[While our site is undergoing an upgrade, please look at the posts below for information and resources about the show.]

Myth is a new musical in development, with book & lyrics by Wes Driver and Greg Greene, and music by Michael Slayton.

Set in the familiar yet fantastical world of Greek myth, this original story tells of the machinations of kings, the tyranny of gods, and of a young woman who shows them all – mortal and immortal alike – what it takes to be truly human.

Myth has a completed script (book and lyrics) with music composed for approximately one-third of the songs.

This site features a brief plot synopsis, demo tracks from the show and news as we pursue opportunities for a production.

That’s the question asked by a Greek chorus to begin this rousing musical. And what story do they tell? A story worthy of legend but lost to history: the story of how and why the gods were cast from Mt. Olympus.

The princess of Athens and the prince of Thebes are to be married. But an oracle portends doom. The mortals challenge the Fates. The gods intervene. And what follows is a tale filled with such magic, mystery, and emotion it could only be realized in a rich, full-scale musical. A lush, sophisticated score (sometimes rollicking, sometimes tender) complements and drives this impassioned story, which includes surprising romances, unlikely heroes, and, of course, the incomparable gods in all of their majestic, decadent glory.

Moving from a war-ravaged earth to the dark depths of Tartarus and on to the gilded palace of Olympus – winding from outrageous comedy to harrowing tragedy before ending in a blaze of unforeseeable triumph – this is the original story of how the people of earth, heroes and criminals, princes and slaves, band together, subvert fate, and overthrow the tyrannical gods of ancient Greece.

Myth is a tale in two acts.

The story is told by a Greek chorus, from which spring the actors for specific roles. Myth features fourteen lead and supporting roles (nine males, five females), with an additional thirteen roles or groups to be played by the remaining chorus members (at least six males, six females). An optimal production will have between twenty-six and thirty actors.

Download a complete synopsis.

Myth contains 20 songs (14 songs, 6 reprises).

Click the song titles to listen to demo tracks from the first act (or right-click the title and choose Save Target As… to download a copy to your computer). Some tracks are fully orchestrated (with synthesized instruments), others are piano only. The full set of songs can be downloaded as a ZIP file.

Lyrics © 2008 Wes Driver and Greg Greene. Music © 2008 Michael Slayton.

Download all songs in this Myth songs ZIP file (38MB).

Special thanks

Guest vocalists on the demo tracks: Emily Webb, Katy Snow, Jennifer Christopher, Tracy Dean, Jessica Slayton, Christopher Jennings, Brad Forrister, Ashley Thompson.

Wes Driver and Gregory M. Greene began collaborating in 1992 with the satirical sitcom pilot “Take My Life, Please”. In the years following, they together wrote and produced a trilogy of full-length murder mysteries performed to sell-out crowds. In 1994, they began experimenting in the soon-to-emerge 24-hour play phenomenon, successfully writing, directing, and producing five one-acts.

Wes has been a professional writer for over ten years, working in advertising and publishing. His screenplays have received recognition from some of the nation’s most prestigious competitions (including Chesterfield Writer’s Film Project and the Austin Film Festival). His script “The Valet” won Cinestory’s very first Short Screenplay Competition. Wes has also ghostwritten a best-selling political satire for Nelson Current Publishers.

Greg has worked in marketing and communications since 1999. He has written, produced, and directed promotional videos for a number of nonprofit organizations and is a key developer of the children’s video series JAM Films, having authored twenty screenplays, directing or co-directing many of them.

Michael Slayton chairs the Department of Music Composition and Theory at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music, where he has taught since 1999. He holds the D.M.A from the Moore’s School of Music (University of Houston), where he studied with composers Michael Horvit and David Ashley White. Michael has been commissioned nationally and internationally for his concert works, with performances in Germany, Belgium, Norway, Portugal, the UK, and France. He has also been twice commissioned by the Nashville Ballet as part of the Emergence Project. Michael is the winner of the Louisa Stude Sarofim Prize in Composition (2000), and was named MTNA’s Composer of the Year in 2001.

Special thanks

Logo and website design: Derrick Castle (http://nashvillemafia.com)

Photography: Mark Pleasant (http://www.smallwonderstudio.com)

We’d love to get your feedback on the available Myth materials, or answer your production-related questions.

Send email to info@mythmusical.com.