“A LIFE WORTH LIVING”: Performances are underway for “A Life Worth Living.” Presented by the Lewis Center for the Arts at Princeton University, and directed by Chesney Snow (assisted by Ava Adelaja), the musical runs through November 16 at the Lewis Arts complex’s Wallace Theater. Above, from left: Cecilia (Kailani Melvin), a therapist at a mental health facility, attempts to help Gavin (portrayed by writer and composer Jeffrey Chen) heal from a traumatic past. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski/Lewis Center for the Arts)

By Donald H. Sanborn III

The Lewis Center for the Arts at Princeton University is presenting A Life Worth Living. The new musical has a book, music, and lyrics by Jeffrey Chen, a senior who is majoring in neuroscience, with a minor in musical theater.

A Life Worth Living is described by the Lewis Center’s website as a “dramatic-comedy musical.” Its plot centers on Gavin, a teenager who is involuntarily sent to a residential mental health treatment facility. He reluctantly but steadily forms bonds with the other residents, as the staff works to uncover the past experiences leading to the incident that necessitates his treatment.

“Using music — a mix of contemporary pop-rock with hip-hop and jazz — and comedy, A Life Worth Living focuses on topics of platonic love, mental health, and suicide, while exploring themes of grief, acceptance, and radical hope,” the website states.

A Life Worth Living is a “musical that I think is topical, especially among people in my generation,” Chen tells this writer in a Zoom interview conducted last Friday, the day of the first performance. “I think there’s been a mental health epidemic going on in this country, especial post-COVID. So I hope that this musical, which focuses a lot on (adolescent) mental health treatment, can resonate with these audiences.”

Chen portrays Gavin, the show’s main protagonist, who is sent to the facility. Kimberlynn Bjurstrom plays Riley, Gavin’s friend. “Riley took Gavin under her wing when he moved to her high school, when he was in sophomore year,” Chen explains. “Their relationship forms the emotional core of the show, even though Riley isn’t in the residential facility.”

Nicholas Pham plays Gavin’s father, Samuel, “who brings a parental perspective of mental health treatment,” Chen says. Kailani Melvin and Kareish Thon portray, respectively, Cecilia (a therapist) and Jesse (a counselor), staff members at the facility. Chen describes them as “the ‘adults in the room.’ They take care of the kids; they make sure that the kids are all eating and staying safe, but also helping the kids break down traumas.”

“All the rest of the characters are the kids in the facility, who all have their own personalities,” Chen says. Residents include Talia (portrayed by Sydney Hogan), who “is rude but funny.” Khai (Sydney Grunden) “is super quiet.” Gavin’s roommate, Adrian (Sahaf Chowdhury), “is excited that there is another boy coming to the [facility], because he’s been the only boy there.” Two different residents, Penelope and Natasha, are played by Rosa Hernandez Diaz.

Of the residents, Chen says, “I wanted to give all these characters some kind of human quality, even though they are ‘supporting characters.’ Each has their own story — and this musical could have been about any one of those characters.”

Chen explains that conceiving the story and writing the book and lyrics came most naturally to him. Composing the music was more challenging, but he is grateful for the guidance and assistance of his faculty music advisor, Vince di Mura, who writes the musical arrangements — “He’s a genius!”

A four-piece band accompanies the actors on the songs, with Music Director and Conductor di Mura on keys. The other members are Garrett McKenzie (drums), Jonathan Palafoutas (guitar), and Lucien Chidester (bass).

Asked how this production came about, Chen explains, “For the Princeton minor in musical theater you have the opportunity to propose, in your junior year, a project. In February of this year I had already written a first draft of the script, and four of the songs. That helped me when I was proposing it, because it’s difficult to put a new musical on its feet, especially in such a short amount of time, with a writer who hasn’t written musicals before.” He emphasizes, “I’m grateful that the school took a chance on this production.”

Lewis Center faculty member Shariffa Ali is the production’s primary advisor. The production’s other faculty advisors include Proposer Advisor Solon Snider Sway; Co-Producer Tess James; and Director Chesney Snow. Ava Adelaja, a sophomore majoring in comparative literature, with minors in theater and creative writing, is the production’s assistant director.

