Burton & Van de Graaff

Online musicals have been gaining popularity in recent years.
One of the many that emerged from the pandemic times was a Canadian project by the composer Denning Burton and the book author Stefan van de Graaff - Sherlock the Musical.

An achromatic picture, a small cast, three sources of light – a soffit, a window, and a lantern, minimalistic set – which gave the black box feel - evidence of a limited budget. However, all the expressive means characteristic of a musical are present: strong vocals, acting, and choreography. Both authors are big fans of the creative work of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, which determined the choice of literary source - the story A Study in Scarlet.

Before the pandemic, when the production was turned into an online musical, it was performed at regional theatres. Stefan van de Graaff, with his background in film and video production, changed the directing concept of the piece.

Almost at the same time with the online release of Sherlock the Musical, a studio concept album was recorded, which continues to gain popularity among listeners in over a hundred countries.

The creators told us about the making of Sherlock the online Musical.

You shot the live performance on stage as if it was a movie. How did it all come to be, why such choice of a style, and how was it working on such a project during the pandemic?

Van de Graaff: I think part of it was, everything kind of stood still for a while in that era...
And we had done a live version of the musical up in Canada prior. Some of it frankly was just Denning and my antsiness to see the show continue on despite the challenges that everyone was facing. We pulled together a little bit of money and got some friends together, people that we knew from other projects, to come and collaborate on doing this filmed version. And it was extremely difficult...

I’ve noticed some Hamilton influence in your work.

Burton: Hamilton was only a big inspiration for me in the sense that it was a very clear example of a genre that’s not normally considered musical theatre. But it succeeded…

Were there many adjustments to the original theatre version compared to what we see in the online musical?

Van de Graaff: It’s a different approach and a different look.

Did the original cast of the show participate in the online musical as well?

Van de Graaff: No. It was a different cast. The online show is more nuanced, more subtle - it’s different when you’re acting for a camera. Everyone in the new cast was people who had experience in working for film.

Did you shoot the musical at a theatre?

Van de Graaff: It was a filming studio. We shot on a Cyc wall and everything else was just brought in.

Why did you decide to shoot in black and white?

Van de Graaff: I liked the fusion of the old and the new, and I thought that was something that aligned with the emotional and visual aesthetic of the film component, it worked with Denning’s very modern aesthetic of the music.

Did the director of the original production work with you on the film version?

Burton: I think the only people that carried over between the two versions are Stefan and me. We had a different director, Dallyn Vail Bayles, who has performed on Broadway.

You have a lot of views on YouTube. Is the musical available on other streaming platforms?

Van de Graaff: We wanted to release it digitally – for free. It is out on Facebook and YouTube. And Facebook got a lot more views. In total, it was probably close to a quarter of a million views across both platforms. And what was happening with the music album, was even more remarkable.

When did you release the album with the soundtrack?

Burton: A month before the film, we released the music.

After the film version, did you bring the show back to the stage?

Burton: We did.

Any plans on bringing it to New York?

Van de Graaff: Hopefully someday. Probably before it ever comes to New York City, it will go to London.

Do you have any other projects in the works?

Van de Graaff: Yes. I think that all we can say so far is that we are suckers for the classic mystery genre.

Speaking of the online musicals in general, do you think online musicals as a genre are going to keep developing?

Van de Graaff: I think it has to.

Burton: I think it will be a healthy addition to the normal track of Broadway musicals instead of a replacement or something like that. It will only allow audiences to participate and engage more with the content they love.