Mel Atkey's Blog

For a couple of years now, I have been sending occasional updates about my book A Million Miles from Broadway – Musical Theatre beyond New York and London, for which I appreciate your indulgence. I feel at this point that I owe you a bit o...f an explanation as to why I do this.

My 2006 book Broadway North: The Dream of a Canadian Musical Theatre was initially published by a small Canadian press called Natural Heritage Books, who have since been taken over by a slightly larger company called Dundurn Press. They had a mandate to publish books on Canadian cultural themes, and had published an earlier title of mine called When We Both Got to Heaven. Between 2006 and 2013, Broadway North sold just over a thousand copies. Not on the Times best-seller list, but as a niche book with an unusual approach to musical theatre, quite a respectable number. According to a WorldCat search, it is also found in more than 400 libraries.

With my follow-up book, I knew going in that, while it had a potentially wider appeal, it was also a tougher sell. As it did not fit within the Canadian culture mandate (Natural Heritage was funded by grants from the Canada Council and the Ontario Arts Council) my initial publishers passed on it. I approached several trade and academic publishers, but was told they would only consider it if I changed the focus to concentrate on how American and British musicals have conquered the world – the very antithesis of what I was trying to do. And so, I ended up taking the difficult step of publishing it myself.

Unlike my previous books, I did not have the promotional support of a publisher, nor the distribution network of University of Toronto Press and Gazelle Book Services. Instead, I chose a print on demand service, which meant the book was only available through on-line orders, and not generally available through bricks and mortar book stores. Therefore, you will not be surprised when I tell you that sales of A Million Miles from Broadway have been about ten percent of what Broadway North has enjoyed. This is in spite of the wonderful reviews it has received from the likes of Peter Filichia and Stage Whispers, among many others.

I believe that this book has an important “mission” – to look at musical theatre from a unique international perspective. But it was written at enormous cost. I travelled to Australia, Singapore, Germany and France without any outside funding (other than from my family). Needless to say, sales have so far come nowhere near covering this.

The only way that this book can succeed is through word of mouth, and through take-up in cultural and educational circles, especially in universities that have musical theatre programs. I am very grateful to people like Charles Gilbert, who ordered it for the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, and who also invited me to address the conference of the International Musical Theatre Educators Alliance. To this end, I have also addressed the Lyric Canada conference in 2010, the InTune conference in Vancouver, as well as Musical Theatre West Midlands, both in 2013. I have also guest-lectured at a number of universities. Best of all, because of these two books, I have been accepted into the Masters degree program at Goldsmith University of London beginning in September, in spite of my not having an undergraduate degree. This will help me in my work as a musical theatre writer, and will also enable me to teach at a university level. Once I have that, I would like to offer my services as a guest lecturer and workshop facilitator at the international level. I have already put out some feelers in places like Singapore to assist with local musical writers in the work-shopping of new shows. This is somewhat dependant on my being successful in my bid for funding for the course. I have applied for a couple of bursaries but can’t finance it on my own. (I’ll let you know what happens.)

You can help is by telling professionals in the field about this book. I am trying to get it into as many libraries (and onto as many reading lists) as possible.
A Million Miles from Broadway -- Musical Theatre Beyond New York and London

There is a Kindle Countdown deal in effect on this book until 7 December. Please see http://www.amazon.com/Running-Away-Ci...

A couple new reviews of RUNNING AWAY WITH THE CIRCUS from Amazon:
From Amazon:

2 October, 2013 Carroll S. Collins rated it 5 out of 5 stars
...
" A Fascinating tale." .. "A very unique saga and delightfully told....it was most interesting to read about this fellow's adventures abroad ....definitely a fun read."

