SET IN 1974
This ALL-ORIGINAL MUSICAL HISTORY PLAY
presents the UNBELIEVABLE TRUE CRIME MYSTERY of the political kidnapping of 19-year-old Patty Hearst — her radical transformation from an innocent victim into a revolutionary outlaw — and her impossible journey back.
IT SPEAKS TO THE URGENCY OF "NOW"
The Disintegration of Our Shared Reality
How Much of Our Personal & Political Identity Is Shaped by Forces
Beyond Our Own Free Will
Trauma’s Impact on Identity
Ideological Hijacking / Brainwashing / Indoctrination
How ALL CONFLICTS
— Internal Conflicts, Interpersonal Conflicts & Political Conflicts —
Are ALL Battles of COMPETING VERSIONS OF REALITY
We All Have Two People Inside Us — AND— One of Them Is a Fucking Liar
COMPARABLES
THE GRITTY INDIE-ROCK VIBE of Hedwig
THE PART-VERBATIM DOCU-THEATER of Come From Away
THE HEARTBREAKING FAMILY DRAMA of Next To Normal
THE TRIAL BY MEDIA SPECTACLE & OUTLAW CHIC of Chicago
THE WALL-TO-WALL METATHEATER of A Chorus Line
With FLASHES OF DARK HUMOR & MAGICAL REALISM
All Artfully Enfolded into an EMOTIONALLY RIVETING TRUE STORY
FIVE HISTORICAL CHARACTERS
SWIPE / CLICK TO ENLARGE
FEATURED + ENSEMBLE CHARACTERS
FEATURED + ENSEMBLE ROLES
SWIPE / CLICK TO ENLARGE
A FRESH NEW SOUND
HYBRID MUSIC LANGUAGE / STYLES
The Younger Characters:
All-original early-70s-inspired indie/alt folk & rock songs
The Older Characters:
Dips into traditional musical theater motifs / generational contrast
The Container Score:
A 21st century electronica/ambient journey music & verbatim
audio collage — a dynamic, shimmering sonic soundscape
that ties everything together
A BOLD NEW CHOREO STYLE
MOVEMENT WITH MEANING
PHYSICAL STORYTELLING
COMPETING VERSIONS OF REALITY
WHERE 1974 & THE 21st CENTUREY COEXIST
VISIBLE STAGEHANDS (played by actors) DISSOLVE THE BOUNDARY between the 1974 storyworld & the narrative of “a theater staging a show" – COMPETING VERSIONS OF REALITY.
A seemingly "impossible" dual-reality — ike entangled realities of MC ESCHER & SALVADOR DALÍ — hypnotically mind-bending & effortlessly engaging.
STRATEGIC SOCIAL IMPACT
THE PLAY'S VALUE & STAKES BEYOND THE STAGE
ILLUMINATING:
The Heartbreaking Compromises Trauma Survivors Make When They're Coerced into Betraying Their Own Moral Limits
HONORING:
Those harmed by Child Abuse — Domestic Violence — Military Combat — Extremist Religious + Political Cults — Human / Sex Trafficking
INSPIRING:
Hope & Healing / While Modeling Survivorship
LET'S PUT THE ART BACK INTO THE HEALING ARTS
BUILT FOR TODAY'S REWIRED AUDIENCES
THE PROBLEM IS:
TODAY'S TICKET BUYER ARE restlessly-scrolling, dopamine-seeking, easily distracted — yet engagement-starved.
In a crowded marketplace, a musical needs to engage the modern, distracted audience more efficiently than its competitors.
IMAGINARY GIRL SOLVES IT:
A MULTI-LEVEL EXPERIENCE FOR TODAY'S "REWIRED" AUDIENCES
Crafted to hold attention at the surface, while rewarding deeper engagement underneath — the kind of show engineered to inspire repeat visits and exceptional word-of-mouth.
