What happens when you take America’s political divide, gun culture, family drama, a magical weapon and some seriously funny musical theatre writers and throw them all together?
You get Good Guy With a Gun! — and this one is WILD.
Robert sits down with creators Philip Labes and Micah O’Konis, along with Musical Director and Executive Music Producer Hal Rosenfeld, to talk about the creation of this irreverent new musical comedy and its star-studded concept album.
The story follows NRA lobbyist Ron Barkley and his liberal daughter Jenna. After Ron is confronted at gunpoint, he prays to God for help — and receives a magical gun that turns people conservative. Jenna eventually fights back with a magical weapon of her own: a megaphone that turns people liberal.
Yes. You read all of that correctly.
But underneath the laughs is a very real conversation about politics, family, ideology and just how divided we’ve become.
The idea actually began after Labes himself was held at gunpoint. He started developing the concept with his then-roommate O’Konis, and the pair spent years writing the book, music and lyrics. After workshops at Second City Hollywood and Z Space in San Francisco, they teamed with Rosenfeld to bring the music to life on a full concept album.
And WHAT a cast they assembled.
Chris Sullivan, Kimiko Glenn, Anthony Rapp, Yvette Nicole Brown, Rebecca Naomi Jones, Jason Alexander, Richard Kind, Kristen Schaal and Paul Walter Hauser are among the voices bringing Good Guy With a Gun! to life.
Rosenfeld brings some major musical credentials of his own, with work across more than 300 film, television and gaming projects and credits connected to The Greatest Showman, In the Heights, Only Murders in the Building, Top Gun: Maverick and Broadway's Sweeney Todd.
We talk about finding comedy inside a subject this serious, writing satire when the country is so politically divided, assembling that ridiculous cast, taking the project from an idea between friends to a fully produced album — and where Good Guy With a Gun! goes from here.
It’s smart. It’s ridiculous. It’s political. It’s musical theatre.
Basically… we had plenty to talk about.
Good Guy With a Gun! is available now on digital streaming platforms.
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