around 75 people, with greatly varying levels of experience. “Our cast has all different singing and dancing and acting backgrounds, and they all came together and created this musical,” Richards explains. “And I think that, in itself, is a great accomplishment.”

Another one of the strengths of the production, according to Richards, is the music. “It’s the kind of music that the cast really gets into,” she says. “I want that to affect our audience as well. It is the type of music that you sing, or you’ll hear, and you’ll remember.”

Commins said that two of his major acting influences were Rogers and Hammerstein and Stephen Sondheim. He compared parts of the musical to Avenue Q: “It’s as funny as Avenue Q,” he says, “but it’s not as R-rated as Avenue Q.”

“If nothing else,” Johnson adds, “we hope that this is very entertaining, regardless of which aspect of the story you take away from it.”