Turning an "Other" into a Brother

What do you do when your nation is thrashing in the grip of a partisan divide so entrenched that it's tearing communities apart? When conversations about the issues seem loaded with landmines, and people no longer feel safe going to school or their houses of worship?

For composer, director and screenwriter Ross Boothe, the answer is clear. You write a musical. You turn a crucial, timely and peacemaking concept into a full screenplay and score over the course of just 6 weeks. Then you put on a series of one-man shows, reading all the parts and singing all the songs, on a bare stage to an audience that gets larger with every repeat performance. After the first of those shows, you sign on a producer who's as determined as you are to get your musical onto the silver screen. One week later, you secure the funding to bring that dream into reality. And four months after that, (next week, February 12th, 2026) you're ready to give a sneak preview, with many of the songs, portions of the script, and an update on the productions schedule, in a livestream for the general public.

Impossible timeline? You'd think so, but it's real. And you're invited. Just go to ​brotherhoodmovie.com​, sign up for updates, and you'll get an invite to the livestream.

I highly recommend it. I watched a recording of the one-man show in October, after Summit Stages council members Paul Schwartz and Michelle Linford attended in person. They were in Utah and I was in Canada, so I couldn't go. But even an archival recording moved me to tears.

I want to tweak your interest without spoiling anything, so let me just say this: Boothe's script and score tackle immigration in a way that pulls you right into the heat. And yet, at the same time, it honours the humanity of people across the political spectrum. From asylum seekers to ICE officers, everyone is portrayed with compassion and a sense of hope. It manages to celebrate the best of what America stands for, while looking unflinchingly at the horrors that people face when we doesn't live up to our celebrated ideals. It stokes your hope instead of your anger. And it features some fantastic songs that promise some incredible choreography.

I hope you'll join the livestream next Thursday. I'll be there too, because this is building beloved community through musical theatre. .

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