27 August, 2013 jill in DerbyOn Amazon.co.uk

Most ( some ?? ) chidren dream about running away to join a circus.. this book shows us what happens when an adult runs away to do just that. The author saw it as a chance to travel and see the world.. what he didnt expect to see was the other side of circus life.. the living in grotty rooms.. sleeping in a container . no rest .. and some of the crueler side of the circus life.Parts of the book made difficult reading for me, Ive only ever been to one circus in my life and that was many years ago as a child, even then I felt awkward.. I felt the animals shouldnt be made to do so called tricks for us and I'm not surprised that it is now only human acts that are appearing in most circus rings. The staff werent paid, any excuse not to and this made life even more hard. It said amusing in parts in the book review but I didnt find this funny . It was an eye opener to the world of circus life.. I was glad in the end when the whistle was blown on this awful set up.
[image error] http://www.lulu.com/shop/mel-atkey/running-away-with-the-circus-or-now-is-the-winter-of-our-missing-tent/paperback/product-21186215.html 

I'm faced with a bit of a dilemma. I decided to release RUNNING AWAY WITH THE CIRCUS because many people felt it would appeal to a wider readership than my other books, and help to pay for the higher costs of A MILLION MILES FROM BROADWAY.  However, while its potential audience may be larger, it is harder to pinpoint. There haven't been any media reviews yet. I'm just not sure how to promote this.  I would appreciate all the help I can get.
  [image error] http://www.lulu.com/shop/mel-atkey/running-away-with-the-circus-or-now-is-the-winter-of-our-missing-tent/paperback/product-21186215.html
These are some of the comments the book has received:
Reviews:
From Lulu.com:



By Ged Crefin 9-Jun-2013
I worked on this tour and although not a veteran of reviewer Al Buchan’s standing, I too had never experienced anything like it. Al is not joking when he says it was ‘at the time, far from funny’ but it would be disingenuous to claim it was all bad and many friendships - and more - were forged in the white heat of what must have been for many, a once in a lifetime experience. The fact that I was there undeniably colours my opinion of Mel’s book, it really was a treat to read, but the subject matter and the author’s affable wit and personality should make this a work which appeals to more than just your touring theatrical types. Mel’s account of his experience as a security guard on a circus touring Taiwan is told with wry humour and charm. Successfully combining travelogue and bite size anecdote to recapture the sense of lunacy, he achieves a fine balance between the more serious stuff - animal cruelty, threats and violence towards the crew - and the often hilarious, often downright... More > absurd. Dividing the book into theatrical Acts and scenes works well, Act IV scene 2 passed the laugh out loud test - several times - and the decision to feature photographs of the trip nicely augments Mel’s genial ‘Westerner abroad’ approach. The inclusion of historical and cultural info locates the action nicely without ever being too dry; the trip on the Alishan Forest Railway (Mel is a rail enthusiast as well as a theatre buff!) nicely invokes a sense of rural East Asia away from all the madness. Running Away With The Circus concludes nicely with well judged attributes of fond reminiscence and 'where are they now?' curiosity attended to. This is very much Mel’s book and he has avoided the temptation to create a work of sensationalist stories with limited interest at the expense of the Taiwanese. Of course the ‘culture clash’ informs much of the craziness but Mel’s book has the overall tone indicative of a man who sees the good – and the funny – in all people with the possible exception of the ubiquitous Sweetpea, Mel’s roommate and nadir who has the unenviable ability to push even the equitable Mr Atkey to the edge. Al Buchan does have a point though when he says that Mel’s account is ‘only about half of it’ – I know because I was there – but rather than taking anything away from Mel’s wonderful book, it makes me wonder if anyone might be up for putting together a more unashamedly anecdotal, no-holds-barred supplemental based on interviews?… Ged Crefin
 
By Al Buchan 7-Jun-2013 I was on this tour with Mel and when I got wind of this book I couldn't wait to get a copy. Having read it I can now at last laugh about it. It was safely the worst tour I have ever been on (I've been touring all over the world with shows from rock to ballet for nearly 25 years). Mel has written very accurately and humorously on, what at the time, was far from funny. I spoke to Mel after I read the book to congratulate him on a job well done and to offer him a forward to the manuscript which would simply read. "Believe it or not what follows actually happened and indeed is only about half of it" A must read for all touring folk. Al Buchan

 
From Goodreads:
Jun 26, 2013 Jennifer King rated it 4 of 5 stars
Excellent lay out of the book with creative headings and potent pictures. Bits of history flowed with the true story. Unique true life storytelling!  

