INTERVIEW: Musical theater stars assemble for new audiobook project
Jeff Flaster amassed quite the musical theater royalty for his new audiobook experience. Titled Following Jimmy Valentine, the project is an audio adaptation of the famous O. Henry story A Retrieved Reformation, and listeners can expect a touch of jazz, some comedy and lots of noirish fun. The actors bringing the characters to life include Kerry Ellis (Wicked), Hadley Fraser (The Phantom of the Opera) and Celinde Schoenmaker (The Light in the Piazza), according to press notes.
The story focuses on Jimmy Valentine, played by Fraser, who is trying to begin his life anew, but there are complications with a police detective (Ellis) and newfound love (Schoenmaker). Plus, he cannot outrun his past.
Recently Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Flaster to learn more about the project and what inspired him to adapt the O. Henry tale. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
When did you first get inspired to create this unique project?
In 2017, Asher B. Durand’s painting “The Beeches,” in which a figure emerges into sunlight from deep shadow, spoke directly to my experience of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) — knowing that the war is over, but still feeling its shadow. For a decade, I had stepped away from writing music to build a paying career that would later give me financial freedom, and to do serious work in therapy to learn how to change my emotional responses. This reconstruction made it possible to return to music in a way that was connected rather than isolated — and to engage fully with O. Henry’s A Retrieved Reformation, a story about reinvention that echoed my own.
For those who need explaining: What exactly is a musical audiobook?
A musical audiobook is a complete, full-cast musical created specifically for listening. It combines scripted dialogue, fully produced songs and evocative sound design — but the stage is the listener’s mind. In some ways it’s ancient; humans have listened to stories aloud since the invention of fire. In other ways, it’s modern, allowing people to experience a musical in their own space, for a fraction of the cost of theatre. And even stars were willing to fit a few recording dates around their touring schedules for the chance to be part of something that could last a thousand years.
How would you describe the character of Jimmy Valentine?
Jimmy Valentine is a charming and notorious jewel thief who wants to go straight, but carries baggage that won’t fit in his suitcase of burglar’s tools. He’s so conflicted about whether real change is possible that his reflection becomes an independent character who believes Jimmy can do better, even when Jimmy doubts it himself. In time, Jimmy comes to see that he can be better — but is it too late?
Like Jimmy’s story, do humans have the power to change?
Yes — but not by pretending the past never happened. Jimmy’s deepest change happens only when he’s willing to face the part of his past he’s been trying to forget, at a moment when his choice will affect the lives of everyone around him. I know people can change at a deep level because I have — not by changing everything, but by doing the work in therapy. That’s why I believe the greatest battles lie within us.
Does your background at MIT help with your work in music, or are they separate worlds?
At MIT, I tried to keep math and music in separate compartments: calculus by day, singing at night. But my brain had its own ideas, noticing the aesthetics in equations and the math in melodies. Through my work as a software engineer, I developed an approach to composition that has never been taught in music school — one that applies Beethoven’s principles to the jazz, pop, and rock styles of the 20th century, and lets me answer the question: What would it sound like if Beethoven wrote a country song?
What was it like working with this talented group of voice actors?
It was like reaching for the stars — and actually catching them. I selected my cast by listening because this is an audio-only medium, and everything has to live in the voice. In the previous work of my cast, I heard danger, adventure, loss, resilience, humor and love. In this project, they brought all of that into the studio — and more.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Following Jimmy Valentine, written by Jeff Flaster, is now available as an audiobook. Click here for more information.
