A COLLECTIBLE SENSATION full-length musical for 12 Women (+optional additional ensemble) by Amy Engelhardt & Arianna Rose by Arianna Rose

[Full-length musical, 12 women, + optional additional ensemble]
2024 finalist for the Edward Kleban Libretto Award
2023 Semi-finalist, Eugene O'Neill Musical Theatre Conference
2023 Semi-finalist, Normal Avenue NAPSeries, NYC

(To listen to the demos: link on this page, under "Music Samples" in the column on the right.)

A COLLECTIBLE SENSATION is...
[Full-length musical, 12 women, + optional additional ensemble]
2024 finalist for the Edward Kleban Libretto Award
2023 Semi-finalist, Eugene O'Neill Musical Theatre Conference
2023 Semi-finalist, Normal Avenue NAPSeries, NYC

(To listen to the demos: link on this page, under "Music Samples" in the column on the right.)

A COLLECTIBLE SENSATION is a musical adaptation of the full-length play THE EQUIVALENT OF SENSATION by Arianna Rose.

At the unveiling of the million-dollar renovation of their renowned Cone Collection at the Baltimore Museum of Modern Art, long dead sisters Etta and Claribel Cone suddenly materialize. "Family friend" Gertrude Stein and her paramour Alice Toklas (equally dead) also pop up, uninvited (much to Etta’s dismay). Their mission: to settle once and for all how the “Friendship” between Etta and Gertrude fell apart. Their younger selves appear to help them sort it all out. The surrounding artwork miraculously comes to life, with each woman represented by a painting with special significance for them. Etta struggles with her feelings for Gertrude and her modern proclivities, at direct odds with her Victorian mores. Through a series of evocative vignettes, we are transported back to Baltimore, Paris and Italy at the turn of the century to learn what derailed the relationship (and suspected affair) and how Gertrude and Alice came to be a couple. The musical is non-linear, moving between present time in the Cone Wing, past memories with the younger selves of the four women, with artwork that also represents the women that comes alive to comment on and move the story forward. Fantasy sequences are created when past and present merge. At its heart, A COLLECTIBLE SENSATION is about learning valuable, timeless lessons of love, and covert and overt feminism in a time when women were expected to be heterosexual homemakers.

Featuring a cast of twelve women of any race and ethnicity, the score is written for a modern rhythm section (pop/rock) with strings for a more chamber-like, period feel.
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A COLLECTIBLE SENSATION full-length musical for 12 Women (+optional additional ensemble) by Amy Engelhardt & Arianna Rose

Recommended by

  • Bethany Dickens Assaf:
    23 Nov. 2022
    “ There is so much to recommend this delightful, powerful musical. The framing of the work in the Baltimore Museum of Modern Art is theatrically exciting and lends itself to the play's questions of art and ownership, particularly when they intersect with gender. The four characters at the center of the story are expertly constructed (flawed, empathetic, compelling) and the period elements, including the musical arrangements, are employed with care and creativity without bogging down the work in historical details. The play in general balances this setting expertly with questions of great contemporary resonance, including gender, artistry, and sexuality. A triumph! ”

Character Information

12 women, any race/ethnicity. Optional additional ensemble to portray additional artwork.

ETTA CONE: woman, 40+, timid, subservient to older sister Claribel. Household Manager, Art Collector. Repressed, finds her path through the study and collecting of art and textiles. Loves lace, piano, family. Her looks are plain. Her figure buried under layers of petticoats and a black skirt, white blouse.

CLARIBEL CONE: woman, 40+, Etta’s older sister,“the Empress”, Research Doctor, Public Speaker, Art Collector, charismatic, imperious, austere, demanding. A handsome and imposing woman. Petticoats and black skirt, white or black blouse. Often wore a black velvet cape with purple lining.

GERTRUDE STEIN: woman, 40+, charismatic, outspoken, melodic voice, Writer and Art Collector. Lesbian. Large in every sense of the word. Flouts conventions and dresses for comfort; more masculine look, bohemian.

ALICE B. TOKLAS: woman, 40+, quiet, determined, jealous streak, writer, lover of music, flowers, cooking, lesbian, life partner of Gertrude Stein. Always dressed well, wears a succession of fabulous hats, often wears sandals instead of shoes.

YOUNG ETTA: woman, 20s.
YOUNG CLARIBEL: woman, 20s.
YOUNG ALICE: woman, 20s.
YOUNG GERTRUDE: woman, 20s.

The artwork come to life, from the Cone Collection (also play various ensemble roles):

ODALISQUE: Based on "Standing Odalisque Reflected in a Mirror" 1923 by Henri Matisse. Special connection to Etta.

