In the title role of Buckbean Bushytail was none other than the supremely talented Oscar Issac! I first met Oscar when I was assistant directing with Chris Bayes at Juilliard for his production of The Birds.  Once seeing Oscar work I knew I had to ask him to be in our show.....and he agreed! Oscar was so generous and fun and all around fantastic to work and I am so grateful that he took a chance to jump onboard. Thank you Oscar!  If you want to check out more of Oscar, I've attached a link to his Facebook page.

The Amazing True Adventures of Buckbean Bushytail is not only toy theater, but it's also a musical! And that is thanks to the unmatched  talents of composer/performer Lisa Dove! Check it out: she's playing cello and piano at the same time!!  Click below to hear one of my favorite songs in the show! Rabbit Valley!! Thanks to Lincoln O"Brien for his guitar on this track

I was so lucky to have such talented performers on this project. Above is the singer/actor/songwriter and ukulele master Kellie Rae Powell! Here she is singing the very first song of the show : Luna, named after the moth puppet she is puppeteering. Click below to hear the song!

At the tender age of only 7 years old actor/singer/musician Hawken Paul lent his talents to the show, taking on multiple characters! He was absolutely perfect and  an audience favorite!  Since then Hawken has gone on to perform in both NYC and Minneapolis where he is taking the midwest by storm with his musical and acting talent! Check him out on Instagram to see what he's up to now!

The play was set on a rotating turntable that encapsulated the world of Buckbean, ranging from the bucolic Rabbit Valley to the desolation of the Shrub's lair. It was painstaking hand-painted by the phenomenal Anya Ulnich.  The characters were toys, moved and voiced by the actors. Playing the the way that children play with toys was how the show came to life.

This project came at such an important time in my life. Lisa and I were in the thick of parenting young children and like many artists, trying to balance our artistic lives. At a certain point, you have to consider just hanging it all up and calling it quits to this "art stuff". But along comes an idea....and people that are willing to lend their talents....and before you know it, there's something magical.