Dirt
4 men, 3 women, plus a small chorus
2 Acts, 87 pages
24 songs
Dirt is a musical that follows a sort of “quest”, looking for The Meaning, The Secret, and happens in the form of a journey. Along the way, the hero gets distracted and loses his way. The heroine realizes her spirit is actually bound in her home, in her “Dirt”. There is a mysterious old man who ushers them along, and two friends who never leave home at all. The things is set, perhaps oddly, in North Alabama in 1973. Mainly because I know the time and place, but with some modifications, I could have used another setting and time. The idea of The Quest is after all pretty universal.
Cast of Characters
- Tara Loomis. Woman, 19-25. Loves adventure, or at least believes that she does. She wants to go somewhere, somehow. And preferably somewhere else. Nevertheless, her roots are definitely in her home soil. She is in love with Bracken.
- Bracken Thomas. Man, 19-25. Tara’s soul mate. A different ilk, though: he’s a thinker, the weird one, who believes that The Answer is Out There Somewhere. Doesn’t have a tie to his roots, and thus no staying power when times get rough.
- Lois Mudd. Woman, 19-25. Tara’s best friend, but of a decidedly different temperament. A stay at home, very country girl. Lois and Tara were in school together, might have been in the same sorority, certainly roomed together in college.
- Clay Banks. Man, 19-25. Bracken’s best friend, and Lois’ soon to be newlywed husband, although he doesn’t know it. A real nutcase, paranoid about the government and the Illuminati. Clay is NRA and hunting and fishing and beer.
- Mose Jordan. Man, 40-60. A mysterious old man who shows up wherever Tara and Bracken go, and who always seems to know more than he possibly could.
- Lissa. Woman, 14-17. Tara’s eventual daughter, an extremely self-assured tomboy who is fearless and disarming. She has her mother’s deep-rooted security combined with her father’s almost cosmic curiosity. She should be played by a Creek Chorister.
- Clay, Jr. Man, 15-17. Lois and Clay’s son. Much like his father. Also played by a Creek Chorister.
- Creek Chorus. 4-8 men and women (depending on availability) who become (at need) crowds, friends, perform scene changes.
Musical Numbers
"Dirt Prologue"
"Further Down the Road"
"Fools Jump In"
“Somewhere Else”
"The Other Side"
"Where Are We Going?"
"Further Down the Road (1st Reprise)"
"Where Are We Going? (Reprise)"
“Nothing Like New Orleans”
“Making Barbecue/ Making a Baby”
“Traditions Die Hard”
“More Than A Journey”
"On Top Chant"
“Suppose”
"Further Down the Road (2nd Reprise)"
“Deep Waters”
“Who You Gonna Blame?”
"Goodbye, Wyoming"
“One Side or the Other”
"Crossover"
“Dirt”
“Golden Gate”
"On Top"
“Go For Love”
Running Time: 1 hour 45 minutes, with an intermission
Set: The set is very stylized, mainly exterior locations: The area below Big Bridge, Legion Field in Birmingam, Taos, New Mexico, etc. Every place is hinted at, rather than made explicit.
Performance Video. To date, there has been no performance of Dirt. Dirt Perusal video has the script inline with the vocal score. Dirt Music Persual video takes you to a video that presents only the music.
Here is another presentation, basically a table read of the script together with the songs (if you prefer to listen as opposed to reading): Dirt Table Read Perusal Video.
