Decatur playwright Vynnie Meli has a green musical message for kids and adults
Interview by Carol Badaracco Padgett
I’m a playwright, lyricist, librettist. I write plays, musicals and short operas. I used to consider myself a playwright first, but my characters keep singing. My work has been produced in theaters, festivals, schools and opera houses across the U.S., in Germany and once in Australia.
I’m developing PLASTIC BOTTLE GENIE with the Alliance Theatre’s Atlanta Artists Lab. It’s a musical for kids about the environment and ocean preservation. It’s wacky and silly, but the premise is serious and important. I’m working on this TYA [Theatre for Young Audiences] show with Jimmica Collins, Cedwan Hooks and Christian Magby composing. My team is fabulous.
When I first started writing plays, I was very fortunate to discover Working Title Playwrights (WTP)*, a new play development group that was meeting in Decatur. WTP was/is a nurturing, supportive, diverse group of Atlanta playwrights at all different stages of writing (and of living).
I was a novice at the time and I learned much. I also laughed a lot. I made lifelong friends.
Theater can inspire, open minds and provoke empathy. And sometimes art can just be fun. Decatur exemplifies all of that.
Some of my favorite works (or favorite titles) are “Chopped Liver in Paradise;” “The Lifespan of a Fly;” “Orbital Debris;” “September Tenth;” and “Rhythm Darlings.” My most produced opera is “Krispy Kremes and Butter Queens” about the life and afterlife of a certain celebrity chef.
We moved into this area in Decatur at the suggestion of Hank Kimmel, a founder of Working Title Playwrights. More than a collaborator or mentor, he is [a] fellow traveler. We take long walks through tree-filled neighborhoods in Decatur and share our thoughts about plays. And about writing plays. Maybe that is collaborating. Sidewalk collaborations?
“The Wake,” a new play with old Irish songs (and Scott DePoy) was produced at Atlanta Shakespeare Tavern in ’22 and ’23 and is now gearing up for an Off- Broadway production. My play ORBITAL DEBRIS just had a run at Georgia Tech in October with director Melissa Foulger. It’s a Rom-Com with Dram. I need to get it out there.
I’m curious. I look at things a little differently. Like a huge square slab of cement being carried by a crane across a blue sky day. Sublime. I take pictures of rubble and manhole covers. I called my daughters into the kitchen to see the beautiful explosion that happens when you add vinegar to a pot of hot oil.
I want to concentrate on “Plastic Bottle Genie” with The Alliance… and “Cookie Swap,” the holiday musical I’m writing with Hilary King. And then, of course, I’ll be revising my first musical, PLAGUED – “A Love Story,” which premiered at the New York Musical Festival.
I get back to this show every few years. I love those quirky, complex characters and I refuse to let them go.
* (Working Title Playwrights used to meet at the Decatur Theatre. That theater has since closed. Decatur deserves a theater.)
