The Dried Tobacco Project is a musical presentation by Cassandra Kaczor & Ian McGuffin
based on the work of author, Will Brooks.
The work is a narrative that centers around the LGBT community,
particularly oppressed persons who have experienced or are currently
experiencing situations of bullying, abandonment, and depression. The
work is an observation and reflection on the emotional journey that
these individuals undergo and the message is one of respect,
awareness, and hope.

Source Material:
The text for the setting is taken from a collection of poetry and
short fiction named “You’re Uninvited”. The author, Will Brooks, is a
musician, writer, and voice for the LGBT community. Notably, the
author is also a personal friend of Cassandra and Ian.

Performance Elements:
The conception of the performance is simple; the work calls only for
voice and piano. This simplistic format is compatible with the
intimate performance spaces that we envision for the work. Such spaces
include Roosevelt University Chicago College of Performing Arts.

About the Book and Author:
This book is a collection of poetry and short fiction that is meant
to shed light on the hardships and normalities of life, including but
not limited selections based on the LGBT community. It contains poems
told from many different voices, and stories that open the reader up
to many different lives and experiences.
Will Brooks graduated from Murray State University with a Bachelor of
Science in Music. Now he is working full-time and is living with his
partner Lee Spargur, who is also an up and coming author, and Will
also freelances as a musician. He currently lives in Las Vegas, NV.

Performance Tour:
Dried Tobacco Project is a work centered around advocacy for the
people who are suffering, particularly those who are in the LGBT
community. This plight has a national presence and we want our work to
approach it as such. Several concert locations have already been
planned with capacity for expansion; such locations include Chicago
IL, Kalamazoo MI, and Las Vegas NV. We feel most strongly about taking
the performance to Bardstown KY, the town that Will Brooks and Ian
McGuffin both grew up in and is the birthplace of the narrative.

Target Audience:
We feel that the first step towards creating a successful and
widespread message is to reach out to LGBT advocacy groups. These
groups are instrumental in supporting, facilitating, and promoting the
project. Presenting DTP in ties with these groups will strengthen the
message. Once connections have been made it is our intention to
connect to the prime audience, those who are or have yet to become
personal advocates or “allies”. We want our performance to create a
conversation that adds to the abolishment of prejudice against the
LGBT community.

Giving Back:
We find it crucial that the success of our project be shared with
other entities that are fighting for equal rights and treatment. It
has been agreed that partial proceeds will be donated to PFLAG, the
United States' largest organization of parents, families, friends, and
allies united for LGBT individuals.

Where we are now:
A large portion of the music is already in its initial drafts. The
goal is to have the work in its final draft by January 2016 and ready
for performance by April 2016. The musical creative team, Cassandra
and Ian, have been collaborating extensively with author Will Brooks
to create a full presentation by Will about his work, including his
creative process and a talkback.
Dried Tobacco Project is not only a musical work, but a full
experience that looks into the minds of its creators and looks forward
to a future without prejudice and self-destruction.

Visit www.brunchprojectproductions.com for more!