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The Making Of A Musical: How Dallas Theater Center Brings 'Stagger Lee' To Life

KERA/Art&Seek

Take a behind-the-scenes look at a brand-new musical created in Dallas. 

Jerome Weeks withKERA’s Art&Seek reports: “For more than a year, the Art & Seek team has been behind the scenes, tracking the Dallas Theater Center as it’s developed 'Stagger Lee.' It’s a rare professional musical because it’s been created entirely in North Texas.”

The series Stagger Lee: Making a Musical launched Wednesday on KERA 90.1 FM. Explore the series here.

In the first story, the show’s creator, Will Power, tells Jerome his fascination with the legend of Stagger Lee began in his childhood.

You can also watchvideosof the musical number “St. Louis” as it evolves through workshops and rehearsals over the past year. And listen to musical artists from Mississippi John Hurt to the Grateful Dead interpret the classic song “Stagger Lee."

Previews start Thursday. The musical launches Jan. 30.

Here's how the Dallas Theater Center explains "Stagger Lee":

A highlight this season is the world premiere of Stagger Lee, a musical that takes its title from the century-old folk song that became a Number One R&B hit for Lloyd Price in 1959. The story spans the 20th Century, tracing mythical characters in their quest to achieve the American Dream. The deep-seated themes of racism and the raw power of human will are sure to give you chills. And the music—from Joplin-inspired tunes to R&B and hip-hop—will definitely get your feet moving. 

Eric Aasen is KERA’s managing editor. He helps lead the station's news department, including radio and digital reporters, producers and newscasters. He also oversees keranews.org, the station’s news website, and manages the station's digital news projects. He reports and writes stories for the website and contributes pieces to KERA radio. He's discussed breaking news live on various public radio programs, including The Takeaway, Here & Now and Texas Standard, as well as radio and TV programs in New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Anne Bothwell is Vice President, Arts at KERA, the public radio and television station for North Texas. She oversees local arts, music and culture content on a variety of station platforms, including KERA FM, KERA TV, artandseek.org, kxt.org and keranews.org. KERA’s arts journalists have won numerous awards for their work, including a national Edward R. Murrow award for video. The television series Frame of Mind spotlights Texas’ independent filmmakers. The Art&Seek calendar connects you with arts events. And the State of the Arts conversation series in Dallas, Fort Worth and Denton uses arts and culture as lens to frame community issues. Anne got her start as an arts editor in newspapers, with stints at The Dallas Morning News and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. She has a journalism degree from Northwestern University.