Demos of two never-before-heard song cycles written by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty will be released from Broadway Records. The demos, recorded 16 years ago and remastered for this release, feature vocal performances from the late Marin Mazzie as well as Jason Danieley, Sarah Uriarte Berry, and Steven Pasquale.
Both cycles will be released as a single album, Legacy, with digital and physical releases set for December 11.
Mazzie and Danieley are featured singing in 1859: A Farmer's Diary, based on portions of the diary of an upstate New York farmer written over one year. Berry and Pasquale are featured in A Boy With a Camera, inspired by photographs of New York City taken in the '40s and '50s by Ahrens' father.
The project came as the spread of COVID-19 forced Ahrens and Flaherty to pause and reflect on their career.
"As we find ourselves navigating these unpredictable times in a city that deserves to be celebrated, these pieces suddenly feel very resonant to us," says Ahrens.
Legacy is produced by Ahrens, Flaherty, and Michael J. Moritz, Jr. 1859: A Farmer's Diary features Flaherty at the piano, with Steve Marzullo at the keys for A Boy With a Camera.
Ahrens and Flaherty's long writing partnership includes Lucky Stiff, Once On This Island, My Favorite Year, Ragtime, Seussical, A Man of No Importance, Dessa Rose, The Glorious Ones, Rocky the Musical, and Anastasia. The pair are currently working on the Broadway-aimed Marie, Dancing Still, which was produced in 2014 at the Kennedy Center under the title Little Dancer. The team won a 1998 Tony Award for their score to Ragtime.