Chen is grateful for the contributions of the co-directors. “Both of them have brought amazing insight from their background. Chesney has done productions on and off Broadway; Ava writes well-written plays.”

Snow says of Chen, “When you’re writing a musical, and starring in it in a lead role that requires an immense amount of vulnerability and technical precision, that is beyond extraordinary. This is a personal show for him, and he … pushed himself to want to help other people if they needed help with their work.”

Snow explains that he wanted to stage the production lightly, though “there are some choreographic numbers. But it’s mostly made for a workshop, so it’s not made with the resources that you might see in McCarter’s Berlind Theater,” where the Lewis Center sometimes mounts productions.

Adelaja adds, “We wanted the actors to find their own natural staging, because the best scenes can come out organically. But as the process went on we realized that sometimes people need a little bit of a nudge. Chesney and I would meet before rehearsals, and map out the scenes on paper, and then we’d go into rehearsals and walk the cast through the scenes.”

Asked about their process of co-directing the show, Adelaja describes it as “very informal. Sometimes … if he needs me to grab something or take notes for him, I’ll do that. Other times he’ll direct one portion of the scene, and then I’ll take the helm of directing another portion. Most of all, I’m grateful just to learn from him, because he’s an amazing professional, and an amazing force in the theater world.”

Snow praises Adelaja’s “incredible eye for detail. She also was attuned to the needs of other people beyond the story, which is critical. One of the primary goals of a director is to create the space for people to feel like they can take risks.” He adds, “Obviously we want the product to be of high aesthetic quality. But what’s more important is the process.”

Choreography is by Kate Stewart. Set Designer Annalise Schuck, Costume Designer Keating Helfrich Debelak, Lighting Designer Alex Piccoult, Sound Designer Elisabeth Weidner, and Fight/Intimacy Coordinator Jacqueline Holloway complete the creative team.

Asked what he hopes audiences take away from A Life Worth Living, Chen replies that he wants to educate “the world on mental health rehabilitation, especially among adolescents — because it’s difficult for people to imagine if they haven’t been in that situation, or they don’t know anyone who’s been in that situation. So I wanted to portray these kids as people who are going through very difficult times, and have a lot of struggles; but they’re also kids. They have fun with each other, gossip, make jokes, and get annoyed with each other.”

Snow shares a painful personal story. “My close cousin had struggled with schizophrenia, after she was sexually assaulted when she was in college. A year before the pandemic, she went out to go to the grocery store — and she didn’t come back, because she had a schizophrenic episode. She got lost; we looked for her for two weeks, and we couldn’t find her. She passed away from dehydration, because people would see her and say, ‘She’s crazy.’ Nobody was going to help her; they feared her. And she was a brilliant woman before this happened.”

He adds, “We have to investigate ourselves, and create a community to heal each other. I hope that this musical can be a doorway to beginning to have a conversation about mental health — without the stigma — and that it will help students, and other people in our community, feel heard.”

Chen echoes this point. “There’s still a lot of stigma around mental health treatment or suicide. Even though people are like, ‘Oh, you should seek help,’ that doesn’t necessarily mean people seek help for themselves. I hope that this show can open up peoples’ minds to seek treatment — and to take care of themselves. Even though things might look difficult right now, just keep pushing forward. There’s always hope for a better tomorrow.”

Adelaja says that the show’s “message of hope” resonates with her. “When I first read the script, that was the thing that struck me the most: you feel unsure of yourself or your ability to continue living — there’s always a light at the end of the tunnel. I think that hope can empower people through difficult times.”

Snow concludes, “This piece, I hope, will be a space where people can see part of themselves, or see part of their community; and cry, laugh, and enjoy the moment of being in that theater — seeing our stories in a way that is healing.”

Presented by the Lewis Center for the Arts’ Program in Theater and Music Theater at Princeton University, “A Life Worth Living” will play in the Wallace Theater at the Lewis Arts complex, 122 Alexander Street in Princeton, through November 16. Content Advisory: The Lewis Center cautions that the production “heavily focuses on suicide and mental health issues; and contains violence, strong language, flashing lights, and loud noises.” For tickets or additional information, visit arts.princeton.edu/events/a-life-worth-living-a-new-musical-by-jeffery-chen-25/2024-11-08.