WOMAN 2/WOMAN IN TURBAN: based on the 1917 painting WOMAN IN TURBAN (LORETTE) by Henri Matisse. Special connection to Claribel.

WOMAN 3/PORTRAIT OF GERTRUDE STEIN: based on "Portrait of Gertrude Stein" by Felix Vallaton, 1907. Special connection to Gertrude.

WOMAN 4/PORTRAIT OF A GIRL: based on "Portrait of a Girl" by Marie Laurencin, 1927. Special connection to Alice.

Optional additional women/non-binary ensemble to play additional artwork in the Cone Collection.

  • ETTA CONE
    40s-60s,
    May be played by any race/ethnicity
    ,
    a woman
    40+, timid, subservient to older sister Claribel. Household Manager, Art Collector. Repressed, finds her path through the study and collecting of art and textiles. Loves lace, piano, family. Her looks are plain. Her figure buried under layers of petticoats and a black skirt, white blouse.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      40s, 50s, 60s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • DR. CLARIBEL CONE
    40s-60s,
    Any Race / Ethnic Identity
    ,
    woman
    40+, Etta’s older sister,“the Empress”, Research Doctor, Public Speaker, Art Collector, charismatic, imperious, austere, demanding. A handsome and imposing woman. Petticoats and black skirt, white or black blouse. Often wore a black velvet cape with purple lining.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      40s, 50s, 60s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • GERTRUDE STEIN
    40s-60s,
    May be played by any race/ethnicity
    ,
    lesbian Woman
    40+, charismatic, outspoken, melodic voice, Writer and Art Collector. Lesbian. Large in every sense of the word. Flouts conventions and dresses for comfort; more masculine look, bohemian.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      40s, 50s, 60s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • ALICE B. TOKLAS
    40s-60s,
    can be played by any race/ethnic identity
    ,
    lesbian Woman
    40+, quiet, determined, jealous streak, writer, lover of music, flowers, cooking, lesbian, life partner of Gertrude Stein. Always dressed well, wears a succession of fabulous hats, often wears sandals instead of shoes.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      40s, 50s, 60s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female, Non-binary
  • YOUNG ETTA CONE
    20s,
    Any race/ethnic identity
    ,
    woman
    Etta's younger self, in the memory scenes
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • YOUNG DR. CLARIBEL
    20s,
    Any race/ethnic identity
    ,
    a woman
    younger self of Dr. Claribel, in the memory scenes
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • YOUNG GERTRUDE STEIN
    20s,
    Any race/ethnic identity
    ,
    a lesbian woman
    younger self of Gertrude Stein, in the memory scenes
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • YOUNG ALICE B. TOKLAS
    20s,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    lesbian Woman
    younger self of Alice B. Toklas in the memory scenes.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female, Non-binary
  • ODALISQUE ("Standing Odalisque Reflected in a Mirror", Henri Matisse, 1923)
    20s-30s,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    woman
    Based on this painting by Henri Matisse: “Standing Odalisque Reflected in a Mirror” (1923). Special connection with Etta.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • WOMAN 2/WOMAN IN TURBAN (based on 1917 painting WOMAN IN TURBAN (LORETTE) by Henri Matisse
    20s-40s,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    woman
    based on the 1917 painting WOMAN IN TURBAN (Lorette) by Henri Matisse. Special connection with CLARIBEL
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s, 40s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • WOMAN 3/PORTRAIT OF GERTRUDE STEIN (based on Portrait of Gertrude Stein by Felix Vallotton 1907)
    20s-30s,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    lesbian Woman
    Based on “Portrait of Gertrude Stein”, Felix Vallotton, 1907. Special connection to GERTRUDE.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • WOMAN 4/PORTRAIT OF A GIRL (based on Portrait of A Girl by Marie Laurencin, 1927)
    teens-20s,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    lesbian Woman
    Based on “Portrait of A Girl” by Marie Laurencin, 1927. Special connection to ALICE.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      Teens, 20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL ENSEMBLE (other Cone Collection artwork come to life)
    Any Age,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    Female, Non-binary
    Additional optional ensemble can be employed, as more artwork in the Cone Collection come to life. They should be either women or non-binary actors, playing women, non-binary or inanimate beings comes to life from the paintings, sculptures, textiles, etc.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      Any adult age
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female, Non-binary

Awards

Finalist
,
Edward Kleban Librettist Award
,
Edward Kleban Award
,
2024
Semi-Finalist
,
NapSeries Staged Readings NYC
,
Normal Avenue
,
2023