On Grasshopper Wings is a Musical Comedy born from the mind of lifelong Bozeman resident Christopher Harris. Chris has combined his family history, local knowledge and love of music, specifically the music of the late 1920’s, into a wonderfully enjoyable romp which will appeal to young and old alike. I have a limited number of copies of the play, in book form, to give away to Bozeman residents. Please read on, and if you would like a copy or are interested in auditioning for a role, please contact me.
When I launched my first TV advertising campaign recently my only slight reservation was my ad might not convey a sufficiently focused message. My intention was to try and portray varied capabilities and encourage a varied response. So I was particularly pleased, and felt somewhat validated, when I received a call from Christopher Harris. Chris had seen the advert, visited this website and felt I might be the person to help him market and produce his play, a musical comedy, about Bozeman’s first radio station (located on the top floor of the just completed Baxter Hotel).
Author Chris Harris
Set in the blazing hot summer of 1928, On Grasshopper Wings’ numerous characters (including former president Calvin Coolidge) are involved in romance, espionage, chicanery, blackmail and pestilence (grasshoppers). In one scene, as a result of a prank by the Gallatin County sheriff and the owner of the radio station, two vacationing songwriters from Tin Pan Alley are arrested for “breaking the law of fishing” but can regain their freedom if they compose a hit song. After several false starts, the songwriting team comes up with “At The Codfish Ball” sung by the young daughter of the station owner.
A central theme of this play is the ongoing rivalry between the radio station and the Bozeman Daily Chronicle. The Chronicle’s publisher becomes so exasperated with the radio station’s successful programming that he hires a detective (recently arrived from Sardinia) to find out who is the source of programming ideas. With some clever sleuthing, the detective discovers that the source is the radio station’s cleaning lady (a member of the Shoshone Tribe).
One of the cleaning lady’s ideas is to interview the actor Gary Cooper by telephone and broadcast it live. (Gary Cooper actually lived in Bozeman and graduated from the Gallatin County High School in 1922.) In the interview, his lines are taken from two of his movies from the early 1930s.
Some Images from On Grasshopper Wings
The songs from the play can be found by either following this YouTube link or are Listed Here.
Images above are reproduced with the permission of the Author.