CREATIVE TEAM
INTERDISCIPLINARY
PROVEN TRACK RECORDS
BROADWAY CREDENTIALS
Conceived + Directed by Leonard Dolivio Cetrangolo
Book, Lyrics + Music – 5DMEDIALAB
Devised Choreography, Set Design + Costume Design – 5DMEDIALAB
Creative Partner + Artistic Advisor – David Silverman
Associate Composer + Additional Music – Spencer Teeter
The Container Score – Martin Kennedy of All India Radio
Interim Arrangements – Gary Adler
Instrumentation of Interim Arrangements – John D Robertson
Arts Activist + Dramaturg – Felirene Bongolan
Script Consultant – Patricia Cotter
Race + Gender Advisor – Dr. Kathleen Tarr
Complex Trauma + Dissociative Identity Advisor – Dr. H L Schwartz
MULTI-YEAR LABS + WORKSHOPS
A SINGULAR VISION & AESTHETIC
PRESSURE-TESTED AT EVERY STAGE :
By an awrd-winning team of specialists — award-winning dramaturgs, an internationally recognized complex-trauma expert, and a Broadway-credentialed music director & arranger
— all rigorously unified under the umbrella of 5DMEDIALAB.
INDEPENDENTLY DEVELOPED
SLATE DIVERSIFICATION
A SINGULAR VISION
DEVELOPED OUTSIDE THE TRADITIONAL PIPELINE
FOLLOWING THE 1990s INDEPENDENT FILM SUCCESS MODEL
IMAGINARY GIRL has been developed OUTSIDE THE TRADITIONAL PIPELINE, enabling it to realize a singular, cohesive artistic vision.
STRUCTURED TO LOWER RISK + SPEED RECOUPMENT
With the majority of creative IP under one roof, 5DMEDIALAB can offer lower up-front fees, significantly deferred royalties
— for a faster path to ROI.
INVESTMENT READY
AN INDIE DARK HORSE WITH HIGH-RETURN POTENTIAL
LONG-TERM LICENSING POTENTIAL
PERFECT FOR COLLEGES / UNIVERSITIES with Inter-Disciplinary Curriculum
Its ensemble-driven story easily scales cast size from 10 to 25 or more
The 5-piece rock band expands with modular orchestration
EXCEPTIONAL INTER-CURRICULAR FIT:
Journalism / Media Studies - Political Science - Psychology / Sociology - Law History + Law Ethics - Social Justice / Criminal Justice - Women's Studies - American Political History - Media Arts / Interactive Design
WHERE IT BEGAN
ORIGIN / INSPIRATION
IMAGINARY GIRL was conceived while its creator was serving as the lead developmental editor of Dr. H. L. Schwartz's THE ALCHEMY OF WOLVES AND SHEEP — a landmark contribution to psychological trauma literature,.
It won the prestigious 2017 International Sándor Ferenczi Prize from the International Society for the Study of Trauma & Dissociation (ISSTD).
The book coined the term coerced perpetration and illuminated its links to brainwashing and ideological hijacking, and how trauma victims are manipulated into betraying their own moral limits. Dr. Schwartz, an internationally recognized expert on PTSD and complex trauma, continues to serve as the play's psychological consultant.
5DMEDIALAB’s founder's lifelong commitment to advocacy for those struggling with the psychological dilemmas at the center of Imaginary Girl – including “identification with the aggressor” – grew out of an unusual childhood in rural Vermont, shaped by a family system where members were coerced into inflicting abuses on others, and moral ambiguity defined daily life.
