Recent Productions
The Waistmakers' Opera (2014), re-staged indoors at University Settlement for the first Lower East Side History Month. Ryan Gilliam/Michael Hickey, creators.
The News (2014), 10 news articles about the Lower East Side transformed into song and performed through the streets of the neighborhood. Ryan Gilliam/Michael Hickey, creators.
Through the Looking Glass (2013), a new adaptation of Alice's journey and her strange encounters. Ryan Gilliam, director.
The Great Struggle for Cheap Meat (2013), an original rock opera based on the 1902 Kosher Meat Boycott, an unexpected uprising of Jewish housewives on the Lower East Side; staged in the streets of the LES. Libretto/direction by Ryan Gilliam, music by Michael Hickey.
The Snow Queen (2013), an original adaptation by Ryan Gilliam, with original music composed by 17 year old Alice Quinn Makwaia.
The Bowery Wars, Part I (2011) and Part 2 (2012) a two part epic mixing the politics and gang life of New York's Lower East Side at the start of the 20th century with an immigrant Romeo and Juliet story. Book/lyrics by Ryan Gilliam, music by Michael Hickey.
The Waistmakers' Opera (2010) premiered in May 2010 in the streets of the Village/Lower East Side, and was restaged in March 2011 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Fire. This original outdoor musical work follows the events of the 1909 'Uprising of 20,000', when the young female garment workers of NYC, many of them teens, led one of the first major labor strikes in American history. Libretto by Ryan Gilliam, music by Michael Hickey
House of Dreams (2010) adapted from the writings of Jane Addams, founder of one of the first Settlement Houses in the U.S., regarding her concerns for young men and their engagement with popular culture a hundred years ago. Adaptation by Ryan Gilliam.
Twelfth Night or What You Willl (2009) a 'Bohemian' take on Shakespeare's story of shipwreck and tangled identities, with original music by Michael Hickey.
Star Arguments (2009) a low tech high adventure adaptation of the original 'Star Wars', created with over 300 objects from the hardware store. Conceived and directed by Ryan Gilliam
The Piemaker (2008) set in a small Iowa town, where the arrival of a Mexican immigrant mother and daughter, combined with the campaign of a local favorite son for Congress, change things irrevocably for the two friends who run the local diner. Book by Ryan Gilliam, lyrics and music by Michael Hickey.
| Bowery Wars, Part 1 |
| The Waistmakers' Opera |
| House of Dreams |
| Twelfth Night |
| Star Arguments |
| The Piemaker |