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David Cale's We're Only Alive for a Short Amount of Time Opens at the Public Theater

The new musical is directed by Robert Falls.

Editorial Staff

Editorial Staff

| New York City | Off-Broadway |

June 28, 2019

We're Only Alive for a Short Amount of Time collaborators Matthew Dean Marsh, David Cale, and Robert Falls.
We're Only Alive for a Short Amount of Time collaborators Matthew Dean Marsh, David Cale, and Robert Falls.
(© Simon Luethi)

The Public Theater opened David Cale's We're Only Alive for a Short Amount of Time on June 27. Robert Falls's production runs through July 14.

Written and performed by Cale, and featuring music cowritten with Matthew Dean Marsh, the musical memoir is presented as a coproduction with Chicago's Goodman Theatre.

The autobiographical show is described as follows: "Growing up, writer/performer David Cale escaped his parents' fraught marriage by singing in his bedroom and tending to birds in his backyard animal hospital. Lush songs, featuring a six-piece orchestra, and an intimate portrait of his mother unite in Cale's vivid musical memoir of hope, family, and transcendence."

We're Only Alive for a Short Amount of Time features scenic design by Kevin Depinet, costume design by Paul Marlow, lighting design by Jennifer Tipton, sound design by Mikhail Fiksel, and arrangements and music direction by Marsh.

Production musicians Tyler Hsieh, Josh Henderson, Jessica Wang, John Blevins, and Tomina Parvanov.
Production musicians Tyler Hsieh, Josh Henderson, Jessica Wang, John Blevins, and Tomina Parvanova.
(© Simon Luethi)

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