24 October 1997
Dear ;
Episode 2: "Now is the Winter of our Missing Tent".  I hope that my last letter reached you safely.  If it didn't, it's because I couldn't tell a Chinese mail box from a rubbish bin.  First, I went to the hotel concierge and asked her where I could mail my letters.  She said "I take them."  Then I saw her put them in a big brown envelope marked "Safe Deposit Box".  I said, "No, I take them!"  Language is a bit of a problem.  My first night, we had a Chinese guard working with us, who was supposed to be our translator.  He was bilingual: Mandarin and Cantonese.  For the first week, I worked with Chris on nights, managing to escape the back-breaking work of putting up the tent.  We're having a little difficulty understanding some of the symbols on the signage.  Chris has one in his room, somehow related to the safety drill, that appears to depict hanging a woman out the window.  Given the past history of this place, it may be instructions of what to do in case of a police raid.  I've discovered that the Chinese have an interesting way with English, but my favourite is a sign advertising the "Jungly New Pub".  Also, I saw a large, multi-story stone building with massive Grecian columns and a huge sign on top that said BARBER SHOP.  Apparently, Barber Shops are often fronts for brothels here.  Also, in a shop window was a sign in Chinese and English which said "To Do Business".  I went inside, dying to know what the other side said: "To Drink Tea".  We have a very international company.  The crew come from England, ad there are acrobats from Morocco and hand stand artists from Russia.  All pitch in to help with whatever needs doing, but there is an interesting blend of cultures and languages being spoken.  On Sunday, after finishing work, I attended an informal Christian Science service in the Chinese Masonic Temple.  On Monday morning, I didn't get back to the hotel until 10AM.  I put a "Do Not Disturb" sign on my door, and went straight to bed.  At 1PM my doorbell rings.  It is Vaughan, a big dumb beefcake of a northerner who was to be my partner that night.  Ignoring (or unable to read) the sign, he invites me to go out for lunch.  We found an all-you-can-eat buffet across the street, which cost me 350NT, or about œ6, by far the most I have paid for a meal so far.  Anyway, it was a chance to get to know each other before we begin work.  I began the conversation by remarking that many people had turned down our job, guessing it was appropriate only for a single person.  He, it turned out, had just broken up with his girlfriend of three and a half years.  Ah, something I could identify with, I thought.  "She was too old for me", he said.  Her age?  Thirty-nine (my age).  He said the sex was fantastic, very passionate, but he just couldn't go out with someone that old.  I didn't know they gave work permits to extra-terrestrials.  Meanwhile, things were going, as they say, pear shaped.  Typhoon Ivan was cutting a swath across south-east Asia, and we were in its path.  Moreover, and possibly more ominously, New Aspect, the Chinese producers, had failed to get planning permission for the site.  So it had to come down.  All of it.  Apparently, Phillip Gandey, the English producer, wiped the floor with them when he heard this.  The next day, we finished packing things away, but when the required fork-lift and flat-bed truck did not arrive, he ordered us back on to the bus, and to wait in our hotels for further instructions.  After waiting for several hours, I was sent back to the site, only to be sent straight home again.  Finally, I went to a film, Curdled. The next day we finished taking the tent down, then waited several more hours for the Taiwanese producers, New Aspect, to send al the right cranes and equipment.  Philip Gandey, the English producer, went to them demanding action.  They replied, "Your problem be solved in one hour.  In the mean time, please ask crew to keep emotion."  He told them he would have no trouble doing that.  After loading everything up, we knocked off about eight PM.  On Thursday, we arrived at the new site.  How do I describe it?  Cesspool?  Toxic waste dumping ground?  We unloaded the gear and sat around waiting for somebody to fix the compressor so that we could put our stakes through the concrete.  Greg, the company wit, remarked "The time is now 10:54 Daylight Wasting Time".  In the midst of all the construction and dirt, somebody began setting up a table with flowers on it.  A Buddhist monk came to bless the project, giving us incense sticks, which we were to hold facing the sun, bending three times.  Then they burned some "money for another world", and set off some firecrackers.  Finally we were able to raise the kingpoles before dusk.  When we collected our wages, we learned that our administrator, Louise Porter, was fired by New Aspect because she insisted that we be paid on time.  It seems like some sort of meltdown is in the offing.  We have little protection, because our return tickets are not valid until 24 April 1998.  Also, it seems we have become involved in somebody's election campaign.  We've been given golf caps with some slogan on it, and a loudspeaker is broadcasting propaganda.  I think the new site is their campaign headquarters, and they are using our tent for a rally.  Although it has been delayed for a week, we are assured that the circus will open.  Eventually.  We wait with baited breath.  In the meantime, the animal rights protesters await us.  They've already held up the arrival of our tigers.  I'll let you know what happens in my third epistle.

