“My Heart Says Go” opens Tesseract’s Summer Festival of New Musicals

Tesseract Theatre opened their 2024 New Musical Summer Fest on Thursday evening with the premiere of "My Heart Says Go.” The musical, with a book Matt Hawkins and Music and Lyrics by Jorge Rivera-Herrans, with additional arrangements by Geoffrey Ko, was originally stage at the University of Notre Dame University with an additional production in Chicago. Hawkins is a professor of Film, TV, and Theatre at Notre Dame faculty and Rivera-Herrans was one of his students. The story is a semi-autobiographical coming of age story about a brilliant student who leaves medical school to pursue his passion for music.

Tesseract’s Kevin Corpuz discovered the musical on TikTok when he saw a video featuring one of the hip hop numbers from the show. He brought it to the attention of his partner, Brittanie Gunn, and they acquired the rights to produce the show for their new musical festival. Corpuz stars as the protagonist Indigo and Gunn directs.

"My Heart Says Go” is filled with influences from Broadway and pop culture. The score, especially the half-dozen hip hop numbers, has a sound reminiscent of Eminem and Lin-Manuel Miranda. Hawkins’ book harkens back to the story of the underdog getting their opportunity to grab the brass ring, similar to the film 8-Mile. Gunn’s stripped-down staging, using only a few risers and chairs on a mostly empty stage, is a nod to the simplicity of shows like Come From Away, where a minimalist set gives way to the music and story.

Gunn has directed an engaging and satisfying production of "My Heart Says Go.” She keeps the story moving with her brisk pacing.  Without an elaborate set she uses the back wall of the theatre to place the action between a hospital, a bus station, Indigo’s apartment, a recording studio, and a music venue. Her scenic design mostly consists of wall with neon signs that the characters turn on and off as they enter the stage. It only takes a few moments to catch the subtle changes in locale and affords her to have many settings in a black box theater without slowing the action for set changes. It was highly effective.

Music director Larry Pry prepared the cast well to handle the vocal arrangements that were supported by a pre-recorded track. Opening night jitters may have affected the company’s performance on the first number “What Does My Heart Say,” but following a shaky start vocally, the cast settled in and performed the remainder of the score well. It is however a score that could still benefit from some rewrites.  A 2023 Broadway World review by Bobby Patrick, who calls himself the ‘Rainbow Reviewer,’ called the "My Heart Says Go” concept album “spirited and layered with all-too-familiar mundanities.” After seeing the full-scale production of the show, I completely concur with Phillips review of the score overall.

The hip hop numbers allowed Corpuz to shine with his rapid-fire delivery. Kevin can rap. The show closer “I Won’t Give Up” is a mash-up of hip hop lyrics with a pop music hook that was catchy and memorable. Corpuz and the company performed the song with high energy, sending the audience out on a high note.

Victoria Pines as the Train Conductor was the vocal standout of the show with her delivery of “Find Your Voice.” She delivered her parts of the score with authority. Kelvin Urday (Indigo’s Dad) and Sarah Wilkinson (Clara) also handled their parts of the score nicely in roles that were well suited to their vocal strengths.

Gunn’s direction inspired authentic portrayals from her actors. Corpuz had significant chemistry with Urday as his father, and Wilkinson as his new friend Clara. Although he and Urday are close in age, Urday’s performance and maturity as an actor made it completely believable that he was aged enough to be Indigo’s father. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for Loren Goudreau as Clara’s mom. It seemed implausible that the young actor could have been the troubled mother of an adult child.

Wilkinson’s Clara blew onto the stage like a hurricane. She maintained her spirited performance throughout. She was terrific, especially when conveying her crumbling pain when faced with tragedy. Clayton Hamburg was unrecognizable as the nerdy cosplay gamer Timmy.  His hilarious characterization was the result of fearlessly throwing himself into a character. Kevin Hester was fantastic as the unassuming Rob, and Grace Langford turned in a strong cameo as the cardio-thoracic surgeon and medical school faculty member who was managing a critical patient in the operating room.

There were a few technical challenges on opening night. The recorded music track was louder than it needed to be, overwhelming the solo vocal performances at times. There is an opportunity for sound designer Ryan Day to make a few tweaks prior to future performances. There were a couple missed lighting cues, especially stage left, leaving actors in shadows where there was significant action taking place. The missed cues were puzzling since both occurred on the same part of the stage. It’s unlikely it was a flaw in lighting design and more likely a missed cue, or perhaps a function of an electronic glitch with the lighting board. Either way, it's something lighting designer Matt Stuckel needs to address.

Gunn, Corpuz, Urday, Wilkinson and company delivered a compelling and entertaining production of the new musical "My Heart Says Go.” The mundanities with the score and book are what keep this production from really soaring. Indigo’s coming-of-age story is not particularly different from what has been seen in other stories where a child makes a choice that is met with a parent’s disapproval. The themes are consistent with most stories about young adults pursing their dreams. Perhaps if the promising score were more dynamic and memorable, the familiar follow-your-heart story could reach new heights.

"My Heart Says Go” continues at The Marcelle for five additional performances at 8:00 p.m. on July 12, 13 and 20, 2024, with 4:00 p.m. matinee performances on July 14, 21, 2024. More information about the 2024 New Musical Summer Fest can be found at the Tesseract Theatre web site.