DISASTEROID! INTERVIEW: ZACHARY BERNSTEIN

INTERVIEW: ZACHARY BERNSTEIN

BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO

After a critically-lauded late-night run at Sacred Fools Theater Company in April, the original
musical, Disasteroid!, returns for a seven-show run at The Broadwater Black Box Theater
as part of the 2018 Hollywood Fringe Festival. Written by Zachary Bernstein and directed by
Guy Picot, this pre-apocalyptic romantic comedy explores matters large and small, from living
life to the fullest to which kind of milk goes best with your waffles. In this Tin Pan L.A. exclusive creator Zachary Bernstein discusses this inspiration and what his new musical Disasteroid! is all about.

Heather Roberts, John Bobek, Matthew Bohrer, and Dagney Kerr. Photo Credit: Scott Golden.

How would you describe your musical in a nutshell?

Disasteroid! is a musical comedy about a pair of strangers, Mabel and Arthur, who are misled to believe the world is going to be destroyed by an asteroid and decide to spend their remaining time on Earth together as lovers.  Of course, the asteroid threat might be hogwash.  We recently had a successful late-night run at Sacred Fools Theater and now we’re bringing it to the Hollywood Fringe.

What inspired you to write this show? Why tell this story?

It’s the first musical I ever tried to write, so I wanted it to have a small cast and not be very long.  The message of the show is all about making sure you’re living life in a way that works for you.  It should resonate for anyone who’s unsatisfied with where they’ve ended up in life, but want to make some changes.

Matthew Bohrer. Photo Credit: Scott Golden.

What influenced the music for this show?

I have a solo act called The Bicycats, and Disasteroid! was always meant to be a Bicycats album, just instead of a disc, it’s a stage show; like the way True Stories was a Talking Heads movie.  Two of our wonderful actors, John and Heather, both told me that the music reminded them of They Might Be Giants; which is a fair observation, and during auditions, we asked people to sing Beatles songs.  So I guess somewhere between The Beatles and They Might Be Giants is the core musical influence for Disasteroid!

How do you write songs? Which comes first, music or lyrics?

Usually a lyrical idea, but with a musical, songs have to serve a function.  The lovers’ first duet called, “It’d Be Nice If It Were You,” is all about Arthur making his case to Mabel that they should spend their final moments on Earth together.  There’s nothing I could’ve written in the dialogue that would’ve convincingly swayed Mabel to agree with him; only a song could do that.

Heather Roberts and Dagney Kerr. Photo Credit: Scott Golden.

How has the director helped you shape this show?

Disasteroid! owes a lot to our director, Guy Picot.  He’s been with me through a robust workshopping process, but so many discoveries were made during rehearsals.  He’d come to me and say, “We need Matt to say more lines so Dagney can have an easier quick change; make sure he mentions his boat.”  And I’d go write the extra lines, and the line with the boat always gets a laugh.  I don’t know how people direct their own scripts.  I’d go insane.

Dagney Kerr. Photo Credit: Scott Golden.

What is your favorite moment in the show?

Hard to pick one, but some favorites include when Dagney eats a pretzel, Heather’s character gets her geography wrong, Matt crashes a duet, and the final number where all four actors sing together.  The best parts are never a line of dialogue; always an actor having a funny reaction or compelling moment.

What excites you most about this show?

The selfish answer is that I get to play the drums in the band.  I also really like our cast; Dagney Kerr, Heather Roberts, Matthew Bohrer, and John Bobek.  They’re a strong bunch.

What can audiences expect from your show?

Disasteroid! is a fun, charming, silly show with heart and songs that evade the typical Broadway sound.  It is only 70 minutes and I know I’m biased, but as far as I’m concerned, it’s perfectly designed for the Hollywood Fringe audience.