Junk
A Bass~Hartman Musical
A play about a yard sale and a mermaid.
Book by Molly Bass
Music and Lyrics by Molly Bass and Jeff Hartman
Arrangements by Jeff Hartman
Art by John David Brown III
Butterfly Moo | Plastic Moon © 2015. All rights reserved.
Original Cast Album available on iTunes, Amazon, Spotify and more.
For Charles E. Jeffers
Originally Developed for the Stage at Hickory Arts
Originally Produced by Hickory Theatre
Hickory, NC
FULL SYNOPSIS
This is a story about a yard sale, a mermaid and the lives of the people around it, both sellers and buyers. Karissa is holding a sale to get rid of some excess baggage—including the “junk” left behind by her ex-boyfriend, Dwight. Things get kinda’ complicated when he shows up to the sale unknowingly with his new girlfriend. A trio of veteran pickers add to the fun.
MATERIALS AND ORCHESTRATION
MATERIALS FOR JUNK
SCRIPT
LIBRETTO
PIANO CONDUCTOR'S SCORE
STANDARD ORCHESTRATION
CELLO
WOODWINDS
PERCUSSION
SHOW ESSENTIALS
8 Roles
Rated PG-13
2 ACTS
FULL CAST INFO
Casting
• Cast Size: Small (8 performers)
• Cast Type: Star Vehicle Female
• Dance Requirements: None
Character Breakdown
Karissa
Late 20’s/early 30’s; a sexy nerd or a nerdy, hot girl; insecurely strong or strongly insecure; very OCD
Gender: Female
Age: 25 to 35
Vocal range top: D5
Vocal range bottom: F#3
The Mermaid
Karissa’s inner voice; a little-girl’s dream of the most beautiful, whimsical, and powerful siren of the sea
Gender: Female
Age: 15 to 25
Vocal range top: F5
Vocal range bottom: G#3
Jann
One of the pair of ladies you always see at a yard sale; blunt, crass and hateful, but that’s why you love her
Gender: Female
Age: 55 and up
Vocal range top: E5
Vocal range bottom: D4
Jean
The other lady in the pair you always see at a yard sale; a kinder, gentler Jann; actually has manners and feelings
Gender: Female
Age: 55 and up
Vocal range top: E5
Vocal range bottom: C4
Joe
A professional junker; loves the “game” of yard sales; very direct
Gender: Male
Age: 55 and up
Vocal range top: E4
Vocal range bottom: A2
Dwight
Karissa’s ex-boyfriend; a man-boy; doesn’t want to grow up, not much ambition, coasts through life
Gender: Male
Age: No younger than Karissa
Vocal range top: G4
Vocal range bottom: G2
Crystal
Dwight’s new girlfriend; a hairstylist; a total free spirit, loves life and adventures, does not like to waste her time thinking too much
Gender: Female
Age: 18 and up
Vocal range top: E5
Vocal range bottom: G4
The Extra
The recurring buyer at the yard sale; “wears 20 costumes with not one line to
say”
Gender: Male
Age: Any
Vocal range top: G4
Vocal range bottom: C3
FULL BILLING
Billing
Book by Molly Bass
Music and Lyrics by Molly Bass and Jeff Hartman
Arrangements by Jeff Hartman
Requirements
You must give the authors/creators billing credits, as specified in the Production Contract, in a conspicuous manner on the first page of credits in all programs and on houseboards, displays and in all other advertising announcements of any kind.
Percentages listed indicate required type size in relation to title size.
JUNK
(100%)
Book by MOLLY BASS
Music and Lyrics by MOLLY BASS and JEFF HARTMAN
Arrangements by JEFF HARTMAN
(50%)
Originally Produced for the North Carolina stage by
Hickory Arts
(10%)
Originally Produced by Hickory Theatre
Hickory, NC
(10%)
Butterfly Moo & Plastic Moon Billing
In accordance with the Dramatic Performing Rights License, all publicity materials (posters, programs, etc.) MUST include the following credit:
Junk
Is presented through special arrangement with Butterfly Moo & Plastic Moon.
All authorized performance materials are also supplied by Hickory Arts.
www.hickoryarts.com
The videotaping or other video or audio recording of this production is strictly prohibited.
SONGS
FULL SONG LIST
Song List
• Overture - Pier Pressure
• Everything Must Go
• Rock Hard
• Ding Dong
• Treasure Hunters
• Pleasure Hunters
• Cue Joe
• Crystalize
• Crystal Tail
• What She Said
• You're So Plain
• Crystal's Ball
• Fish in That There Sea - Lifeguard
• Dwight's Plight
• Sandcastle
• Pier Two
• Never Forever
• Blah Blah Blah
• Crystal Lite
• La La La
• Fish in That There Sea (Reprise)
• Seashells
• Pleasure Hunters (Reprise)
• Driftwood
• The Extra
• Bite You
• Ocean
• Begin Again - The Mermaid
• Finally
• Fish In That There Sea (Bows)
COST
Flat $250 per Performance
HISTORY
Inspiration
Jeff Hartman, “Junk” composer, is the Artistic Director and a teaching artist for Hickory Arts, specializing in artist development.
“I like to call it a ‘Psuesical.’ That would be a ‘psuedo-musical.’ It’s a play with music vs. a musical with some lines thrown in between. Molly is brilliant, hilarious and the simplicity of it all is what makes her very own brand of humor and writing so special. It’s been a pleasure contributing to ‘Junk.'”
“The spark for ‘Junk’ came from a passage in the book, ‘The Mermaid Chair,’ by Sue Monk Kidd,” Bass says. Molly Bass is “Junk’s” playwright. Many of her plays have been produced at Hickory Theatre. “She describes a painting of a mermaid diving to the bottom of the ocean with different objects streaming off of her—a spatula, refrigerator magnets, apple peels, etc. So my mind jumped to—’what if a mermaid had a yard sale?’ That description also led me to think about cleansing, baptism, renewal. Then ‘Karissa,’ the main character of ‘Junk,’ was born!”
Productions
Junk, a musical written by Molly Bass & Jeff Hartman, premiered in the newly renovated Firemen's Kitchen at Hickory Theatre in Hickory, NC, in 2015. The production ran for 1 month and starred Grace Bollinger, Connie Bools, Joni Coppinger, Bill Boyd, Daniel Breuer, Nathan Crabtree, Carol Anne Hartman and Shannon Underwood. The show sold out.
With new producers, the musical later opened in the Jeffers Theatre on October 14, 2016, closing on October 30 of the same month. Allison Andrews, Molly Bass, Jairo Pereira and Jeremy Whitener stepped in to star opposite Connie Bools, Joni Coppinger and Bill Boyd, as Breuer, Crabtree, Hartman and Underwood had taken off for prior commitments.
Critical Reaction
"An unexpected treasure! Like finding a rare and vintage item at a random rummage sale, this play is exactly that, a discovered gem that was originally performed at a community theatre..."
— Dave O'Sullivan, Our Town Sarasota
Awards
North Carolina Theatre Conference | Community Theatre Festival
2016 - Winner
Hickory Theatre | Kay Awards
2016 - Outstanding Character Actress in a Musical, Winner (Connie Bools)
Southeastern Theatre Conference | Community Theatre Festival
2017 - Outstanding Actress in a Musical, Winner (Allison Andrews)
