Rock Opera 'Heal' Expands Into Major Theatrical Production

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Rock Opera 'Heal' Expands Into Major Theatrical Production

By Robert E. Martin

Timothy Boychuck

When Midland's Timothy Boychuck first composed his epic rock-opera known as Heal, performing it publicly a year ago in Midland and again in May at the Review Music Awards Ceremony, little did he know that through growing artistic interest it would evolve to the stage it has today.

But through expanded musical personnel and the interest of Carol Rumba at the Midland Music Society, Heal has now evolved into a full-blown theatrical production that will be featured in the 'Small Theatre' at Midland Center for the Arts at 8:00 PM on October 18th & 19th.

With a 'cast' of fluid & proficient musicians consisting of Boychuck on

guitar & vocals, Kirk LeClere on lead vocals, Ben Mayne on keyboards &

vocals, Rick Armstrong on bass, Troy Pomranky on drums, and James Young on

percussion; augmented by the new addition of guitarist Dan Deitsch and an

8-voice choir joining the powerful & soaring registers of female vocal trio

Georgia Burgeon, Tezra McPhillips and Melissa Block, this new production of

Heal will also add two interpretive dancers, additional choreography, and a

visual presentation that will require 3 computers to flash images & lyrics

on screens behind the band.  The production will also be separated into

three separate sets and costume changes.

 Not bad for a collective of artists that all carry conventional day jobs

and vary in age from 24 to 45 years old; but this is but one of the many

miracles that contribute to make Heal one of the most original &

captivating projects, not to mention the first & only 'Rock Opera', to ever

come out of the tri-cities.

Heal started as a compilation of 15 songs exploring the various human

conditions of Fear, Rage, Abuse, Sadness, Hope & Salvation from the

perspective of a Dog. For expanding the production, members met with Rumba

to develop a StoryBoard for the show, with new 'characters' taking over

singing certain songs.

"From a musical standpoint, the number one difference is that as a band

we've really meshed and come together," notes Boychuck. "The new personnel,

the choir, and the dancers add to the diversity."

"We've added one song in the beginning, extended the intro a bit, and

changed three songs, two of them dramatically.  This is definitely an

evolving work in progress and one of those things that doesn't seem to

end," smiles Boychuck.

"In adding more people our personalities all mesh and we share a great

camaraderie and exchange of ideas.  Everybody in the band is so

professional, more so than I," continues Tim

Kirk LeClere offers interesting perspective, admitting surprise at how the

project has taken on so much interest.

"The lst project we did a year ago was based on Tim's vision and we all

wanted to contribute to that. It started taking off when people began

witnessing all the energy everyone had in the production."

"Then we performed Heal acoustically at a dinner party last year and 50 to

60 people from Midland were watching us do it with acoustic guitars and Ben

sitting at a grand piano, which was really something. Everyone saw the

energy and felt how moving a piece it was, and one of the people there was

Carol. That's when she approached us about doing it again on a larger scale

at the Center."

Tim shares Kirk's enthusiasm. "Carol Rumba has been an immense help with

the direction, blocking out scenes and giving us critique and taking what

we have and fine tuning it, bringing it alive, so the words come through

more vividly," reflects Tim.

"And both Georgia Burgeon and Tezra have theatre backgrounds. Tezra

actually wrote all the choral parts and is directing the choir, while

Georgia is the glue to this whole thing, so in that sense Heal has been a

blessing."

Did Tim think his rock opera would ever reach this level of development?

"Never to my mind.  Everybody is having a lot of fun and is very excited.

Hopefully people will want to see it."

"I'm glad it has evolved to this point," notes Kirk. "It's amazing how it

has taken off. I think everyone involved is so glad to be part of it, not

only for Tim's sake, but because it is rewarding to make something like

this come to fruition. The whole creative process is so exciting."

Even more exciting than the pending production is the fact that the group

is also recording all the songs to Heal at Big Bear Production Studios up

in Midland. Close to 75% complete, the group hopes to have the CD available

by the holidays.

Heal is a remarkable musical production, generated and created entirely by

local talent, that in essence tells the tale of the Prodigal Son and the

phases of his life, from abuser to abused.

It is powerful, magical, and you are highly encouraged to catch the latest

escalation of this potent piece of art.

Tickets for HEAL are $8.00 for adults and $5.00 for students and available

at the Midland Center for the Arts Box Office. For more info call

989-631-8250 or 1-800-523-7694 or visit the HEAL website at

www.healrockopera.com

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