Stage & Screen
Listen to Jen, and her collaborators T.J. and Shelby, talk about their new musical SALEM!
Salem: a Dark Comedy Musical
in development
Misinformation spreading like wildfire, outlandish conspiracy theories, and an infamously controversial trial in the early 90’s that people talked about for decades. Yep, this is 17th century New England. I’m T.J. Pieffer, and I’m Jen Cook, and we’re so excited about our show Salem.
Salem is a dark comedy musical retelling of the Salem Witch Trials, a fascinatingly horrific moment in America’s history that parallels several themes present today: Misinformation spreading like wildfire, outlandish conspiracy theories, and the effects of propaganda. The musical follows two girls – the rebellious Abigail Williams and her pious cousin Betty Parris as they begin accusing people in Salem Village of witchcraft, unraveling the fabric of their Puritan society through a series of lies, but by the time they recognize the gravity of their lies, it’s grown out of control.
https://www.salemmusical.com/
Music and lyrics by Jennifer Lucy Cook, Book by TJ Pieffer & Shelby Solla
Music and lyrics by Jennifer Lucy Cook, Produced by Jennifer Lucy Cook and Peter White
Aurora
in development
AURORA is the story of a dysfunctional family that travels to Alaska in search of the
Aurora Borealis to scatter their grandmother’s ashes. Those few days together, disconnected from their everyday lives, will reveal truths about their relationships not only with each other, but with themselves. While college-aged Lucas battles a secret addiction, older sister Rory tries to let go and learn to love. Parents Frank and Susan work to keep their family together, yet hide a crumbling marriage. A heartfelt dramedy set against the backdrop of the barren tundra, Aurora is told through stirring folk-pop songs and an evocative soundscape. A quirky lodge owner and a quick-witted, Indigenous tour guide illuminate the bigger picture of this land, calling on the importance of conservation over materialism and the crucial balance between science and spirit. This family may seem lost, but will soon realize that the real light they’ve been chasing can be found from within.
Music and lyrics by Casey Kalmenson, Jennifer Lucy Cook, and Peter White; Book by Sam Jarvis
A Legend Is Hatched
A Legend is Hatched is an episodic film series about an unflappable gal-about-town and her madcap quest to get her own television show. Jen’s original score evokes Golden Age Broadway and is its own character.
Written and produced by Jennifer Cook and Peter White
Performed by Jennifer Cook, Arun Blair-Mangat, and Peter White
Show You
Originally written and produced for an animated film pitch, this song musicalizes the moment when a young Chinese girl is deciding between following her rebellious self or her dutiful self.
Music and lyrics by Jennifer Lucy Cook, Produced by Jennifer Lucy Cook and Peter White
The Bachelor: Season 25 TikTok Recaps
11 episodes and 1.3 million views later, here’s the full musical recap of every episode in Matt James’s season including the bloopers. Each of these recaps was written, recorded, filmed, and posted within 24 hours of each episode airing.
Written and produced by Jennifer Cook and Peter White
Performed by Jennifer Cook, Arun Blair-Mangat, and Peter White
City of Girls Musical FanFiction
Liz Gilbert wrote this book which I loved, and in it they put on a musical called City of Girls. She described it beautifully, with bits of scene and lyric and glorious song titles…but it didn’t actually exist in real life before now. So Pete White and I got together to write seven songs from the show!
This is a piece of musical theater fan fiction, and I don’t claim any of Liz Gilbert’s work as my own — she is a treasure. I meticulously researched her book to bring this to life as accurately as possible, and all of the direct quotes from the book are in purple throughout the video.
Stargirl
A strong female superhero like Stargirl deserves a strong female score (In addition to the fabulous official score Pinar Toprak makes in real life, obviously!) Naturally my version required stacks of vocals, a ginger ale bottle, and a pedal tone made of me reading a the text of a filmmaker’s Facebook post really really quickly on one note. And of course, complimented by a beefy digeridoo bass sample, Spitfire’s Haushka prepared piano library, and chains in place of a snare.
Written and produced by Jennifer Lucy Cook for the Spitfire Audio film scoring competition 2021.