10 episodes
Making Musicals with Holly Yurth Richards Holly Yurth Richards
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- Arts
Hello and welcome to Making Musicals with me - your host - Holly Yurth Richards. I am an award-winning playwright, composer, lyricist and librettist who is passionate about crafting new stories for the musical theatre stage. I created this podcast as a way to share my story about how I got started in this fascinating field of work and to offer insight and guidance to other writers about my process, about other writers’ processes, and on the available resources out there - which are surprisingly plentiful, when you know where to look for them. Come make musicals with me!
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Episode 09 - Advice for the Journey (Part 1)
Holly's back! In this episode, Holly shares 6 points of advice for staying sane in the journey of writing musical theatre.1) Let go of the fact that there is no set path to success2) Listen to others' work and applaud them; keep abreast of what's happening3) Work on your mindset - there is room for everyone to be successful4) Make your bed and work in a different space5) Celebrate your wins, no matter how small6) Go about your path in your own way; embrace your unique journeyAs always, Holly ...
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Episode 08 - Killing Your Darlings
Oh, no! You can't mean it! Not my favorite song! Noooooooooo.....Yes. She does mean it. Sometimes we have to be willing to "kill our darlings" in order to make our show the best it can be. Join Holly as she discusses just a few of the reasons why we must, at times, make the ultimate sacrifice for the benefit of our art.
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Episode 07 - Tips for Writing Strong Melodies
What makes a strong melody? What is it about certain songs that people simply cannot resist singing along ("Sweet Caroline...Ba Ba BA")? In this episode, we take a look at things like melodic patterns, melodic leaps, melodic range, and more.
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Episode 06 - Lyric Writing #1 - You Get One Chance
This episode marks the first of many in the fascinating and satisfying realm of lyric writing. Today Holly talks about three main concepts to keep in mind while writing lyrics for your show: You Get One ChanceWrite the Way People SpeakFind Integrity in True Rhyme SchemesThe subject of lyric writing is so vast and nuanced that Holly looks forward to exploring more with you in subsequent episodes. Also, shout out to NAMT and the Festival of New Musicals!
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Episode 05 - Welcome to Zion and the Mormon Conundrum
In this episode, I go more in depth into the beginnings of my show Welcome to Zion and why its premise matters. It's no secret that LGBTQ people can often feel on the outside of their faith communities, for many reasons. There is no denying that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - aka Mormon or LDS - has an especially troubling dichotomy between what is taught to be necessary for salvation and the experience and mental health of its LGBTQ members. Why is it so distressing to be ...
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Episode 03 - Demos, Broadway is Back, and Why Theatre is Important
In this episode Holly discusses her recent time in the recording studio with Austin Comfort laying down some demo tracks for Welcome to Zion. She also gives a brief overview of her trip this week to New York City, as well as discussing why the magic and voyeuristic component of live theatre is important.