The Story Behind THE DAY THE SKY TURNED ORANGE

A soulful, House, R&B musical that helps us confront and make sense of our collective fear of the climate crisis, inspired by the lived experience of those in the Bay Area on Sept 9, 2020, the day the sky in San Francisco turned a troubling shade of amber, as ash rained down, due to thousands of wildfires spreading across the state.

“HOW FAR GONE?” OUT NOW!
SINGLE AND MUSIC VIDEO EARTH DAY RELEASE April 22, 2023 🌎🍃🌳

HOW FAR GONE?
Single and music video was released on Earth Day, Apr 22, 2023

We’re excited to release this first single on Earth Day 2023. Our love letter to Mother Nature, “How Far Gone?” is the heartbeat of The Day the Sky Turned Orange. Throughout the writing process, we kept coming back to this core, existential, bigger-than-us question of “how far have we gone?”

ORIGIN STORY + DEVELOPMENT

The origin story of this piece actually started 10 years ago, when Olivia Kuper Harris, a songwriter from Texas, and Rodney Earl Jackson Jr., a triple threat performer and aspiring activist from California, met at conservatory and became fast friends. After college, Rodney went on to found the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company, and build a community inspiring change from the ground up. Olivia went on to release records and tour the world as her musical career flourished.

Olivia got a call from Rodney in the fall of 2021, “I want you to write a musical about the day the sky turned orange in San Francisco,” he said.

“A musical? You know I write R&B songs about love, right?” said Olivia.

“Trust me. We need this,” replied Rodney.

Olivia enlisted her producing partner, David Michael Ott, known for writing and producing the music for Fox’s hit show, “Empire”.

The first writing retreat took place in March 2022 in San Francisco. Olivia and David interviewed people of all ages and walks of life across the Bay Area, and began writing music and lyrics inspired by those conversations, as well as the energy of the city, and collective consciousness.

The first public workshop took place in October 2022, at SFBATCO’s New Roots Theatre Festival, with a full cast, crew, and creative team.

Departing of traditional musical theater sounds and movement, this show consists of R&B, Soul, and House music, Modern and Hip Hop dance. The conversation observes how the climate crisis can at once feel existential, distant, immediate, and hitting so close to home. This show explores how we go about our daily lives, just try to survive and care for our immediate needs against a backdrop of fire and ash.

Our goal is to reach audiences that don’t usually frequent the theatre through music, dance, and stories that speak to us. We held our second writing retreat in March 2023, in Los Angeles. This time, bringing on book writer, Julius Ernesto, whom David and Olivia met at the New Roots Theatre Festival. For 10 days, the small team continued to develop what this concept album and theatrical experience could become.

WHY THIS PROJECT? WHY NOW?

The earth, our shared home, is speaking to us, if we’d only listen. On September 9th, 2020, the sun never came up in San Francisco. The sky remained a troubling shade of amber, as ash rained down, due to thousands of wildfires spreading across the state.

Amidst the loudness and pressing matters of the COVID-19 pandemic, Black Lives Matter protests, the upcoming presidential election, this fateful day barely made the news. The earth is mighty, but not boastful. The day the sky turned orange humbly and quietly passed us all by.

So, what can we do? As artists, it’s our job to open up a conversation. It’s our job to entertain, educate, and enlighten, while reflecting the current issues of our times. We feel strongly that through music that resonates with us, and stories that reflect us, we can inspire change.

And why shouldn’t music about change be on the radio, again?

The real question should not be, “why this project now?”

The question should be, “If not now, when?”

September 2020. San Francisco. An ominous sky.

High school science teacher Amari must let go of her grief while starting a new relationship; her brother, QC, grapples with the realities of long-COVID and his future as an artist; and her student, Alé, is just trying to pay for remote therapy.

Painted with the background of the ongoing pandemic, Black Lives Matters uprisings, and an upcoming election, these interconnected San Franciscans face yet another sobering moment: the day the sky turned orange.

This R&B and pop musical from Julius Ernesto, Olivia Kuper Harris, and David Michael Ott is a testament to living through the trials of 2020 as well as a compassionate reminder of the importance of caring for our planet, our communities, and ourselves.

March 2022: We had our first writers retreat and interviewed people all over San Francisco about their experience on Sept 9, 2020.

October 2022: First public workshop at the 2022 New Roots Theatre Festival

March 2023: We brought on playwright Julius Ernesto, to write the book for the show. We met up in Los Angeles for our second writers retreat where we created even more music, came up with a structure for the story and our characters.

November 2024: Second workshop at the 2024 New Roots Theatre Festival

September 2025: World Premiere of “The Day the Sky Turned Orange” on the 5 year anniversary of the day.

Lily Janiak of the SF Chronicle writes “On Sept. 9, 2020, it didn’t matter where in the Bay Area you lived, nor did your socioeconomic class, race or creed. When you looked out your window or stepped outside that morning, the sky was a postapocalyptic orange, the result of multiple wildfires raging in the West simultaneously.

Now the day that united our region for all the worst reasons is the subject of “The Day the Sky Turned Orange”…The piece doesn’t just make music of pivotal recent history. It’s an occasion to come together and process unresolved collective trauma.

‘People want to talk about it,’ music director, composer and performer Olivia Kuper Harris said in a group interview before a recent rehearsal. ‘It’s so rare that we get a sign, so rare that the Earth speaks to you.’”

Read the SF Chronicle Article here >>

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