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Calling From The Dream.
"Minor things can become moments of great
revelation when encountered for the first
time."
Margot Fonteyn
The Dream Has Been Called
By Sean Blanda, Staff Reporter
As far as New Year's resolutions go, 51-year-old David Morehead likes to aim high. While most pledge to simply lose weight or get organized, Morehead had bigger plans. In the opening days of 2006, Morehead decided to act on one of his long held goals: to direct a rock opera. Thus Calling From The Dream was born.
“I came to the realization that either I have to pursue or drop the idea totally,” said Morehead, “I could no longer be wishy-washy or have a half hearted approach, and I made a commitment to succeed or fail trying.”
The seeds for the idea were first planted when Morehead saw Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell at the age of 17. But despite participating in school plays and being pretty good behind the keyboard, the idea always seemed to always be stuck on the back burner. Despite numerous hangups and discouragements, he decided to take the plunge on that New Years Day. A seed had been planted and Morehead had a mission.
“When I was watching , I found myself saying things to myself such as... 'I can do that!'” he said.
At first, Morehead shopped his idea around to a friend in the entertainment industry who gave him nothing but an obligatory “good luck.” Morehead then decided to administer the show on his own, relying on his business sense from his career as an accountant and his musical talents from his hobbies. Morehead was even referred to a special effects company upon meeting the referrer for the first time. Soon, the story and music behind Calling From The Dream began to take shape.
The opera focuses on the story of Revelation told through the eyes of St. John the Divine and is set in modern times, not the ancient biblical past. Not a particularly religious man, Morehead found himself identifying with Jesus although not necessarily his followers.
“Up until that time, I had heard a little of the story with its doom and damnation threats,” he said of Revelation's reputation as a gloomy apocalyptic tale, “but after I read it for myself I found it to be the contrary, a story of hope. I had found the base for my production.”
While still in production, Calling From The Dream is set to have its first show in Medellin, Colombia, followed by a South and Central American premier tour. A concept that is seems surreal to Morehead who painstakingly translated the concept from napkin doodles to a professional performance.
“I love Donny Deutsch's 'The Big Idea' , and hope someday to be on his show and thank him personally for what he did for me with his message of belief in dreaming big and going for it,” said Morehead who can credit a multitude of friends for his progress thus far. Friends such as a Chicago mother and son he refers to as “Hernandez and Son” who have given him goodwill and prayers since the inception of the play. However, Morehead has reserved telling some of his close friends and family.
“I have found complete strangers are more apt to give advice and direction,” he said.
ACT ONE
With the play nearing completion Morehead has high hopes for what it will accomplish. He hopes that Calling From The Dream becomes the topic of discussion the next day, or that the viewer is left humming one of the songs. Mostly, he aims for the same euphoria and motivation that permeated a film like Sylvester Stallone's Rocky.
“I would like them to think about what they saw and be touched by the message with an 'Aha, now I understand',” he said.
Such “Aha!” moments are buried throughout the play, the most obvious being the title which holds a dual meaning. One, a reference to John, as he told the story Revelation as it came to him from dream-like visions. The other is a not-so-subtle hint that this play has been a dream of Morehead's for quite some time. Morehead said that watching his vision begin to become reality is the result of a strong belief in not staying complacent and letting familiarity suffocate him.
“A lot of us tend to ignore or put aside and continue in our chosen direction,” he said, “sometimes with disastrous or unfulfilling results.”
In the most literal sense, Morehead would simply like to see the play flourish into a global tour while having some of his partners receive the accolades they deserve.
“I'm very lucky in that I have a lot of friends and very few enemies,” he said of the help he has received. But first, he is focused on finishing the show so he can begin in South America. However, even before the opening curtain, Morehead credits the play for a great deal of personal growth.
“We all come into the world and we exit the same way. How we live during that time is up to us,” he said.
In other words, he heard the calling from his dream. And with a little luck and perseverance, he hopes you will too.
Staging The Revelation
by Amy Forsyth
Talk about art imitating life; there could not be a more apropos time for David Morehead’s “Calling from the Dream” to debut. Amongst economic instability, vicious election campaigning, catastrophic hurricanes hitting the United States coasts…somehow, a pop/rock opera based upon the Revelations of John seem rather in keeping with the increasingly crazy world we live in.
