Meme brings spotlight to musical comedy 'Firebringer'

Mar. 1—Ari Richins saw the meme before she saw the musical from which it originated.

In the meme, a prehistoric woman, dressed like a live-action "Flintstones" character, wags her finger as she says repeatedly "I don't wanna do the work today." The song is from the musical "Firebringer."

"Right about the time when I was trying to find a new musical last year, I saw it," Richins said. "After seeing it on TikTok, I thought, 'Let's see what this is about,' so I found the musical it was from, and said 'Yep, this is what I'm doing."

Want to go?

"Firebringer" will be presented Thursday through Saturday at Studio 124, located at 124 S. Main St. Showtime is at 7:30 p.m. Tickets: $20.

Details: www.showtix4u.com.

Dream Theatre will present the new comedic musical Thursday through Saturday at Studio 124. Filled with an inspired combination of innocence and innuendo, "Firebringer" features a story about the discovery of fire as early Stone Age humans learn about their world and how to thrive beyond survival.

This caveman story is mostly about cavewomen — specifically, two women with clashing philosophies who struggle for leadership of their tribe. Established leader Jemilla guides the group through traditions set up by a previous ruler, while Zazzalil seeks new innovations and inventions in order to make living easier.

It was produced and presented in 2016 by StarKid Productions, a new theater company turning to Kickstarter campaigns for funding and publishing their works in full to YouTube after stage runs.

The meme comes from the second song in the musical "We Got Work to Do," and features actress Lauren Lopez as Zazzalil singing the relatable line about not wanting to do the work. Spreading widely in early 2017 after the show was uploaded to YouTube, the meme was reenacted by cast members of "The Book of Mormon" on Broadway.

Richins said her cast has had a ball rehearsing the hilarious and absurd play. Lauren Fisher and Kiah Poulson take on the roles of Jemilla and Zazzalil.

"The script is unmatched," Richins said. "It is filled with the stupid kind of humor where we can let loose and have fun. Rehearsals have been a joy."

Simultaneously crass and clever, the script of "Firebringer" features both nuanced humor and low-brow profanity — often in the same scene. The characters are portrayed with earnest naivete, with one or two world-weary wiseacres for modern-day relevance, and the marimba- and xylophone-driven songs are earthy and uplifting.

Richins devoured the version that StarKid uploaded to YouTube. Once she started reading the script, she discovered that many of those brilliant lines were ad-libbed.

"Initially, I assumed that the script was the same as what they posted to YouTube," Richins said. "The amount of ad libbing is astronomical. StarKid is so creative, but as a director, it was surprising to see the script be so different."

Richins said that gives the Dream Theatre cast an even greater opportunity to make this production truly their own. Cast members have been encouraged to avoid watching the StarKid production so that they can put their own spin on the characters.

Some of StarKid's ad-libs have been kept, Richins said, but the cast has worked on their own as well. Compared with productions that have been presented for decades, such a task of separating from an original work can be a challenge for a production that has existed for only a few years.

But the cast and crew knew they had work to do. Richins said cast members dived deep into their roles the same way they would for more serious productions. Other cast members include Stephanie Allin-Jackson, Elise Branan, Katelyn Pursley, Emily Szura, Shyann Moser, Ashlynne Dryden, Mary Parker, Jerry Bland, Ashley Trotter, Mattie Propps, Stormy Raye, Tyler Clyde and Christi Carman.

"I think this has been a great growing experience, and a great lesson in different interpretations," Richins said. "I am very familiar with (the StarKid production), but everyone has taken their own spin. I love what they have turned the show into. They really brought it to life."

Follow Digital Editor Joe Hadsall on Twitter at @JoeHadsall.