35mm: A Musical Exhibition

35mm: A Musical Exhibition

Music and lyrics by Ryan Scott Oliver

Based on the photographs by Matthew Murphy

Directed by Emily K Brown

Music directed by Jess Weston

Choreography by Katty Lau

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We were proud to present the New Zealand premiere of the artistically daring and emotionally compelling 35mm: A Musical Exhibition by Ryan Scott Oliver. Representing a collision of artistic disciplines of musical theatre, photography, and pop/rock music, 35mm turns the musical theatre format on its head, presenting a song cycle that guarantees audience members a truly irrepeatable experience. 35mm is Oliver’s love letter, not just to the idiosyncrasies of life and how our attempts to capture it, but also to the work of his husband, Matthew Murphy. Murphy is the creative mind behind most modern Broadway portraits and publicity photography, including Hamilton, Moulin Rouge! and Beetlejuice. 

35mm is a one act song cycle, blending musical genres which tell the stories of twelve photographs, displayed around the theatre for audiences to feel immersed in those stories. From the small nuances of long term relationships in the rock-tinged duet ‘You Make Me Happy' to the gothic all cast number ‘Ballad of Sara Berry’, 35mm explores what might have happened in the moments before and after the split second captured on camera.