But don’t get the wrong idea; Morehead is no bible-waving radical with a passion play message. For him, it’s all about the beauty, hope and positive energy that the Revelations inspire him with. After speaking to a somewhat typically ‘industry’ sounding man on the phone, deep radio voice and excellent manners, I was somewhat surprised when I met Morehead in person. Casually dressed and sporting a ponytail, he looked years younger than the fifty-three he admitted to. Constantly moving, he declined to sit during our interview, and cheerfully announced that he avoids sitting whenever possible, even when he eats. It’s easy to believe he’d be a hard one to keep still, as he is fairly bubbling over with energy and good natured charm from the first moment of our conversation. When I ask him his inspiration for such a fascinating and unique production, he lights up even more.
“When I was about seventeen, I saw ‘Godspell’ and ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’. I loved it, but I kept thinking to myself that I could do it differently and how much I would love to do something like that. Even though I had done school plays when I was younger and learned some musical skills, it never seemed like what I would do for my career. But when I was watching those two productions, I just knew it, I knew that what I wanted to do was bring my own vision of it to the stage. I wasn’t even all that religious before! After I saw those musicals, and examined it carefully, I realized that it wasn’t Jesus I had the issue with. It’s the people who claim they follow Him, and work for Him, and instead ignore the message of tolerance and love that He conveyed.”
Of course, the concept is just the beginning of any artist’s long and arduous journey to actually seeing it on the stage. Absolutely certain of what his show should be about, Morehead was then stymied by the most common roadblock along that path. Money. After shopping the idea around the entertainment business for a while, and receiving the obligatory and perfunctory “Sounds great! Call us when you have a financial backer!” sorts of responses, he set the project on the back burner and went on to pursue other interests and career options. But the dream never went away; through all the years after his initial epiphany, it nagged at the back of his mind, reminding him that he wasn’t doing what he wanted to do, wasn’t following his passion. Finally, on New Year’s Day in 2006, he decided to stop thinking of it as something he couldn’t do yet, and just do it. It was either that or let go of it completely, rather than having it eat away at him, like a movie you never get to see the end of.
“It was really that simple. I decided that day that I either had to do this…and really do it. Not halfway, not wishy-washy, or I had to be done. I really think that in our modern age, people have completely lost sight of following their dreams and their passions. Imagine how many fewer people would turn to drugs, alcohol or gambling if they were spending their lives doing what they truly were passionate about? People need to focus more on that, on being that person they know they want to be, rather than what other people expect from them, or what they’re willing to settle for. Your dreams should be your path, no matter how long it takes, or how difficult it is, it’s always more satisfying when all is said and done.”
So, after a long vacation from making his dream a reality, Morehead paired up with set designer Kelly Carter and music producer Eric Cap, and began making it all happen. The only thing he wasn’t completely sure about was the name. Apparently, that took some time, and when I ask how he came finally managed to come up with one, he chuckles.
“My dear friend, Michele LaCroix finally forced my hand in making a decision. Back in 1995, she used to help me out with secretarial work, keeping things straight. She’d seen me making notes on paper napkins, and put them on an actual computer, things like that. While we were transcribing all of my notes, she finally insisted that I come up with something, at least a working title. After some thought, I came up with the title and the tag-line of “Will you accept the call?" I suppose I am dating myself a bit with that comment, but in "those days”. John was called to deliver the message of things and events to come. He spoke of the visions, which were usually manifested in a dream-like state. Not to compare myself to such a great man such as John, but I feel this is my calling, to bring this idea to the stage and entertain and possibly influence people in a positive way.”
The show truly does span all genres and mediums, blending everything from gospel to rock, and from dance to modern and contemporary theatre. Also including dancing and special effects, the entire show is designed to appeal to every one of the audience’s senses, and let them experience the dreamlike visions of the prophet, through a very different lens. The concept has been met with quite a bit of support, for which Morehead is very grateful.
“I have some tremendous friends and supporters, and I am always inspired by everything around me. A mother and son duo out in Chicago known as “Hernandez and Son” have been a great source of support and feedback, I’m very lucky to have their input. Donny Deutsch’s show, ‘The Big Idea’, has always inspired me, and someday I’d love to go on there and tell him how much it’s helped me. I’m inspired by my family, friends, and even by my failures, and the failures I’ve watched others go through. A friend of mine once said that even a bad example is a good one, if you look at it the right way. Of course, he was talking about me….but the point is still a good one!”
Far and away from most of the other productions one could see, “Calling from the Dream” offers their audience a rare chance to experience something as transcendent and otherworldly as the Book of Revelations through the eyes of an artist, and to experience not the damnation and fear so often associated with it, but instead, a message of hope that is timely indeed.
- Amy Forsyth is a freelance journalist that lives near Seattle with her husband and children.
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