17 October 1997
Dear  __________;

This was it, the big departure: at ten o'clock in the morning on Sunday, 12 October, I was to meet up with the people from the circus at Heathrow Terminal Four.  Only they weren't there on time.  (I was.)  Finally, a little after 2:30, we left on KLM for Amsterdam Schiphol Airport.  On an earlier stop-over about five years ago, I remembered buying some chocolates that were such an intense spiritual experience that my life has been downhill ever since, so I hoped to find them again.  I think I have.  After about three hours, it was on to our next flight: twelve hours to Bankok, Thailand.  Since I lost the fun camera out of my pocket, I had to buy a new one there.  This way, my VISA will show I was in four countries in different parts of the globe in one 24 hour period.  We were given our Taiwanese visas.  While many countries will enclose welcoming coupons, ours included a death threat: that's the penalty for trafficking in narcotics.  On arrival at Chiang-Kaishek airport, I saw a Chinese lady come up to members of our party offering to satisfy any needs.  It turned out that she worked for the circus, but that was not the first thought that crossed my mind.  It also transpired that the reason that the company were able to get good hotel accommodation for a reasonable price was that the government had tightened "licensing".  In other words, our hotels were former brothels, which explains the preponderance of mirrors in my room.  There is a sign in my room which says: "1.  Please keep calm and listen to the instructions given from the broadcasting system.  2.  Stay away from the windows.  3.  Please put out your cigarettes.  4.  Please do not use the elevator.  5.  Turn off the main switch in the room.  6.  When the earthquake has subsided, please follow the instructions given by our staff."  After a late production meeting I finally tried (without success) to go to sleep at midnight.  Although I didn't originally plan to bring the Eddie Bauer summer jacket that Gwen gave me, I'm glad I did, because Taiwan is sub-tropical.  Taipei is mad with motor-scooters.  A lot of the drivers wear masks across their faces.  They don't mind the toxic fumes, but the Chinese cannot stand dust.  I still can't believe I'm here;  I keep thinking that I am simply incredibly lost in Soho.  On the fourteenth, we were on stand-by all day, but there was no work because the tent had not yet arrived.  I spent much of the day catching up on sleep, then went out to a restaurant with members of the crew.  I drank Thai coconut juice, while the others drank beer.  (Apparently, some of the crew got drunk the first night, and we all got a lecture from the producer, PHilip Gandy.)  Whereas six months ago, Gwen and I were going out to ethnic restaurants in London and thinking it was pretty cool, now I'm doing it for real, and using chopsticks because there is no alternative.   For breakfast, I had a sort of omlette, rolled and sliced.  I don't know what they call it, but it's very good and very cheap: about $20NT.  (There are about $45 NT to the pound.)  The afternoon of the fourteenth saw us handing out leaflets in front of the SOGO department store.  People appeared ready to risk their lives to avoid us. If any fortune teller had told me I'd be doing this, I'd have said "You're supposed to read the tea leaves, not smoke them."  Once this was finished, most of the crew began erecting the tent.  I was given the option of doing the night security shift, which I took.  This gave me the afternoon to explore Taipei's brand new (and extortionately over-budget) rapid transit system.  There are two lines: one elevated light rail which goes to the zoo, and a full-scale metro system.  That night, I worked from about eight-thirty until six thirty the following morning with another member of the crew named Chris (who shared with me the distinction of having worked for Sir Stephen Wobbly-Conman) and a Chinese "interpreter" who knew about as much English as I know Swahili.  The next day, after ABOUT SIX HOURS SLEEP, I took the Metro out to Tanshui, where I walked along the sea wall for a couple of hours.  There is a Seventeenth century Spanish-Dutch fort there called Hung Mao Ch'eng, which I would like to explore.  One Canadian business name I didn't expect to find here was Petro-Canada, but I found their logo on a motor-bike shop.  We have been running behind, because the tent was late in arriving.  It seats four thousand people.  We open in about four days, and the animals -- tigers, bears, elephants -- have yet to arrive.  I wonder how I will feel standing on guard at night, hearing a hungry tiger growling in the dark, knowing full well that I would do just nicely.  I'll let you know more in my next letter.