A new musical will address the immediate aftermath of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Featuring music by Joseph J. Simeone, a book by Simeone and Annaliese Jakimides and lyrics by Simeone and Ethan Kanfer, “Café Berlin” will hold an invite-only reading on May 3.
The musical centers on a French philosophy student who travels to Berlin amid the destruction of the wall in 1989. She is quickly pulled into a world of queer artists, punks and outsiders building their own community amid the chaos of the fall.
“We’re living in a time where systems feel unstable again, and ‘Café Berlin’ forces the question of what we do in that moment, whether we wait for someone else to define it, or step in and shape it ourselves,” said Simeone n a statement. “Inspired by true events from the year of anarchy, we built this piece out of movement, music, image and text colliding into an irreverent punk fever dream, raw, fast and volatile, driven by music that stays with you and a story that pulls you all the way through.”
Simeone made his Broadway debut in 2016 as an understudy for the role of Calogero in “A Bronx Tale.” He later joined the 2010 touring production of “West Side Story” as Riff.
The “Café Berlin” reading will feature stage direction by Matthew Couvillon, music direction by Dave Klodowski, music supervision by James Olmstead and stage management by Gregory Covert.
“Café Berlin” is being executive produced by Peter Pileski in association with Rogue Theater.