Pit Orchestra Percussion
Most notably, I've had the opportunity to serve as Resident Drummer for the Timberlake Playhouse (Equity) Summer 2024 Season (June 6-August 26). This comprised of 4 different productions (Footloose, Anything Goes, Wizard of Oz, Jekyll & Hyde), with each running for several weeks of performances after 4 rehearsals. My Resident duties also included multiple weekly cabaret-styled pre-shows, which required sight-reading new tunes with a stripped down setup and little to no rehearsal.
However, past productions have included:
1) 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (2013),
2) Legally Blonde (2014, 2019, 2021, 2025)
3) *Guys and Dolls (2015),
4) Footloose (2016, 2024, 2026),
5) Annie Get Your Gun (2016),
6) Daniel (independent premiere 2017),
7) Heathers (2019, 2021)
8) Cinderella (2019, 2021) (Rodgers and Hammerstein)
9) Carrie (2021)
10) Holiday Inn (2021)
11) Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief (2021) (Long Island Premiere!)
12) Rent (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)
13) *Beauty and the Beast (2021)
14) Beehive (2022)
15) Annie (2022)
16) Pippin (2022, 2024)
17) Head Over Heels (2022)
18) *The Drowsy Chaperone (2022)
19) The Addams Family (2022, 2023)
20) Jesus Christ Superstar (2022)
21) Hello Dolly (2022)
22) Franklin Pierce Dragon Slayer (2022)
23) Rock of Ages (2022)
24) Young Frankenstein (2023)
25) In the Heights (2023, 2025)
26) Alice by Heart (2023) (Long Island Premiere!)
27) Mean Girls (2024)
28) Xanadu (2024)
29) Mamma Mia (2024)
30) The Olympians (2024, World Premiere with Theatre Rights Worldwide)
31) The Wizard of Oz (2024)
32) Anything Goes (2024, 2026)
33) Jekyll & Hyde (2024)
34) Grease (2025)
35) Spamalot (2026)
as well as roughly a dozen cabarets/variety shows scattered throughout!
References from MDs and Casting Directors are available upon request.
From equity productions, to local community theaters & church groups, to school musicals & everything in between, I've played drum set/auxiliary percussion for multiple performances of each of the above listed shows.
Although I genuinely view every opportunity to make music as a blessing, pit orchestras are my favorite gig to work. As such, I'm more than happy to play a new show, and I'm always looking to expand my repertoire. The earlier that you can send me charts for shows I haven't yet played, the better! But I also meticulously study OST's and whatever resources I can find in order to familiarize myself with new musicals. Also, I'm open to experimentation if we're working without sheets/books/charts (which was the case, for item #6 above)!
*I've also done a bit of time onstage as well, so here are some particularly notable mentions for shows I got to act in, years before I started playing pits!
1) The Drowsy Chaperone (Man in Chair)
2) Beauty and the Beast (Lumiere)
3) Guys and Dolls (Big Jule). (Also worth mentioning that this was the first show I sight read at the performance!)
(Note: this time onstage furnished me with an invaluable appreciation for the "theatre" half of "musical theatre," which orients my pit percussion playing.
Pit music = usually enhancement, often transition, and sometimes background. The band should never "compete" with the cast, unless the show calls for it—which is rare—and the book/director say so! Short of that, it's the band's job to play under/augment the cast, hit cues, and stay together—which all only goes double for the drummer!)
Finally, one of the joys of pit experience is making contacts, which I sincerely strive to do each time I'm lucky enough to get a call: so, if you need an instrument covered that isn't even percussion, feel free to contact me with inquiries. Odds are, I can refer a dependable musician (and I love giving referrals)!
Demo clip links: (check back for updates)
The Key Is In You from Alice by Heart (starts about 2 minutes in!)
Clip from Rent, "Another Day"
25 Minute Rent Concert @Montclair Pride 2022
Beehive, "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?"
Beauty and the Beast, "Be Our Guest" (starts at 2:45!)
Pippin, "Magic to Do" (and first ~10 minutes!)
The Drowsy Chaperone, "Overture and Direct Segue into Fancy Dress"
The Drowsy Chaperone, "Fancy Dress"
The Drowsy Chaperone, "Toledo Surprise"
25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee Part 1
25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee Part 2
"Mama Who Bore Me", a friend's 2016 Senior Recital