BROWNBROKERS is accepting submissions for its NEW FESTIVAL OF MINI-MUSICALS A Brownbrokers Mini-Musical is a collection of a few original songs and scenes that lasts anywhere from 5-10 minutes to 25-30 minutes. The Mini-musicals may be taken from a longer original work, but should stand on their own, with a definite arc. Proposals are due February 25th, and performances will be the week of March 14th, in the Downstairs Space at PW. Proposals consist of a full script and a presentation of the score--either recorded, or performed live before the Brownbrokers board--including a description of how the music will be taught to actors. Writers are encouraged to propose with a director, or they may opt to direct their own shows, but the Brownbrokers board is also available to assist in matching writers with directors upon request. Writers should keep in mind that they will have no budget, and should envision a show with minimal--or frugally imaginative--tech. Please e-mail the Brownbrokers board at Brownbrokers@gmail.com or Soph@brown.edu if you have questions, or if you plan on proposing. Interested Directors should also get in touch with us. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Read more about our most recent full-length production: Elsewards Book and Lyrics by Jessie Hopkins '08 Music by Jerzy Fischer '08 Directed by Albert Huber '09 December 6-9, 2007 Thursday through Saturday at 8 PM and Sunday at 2 PM Box Office: 401-863-2838 Open Tuesday - Friday 12-5 PM 77 Waterman Street, Providence, RI 02912 Buy Tickets Online

Dark, absurd and uncanny, Elsewards is a musical malady that places the classic fairy tale of Hansel and Gretel in an urban forest where an appetite for metaphor leaves meaning ill-fed. Through distorted melodies and a plot bent on its own subversion, Elsewards tells the story of the search for meaning in a world made unreadable by its own verbosity.

Sixteen years old and tongue-tied, Harold Harrow is the son of the acclaimed novelist R.M. Harrow and stepson to the powerful literary critic, Lily Malaise. The three reside in The Hotel Maudlin, Elsewards' most coveted landmark. When Harold inherits the Hotel from his grandfather, the elite Literati drive him out on the grounds that his inability to articulate himself makes him a common upstart.

Meanwhile, Harold's stepsister Gretchen escapes from the Hotel where Lily had been keeping her a secret on account of her "hideous" features. When Harold and Gretchen meet each other on the streets of Elsewards, Gretchen keeps her identity a secret, believing she is nothing more than Harold Harrow's "ugly stepsister". When the two vow to help each other mean more than the stories that were written for them, they develop an unconventional friendship that struggles to express itself.

With the help of a disillusioned old dandy named Mac, Harold and Gretchen set off in search of their own words and find themselves at odds with those who try to write their stories for them. From colossal cakes to man-eating printing presses, Elsewards tells the story of the bizarre and incestual romance between words and the ways we choose to walk.