Frank J. Avella Talks with Jennifer Westin and Andrew Loschert of the 2006 Fringe Show, Only a Lad

Only a Lad is quickly becoming the pre-buzz breakout Fringe Fest production this year. Featuring the music of 80’s sensation Oingo Boingo (lead singer Danny Elfman has gone on to be one of the pre-eminent film and television composers), it’s certainly one of the more fascinating curios in the Fringe lineup. I recently spoke with book writer Andrew Loschert and producer Jennifer Westin about their first New York theatrical experience.

Frank J. Avella: Why Oingo Boingo?

Andrew Loschert: Huge Fan! It’s great music, and it was just begging to be put on the stage.

Frank J. Avella: How did you secure the rights to use their music?

Andrew Loschert: When I first told Jennifer I wanted to write a musical with the music of Oingo Boingo, she (always the producer) pointed out how difficult it might be to secure a license to the songs. We agreed that without my having a reputation to precede me, I had to have a product to present. So I wrote the whole thing and then we tackled the rights.

When it came time to approach Danny Elfman’s people—Danny Elfman was the lead singer and composer for Oingo Boingo, and owns the copyright to the music—Jenn gave me some terrific advice. She told me to go through the proper channels. Find out who licenses the music and start making calls. It took some time, but eventually I was speaking to Dimensional Music’s LA office. They asked for the script and… eventually agreed to grant us a license.

When anyone asks me how to get the rights to use someone’s songs I tell them what Jenn told me…More than anything, have patience. Start to finish, it took me about eight months to get the license. There are no guarantees. Remember, you are asking for the right to work with someone else’s art. Respect that, and respect those who are tasked with protecting that art, and who knows what you might accomplish?

Frank J. Avella: What came first, the story or wanting to use specific OB songs?

Andrew Loschert:: A few particular songs (“Only a Lad,” “Private Life,” “Wild Sex (in the Working Class)”) inspired the story. Then I had about thirty songs I hoped to fit in somewhere. But the story had to stand on its own. So in the next part of the process, I guess the story came first. Then I chose the final twenty-or-so songs that would be in the piece and retooled the story so the songs would fit in seamlessly. It was really a pendulum. One day it was time to tweak the story to fit in the perfect song. Another day it was time to fix a plot problem with the story regardless of how it might affect the songs. Then the next day it was back the other way.

Frank J. Avella: Tell us about your professional backgrounds.

Jennifer Westin: My background is in theatre, in LA. Then I moved to NY to get into film (I know, I’m all backwards). I’m graduating from Columbia’s graduate film program in October with an emphasis in producing.

Andrew Loschert: Three years ago I received my Master’s degree in Professional Writing from the University of Southern California. Since then I’ve been working on my own projects, mainly this musical, a novel and a screenplay. When I’m not writing, I abridge manuscripts for a bunch of audiobook publishers.

Frank J. Avella: This is your first musical, Andrew, can you describe the process of writing the book to Only a Lad?

Andrew Loschert: It started three years ago when I got out of grad school and Jenn and I were preparing to drive across the country on our move to New York. I had always been a big Oingo Boingo fan and I used to road trip to get back into the music. You know, there’s lots of time to fill driving 2500 miles.

So I spent the whole trip, and most of that summer, listening to this music from my youth. I fell in love all over again. But this time there was something I had not picked up on before. There was a theatricality to the music (something Danny Elfman definitely cultivated in his later work composing film scores). There was also an immediacy to the music. Almost all the songs were in the present tense; they were action-oriented. I began to see that these were not a bunch of songs talking about distant memories and feelings. These songs were “in the moment,” so-to-speak.

At the end of that first summer, I got serious about the story. I assembled all the Oingo Boingo albums I had and bought the rest. For about the next year, I listened to nothing else. I played the songs night and day (mostly on my Ipod) everywhere I went. Slowly the story built in my head. Then I spent the last two years writing draft after draft. My main goal was to seamlessly integrate the songs into a fully-developed story. For this show to work, I felt I had to make it sound and feel like these songs were written specifically for the show. They incorporate the driving action and propel the story forward.

The other side of this issue was that I worked very hard to remain true to what I felt was the original intent and tone of the songs…I tried to remain true to that essence.

Frank J. Avella: Jennifer, what are your producing duties and how have they differed in comparison to your film producing experience and knowledge?

Jennifer Westin: My duties have ranged from working with Andrew on the script, to hiring the crew, to participating in casting, to watching the budget, to making sure my actors (several of whom are… between homes) are ok. I cover the nitty gritty of how the set pieces get from my living room, where they are being stored, into the theater; to more global issues of “is the show headed in the right direction”, is everyone on the same page creatively.

These issues are all very similar to producing films. What’s an added challenge about producing theatre is that you’re selling the product at the same time you’re creating it. The first day of rehearsal I was collecting bios for the press kit. It’d be like launching a marketing campaign for a film during pre-production. It’s a little nuts.

It is nice not to need as much equipment, though!

Frank J. Avella: Jennifer, you had a short film at Tribeca. Tell us about the film and the response.

