Mark Pietri and Michael Kaplan (photos courtesy Michael Kaplan).
“No sets, no costumes, just four stools.”
Central Coast resident Michael Kaplan is describing his most recent work for the stage, It Takes Two: Brand New Songs About Same Old Love, written with local musician Mark Pietri. “The concept behind the show was we wanted to create something that would be portable.”
Kaplan has been writing musicals for 10 years. It Takes Two has been produced three times: at By the Sea Productions in Morro Bay, the Unitarian Universalist Church in San Luis Obispo, and Templeton Performing Arts Center last year. The show featured four performers and pianist Pietri.
According to Pietri, the process of writing a musical is similar to molding clay. “It’s always malleable and it’s always shifting back and forth.” He says final completion takes around two years: a year to write and another to find a venue.
Kaplan and Pietri met via Craigslist when Kaplan posted an ad. Kaplan starts with lyrics and a scratch melody. Pietri then adds rhythm to the words.
“I take the rudiments that he brings me,” Pietri says. “And then bring it up as many notches as I need to until we feel like it’s where we want it to be.”
It Takes Two is one of four musicals the two have written together. The performance takes the audience on a musical journey of falling and flatlining in love, according to Kaplan.
“That show was by far the most personal thing I had put on stage,” Kaplan says. “I was really gratified by the feedback and people telling me how much they could relate to the material and the ideas within the songs and the monologues.”
Because the show received such a great audience response, Kaplan decided to record it and publish it on Apple Music.
“I think that musical theatre is better at creating a sense of joy in the audience than any other art form I’ve ever encountered,” Kaplan says. “I think there are certain moments in musicals where the audience practically levitates out of their seats if it’s done well.”
Alongside his day job at Transitions Mental Health Association in San Luis Obispo, Kaplan is working on three new shows with Pietri, who has worked locally with SLO Little Theatre and The Great American Melodrama. “It’s always a pleasure to work with Michael and build something new,” Pietri says.