SEEKING PRODUCING PARTNERS
CONTACT
SYNTHESIZING : INSTINCT VISION VOICE EMOTION + MEANING
SET IN 1974
-
This all-original MUSICAL HISTORY PLAY tells the UNBELIEVABLE TRUE STORY of the political kidnapping of 19-year-old Patty Hearst — her astonishing transformation from innocent victim into a revolutionary outlaw — and her impossible journey back
IT SPEAKS TO THE URGENCY OF "NOW"
-
How much of our personal & political identity is shaped by forces beyond our own free will
-
The disintegration of our shared reality
-
Trauma’s impact on identity
-
Ideological Hijacking / Brainwashing / Indoctrination
-
How ALL conflicts — internal conflicts, interpersonal conflicts & political conflicts — are all battles of competing versions of reality
-
Aren’t we all fighting a never-ending battle between who we are & who we are not
-
We all have two people inside us — and — one of them is a fucking liar
COMPARABLES
THE GRITTY INDIE-ROCK VIBE of Hedwig
THE PART-VERBATIM DOCU-THEATER of Come From Away
THE HEARTBREAKING FAMILY DRAMA of Next To Normal
THE TRIAL BY MEDIA SPECTACLE & OUTLAW CHIC of Chicago
With FLASHES OF DARK HUMOR & MAGICAL REALISM
All Artfully Enfolded into an EMOTIONALLY RIVETING TRUE STORY
FIVE HISTORICAL CHARACTERS
AND FEATURED + ENSEMBLE ROLES
SWIPE / CLICK TO ENLARGE
FEATURED + ENSEMBLE CHARACTERS
A FRESH NEW SOUND + HYBRID MUSIC STYLE
-
The Younger Characters: All-original early 70s-inspired indie/alt folk & rock songs
-
The Older Characters: Traditional musical theater motifs / generational contrast
-
The Container Score: A 21st century blend of electronic/ambient journey music & verbatim audio collage — a dynamic, rhythmic, shimmering sonic soundscape that ties everything together
•
ENTANGLED REALITIES
LIKE THE “IMPOSSIBLE” DUAL-REALITIES OF
MC ESCHER & SALVADOR DALÍ
BEAUTIFULLY MIND-BENDING • YET EFFORTLESSLY ACCESSIBLE
" Somebody tell me what is real "
THE PLAY'S 1974 STORYWORLD REALITY
IS ARTFULLY ENTANGLED WITH
THE 21st c. THEATER-HOUSE REALITY
BUILT FOR TODAY'S "REWIRED AUDIENCES"
■
That is… today's restlessly-scrolling, dopamine-seeking, easily distracted – yet engagement-starved – ticket buyers.
IMAGINARY GIRL's multi-leveled storytelling is strategically engineered to engage & reward our current unprecedented appetite for continual investigation and payoffs.
While the surface experience is enthralling, every self-directed dip into its deeper layers offers something new!
•
LASTING EMOTIONAL IMPACT
ITS ARCHETYPAL STORY ENGINE
DRIVES TO AN UNFORGETTABLE FINALE
WITH
STRATEGICALLY INTEGRATED
MAGICAL REALISM + COMEDIC FANTASY
BRINGS
RARE TONAL BALANCE
+ EMOTIONAL DEPTH TO THE DRAMA
ULTIMATELY IMAGINARY GIRL IS AN INSPIRING
UPLIFTING TRUE STORY OF SELF-LIBERATION
AS PATTY OVERCOMES SEEMINGLY IMPOSSIBLE
INTERNAL & EXTERNAL OBSTACLES
•
WHY THIS PLAY EXISTS
ORIGIN + INSPIRATION :
Imaginary Girl was conceived while its team leader was working as the principal editor of The Alchemy of Wolves and Sheep * by Dr. H. L. Schwartz.
This book makes a significant contribution to the psychological trauma literature.
It coined the term COERCED PERPETRATION and its linkage to BRAINWASHING and IDEOLOGICAL HIJACKING – illuminating the dynamics of how trauma victims are manipulated into betraying their own moral limits.
Dr. Schwartz is an internationally acknowledged expert on PTSD, with a career dedicated to the treatment of survivors of complex trauma and dissociative identity. He continues to serve as the play's psychological consultant.
( * Winner of the prestigious 2017 INTERNATIONAL SANDOR FERENCZI PRIZE, from ISST&D:
The International Society for the Study of Trauma & Dissociation )
5DMEDIALAB’s founder's lifelong commitment to advocacy for those struggling with the psychological dilemmas at the center of Imaginary Girl – including “identification with the aggressor” – grew out of an unusual childhood in rural Vermont, shaped by a family system where members were coerced into inflicting abuses on others, and moral ambiguity defined daily life.
•
POWERFUL
COMMERCIAL + CULTURAL POTENTIAL
ROBUST LICENSING POTENTIAL
PERFECT FOR COLLEGES / UNIVERSITIES
INTER-DISCIPLINARY CURRICULUM
-
Its ensemble-driven structure EASILY SCALES TO 25 OR MORE
-
The 5-piece rock band expands with modular orchestration
-
An exceptionally strong & meaningful curricular fit:
GEN-Z IS HUNGRY for
IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCES
-
Theater + Musical Theater
-
Journalism / Media Studies
-
Political Science
-
Psychology / Sociology
-
Law History + Law Ethics
-
Social Justice / Criminal Justice
-
Women’s Studies
-
American Political History
-
Media Arts / Interactive Design