Jennifer Westin: The short I had in Tribeca is called Twenty Dollar Drinks and stars Sandra Bernhard and Cady Huffman. It’s based on a one-act play by Joe Pintauro and was directed by a classmate of mine, David Brind. Making the film was a fantastic experience for me because it was relatively small in scope—two old friends who have gone separate ways meet for drinks—but we had a great cast and a wonderful creative team behind it. The challenging part really was finding (and holding on to) the locations. We needed a place that the audience would believe Sandra’s character (a Golden Globe winning actress) would hang out. Swanky bars are easy to find in this city, but harder to find is one that wants a film crew tromping around their place at 7am. We ended up faking three locations for one (The Pen Top Terrace at the Peninsula Hotel, Crobar and Sway Lounge). I’m very proud to say that the entire thing was shot in Manhattan with a NY cast and crew. I think our NY roots, as well as the fact that the story is set in Manhattan, played a big role in our acceptance at Tribeca. They’re very good about supporting home-grown films. The film continues to play well on the festival circuit; we’re headed to Rhode Island Film Festival next.

I have another short called The Dawn Chorus, directed by Hope Dickson Leach, which has its world premiere next week at the Edinburgh Int’l Film Festival—and we just found out we got into the London Film Festival as well.

Frank J. Avella: How has the Fringe treated you so far?

Andrew Loschert: The Fringe has been a great experience. Obviously, the timeframe makes everything a little frantic, but everyone at the Fringe has been so helpful. They’re organizing this whole huge festival. All we have to do is put on one show.

Jennifer Westin: I can’t imagine how Elena Holy (the AD) does it. I’m maxed out handling one show and she’s looking after 200+!

Frank J. Avella: In this baptism by inferno, what has been the most challenging part of the process? What has been the most rewarding part of the process so far? The most frustrating?

Jennifer Westin: It’s challenging to convince people to work their butts off for peanuts, but it’s very rewarding to see the people who are willing to do so enjoy themselves in the process.

Andrew Loschert: Challenging: Writing the script. Rewarding: Watching it come alive as the actors make it their own. Frustrating: Letting it go so the director and cast can do their work without me messing things up.

Frank J. Avella: Casting a musical can't be easy since you need good, solid actors who can also sing (and dance). What was the audition process like? Who made the decisions?

Andrew Loschert: I am AMAZED at the talent in this city. We needed a cast that can act, sing and dance. And we got it. Our casting was a joint decision between me, Jenn, Rob Seitelman (our director), and Mary Ann Ivan (our music director). We probably saw a couple hundred people, but were VERY lucky to end up with the group we got.

Jennifer Westin: I second that. I couldn’t be happier with our cast. Not only are they awesomely talented, they’re very committed to the project. It makes a big difference when everyone is working at 110%.

Frank J. Avella: Only a Lad has a staggering cast of fifteen actors, enormous especially for a Fringe show. How has that been working out?

Jennifer Westin: Scheduling is a total freakin’ nightmare. But the upside of having a cast of fifteen is that Rob and Mary Ann can really flesh out the staging and vocals. Hopefully it looks like a much bigger show than our budget would suggest.

Frank J. Avella: You are not only business partners, but also, engaged. How do you keep the profesh and the personal separate?

Andrew Loschert: [to Jennifer] Is there a “personal” right now, babe? No seriously, that’s always a concern for us. It’s quite a blessing to be able to spend so much time together… but on the other hand, we sit in our tiny office for fourteen or more hours a day working on this show. Then we cruise over to rehearsal and meetings. We have to work very hard to carve out time for us, without work. DVDs of “Alias” from Netflix really help in a pinch!

Jennifer Westin: The advantage is that unlike most couples who are busy with work, we get to see a lot of each other. The disadvantage is that we see A LOT of each other. Our bed is about four feet from the “production office” which is also the writer’s room. It’s a challenge. On the other hand, it’s an amazing opportunity to support each other’s careers.

Frank J. Avella: What is Only a Lad about?

Andrew Loschert: Only a Lad is a rock musical set in 1984 about love, anger and alienation. It’s about growing up, trying to define yourself when The Man is telling you where you fit.

Only a Lad is the story of outsiders. Some, like the main character, Johnny, are literally on the outside of society. They are punks and toughs. But for others, it’s more internal…Who hasn’t felt, at one time or another, that it was them against the world? If there’s one thing I hope audiences connect to in this show, it Johnny’s journey and his eventual realization that being on the outside doesn’t mean he’s worthless.

Frank J. Avella: What are your ultimate hopes for Only a Lad?

Andrew Loschert: “Ultimate?” Wow, that seems like a real big word right now. We’re just trying to put up the best production possible right now. We’re trying to stay focused on giving the audience the best show we can. If we can do that, whatever is meant to happen will follow.

Jennifer Westin: I think the show has the potential to reach a broad audience--the music is fantastic. The book (if I may toot Andrew’s horn here) tells a real story that is very specific to its unique characters while holding onto universal themes. It’s not just a “jukebox” musical and you don’t have to be a Boingo fan to enjoy it (though we love the Boingo fans). That being said, right now we’re concerned with mounting this production. After that… vacation?

Frank J. Avella: NYC can be a VERY daunting city but it can also be a welcoming place, what has been your best NYC experience so far?

Jennifer Westin: Honestly, doing this show. I know it sounds cheesy, but I’m having a great time!

Andrew Loschert: Ditto.