Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Oscar Selby. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Oscar, thanks for joining us today. Has your work ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized?
A lot of people tend to take my work at its surface. It’s why it’s so difficult to enter into Musical Festivals. (Though not going to college for writing and being a BIPOC artist are also big turn off for most of those establishments.) Specifically my show Two Princes, which is a deconstruction of the hero’s journey and its tropes. But to get to that the show needs to start in tropes in order to break them down. The breakdown happens rather quickly, and the hints of it are alive and well throughout the piece due to its self aware nature. But the people in charge of these panels tend to not be creative enough themselves to see beyond the page. To visualize a show, and not just mine either. This is an overarching problem in the industry. It’s why you’ll find most festivals filled to the brim with shows that have to do with pieces already in the public domain.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
My name is Ralph Oscar Selby (But please, call me Oscar) and I am an Afro Asian artist working mostly in musical theater. My dream is to bring musicals to broadway that are produced, written and star BIPOC talent that while being written for them is still approachable and relatable to everyone.
I started performing at a young age, and I knew that it would always be my profession. When I moved to New York in 2015, I went to different programs at Stella Adler while working professionally only to realize my true calling of writing and performing in my own work. Thus, Two Princes, my first major musical in my professional career, was born. (The first musical I ever wrote was actually in middle school. )
I come from a long line of amazing people, namely my Aunt Myra Selby who was nominated by President Barack Obama for the supreme court. A lot of what my family has done including my grandfather Ralph Irving Selby, who was also a lawyer as well inspired me to also take action in my own way. Like I said before, I didn’t go to college for writing, I didn’t even finish college. Some even try to downplay me because I don’t read sheet music at an expert level and I don’t play an instrument. but I still chose this path because I know I can make a difference. And that’s the main reason I do everything I do. It’s why my work exists. I wanna raise up the next generation of young artists like me so they can have the inspiration and mentor text to become the heroes of tomorrow and pay it forward.
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
I think the best way to support the arts is to remember behind every corporate man who is making the wrong decisions, there’s an artist getting a quarter (If they’re lucky) of their pay trying to make a living and maybe open up their own production company to usurp the big wigs. So, when you see something original and new do not hesitate to show your unwavering love for the property. That’s the only way we can get paid, and get into positions we can do more work like the stuff you loved.
This is an obvious one, but the government needs to do better about funding the arts. In the educational aspect and the professional side. Artists shouldn’t need to always have a second job just to make ends meet, and that starts with regulating funding to all legitimate work being done from profit to non-profit. Both ends of the spectrum always need more money. Even the commercial works are struggling, but by having these works have more established places to go around and produce the work before Broadway we can start to create more opportunities for jobs and financial wealth across the board as an industry.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
There’s been almost too many moments to count where I had to make a decision as a leader I didn’t want to make. Especially during the development of my work. I’ve had to let people go and have people leave themselves and choose not to ask them to come back. It’s hard to do that, because you don’t want to see people go, you wanna succeed and for them to succeed with you. But unfortunately I sometimes have to think about the greater good my work can do and how best to implement that, especially when there are careers on the line. So sometimes I just have to take a deep breath, carry on, and get back to work. When we did Two Princes at 54 below, My team and I were left up creek without a paddle after an employee quit. It was during the holidays too, a time already hard for most people. I had to choose to put away the drama, swallow my feelings and get the work that needed to be done executed. I contacted 54 below, and with the help of Jennifer Ashley Tepper I was able to get a new Music Director in Darnell White, alongside new arrangements with my new arranger and copyist Drew Wutke. And in them I also found two people who I now consider my mentors and an irreplaceable part of my team. So sometimes, those moments of strife, of heartbreak, and melodrama lead to the greatest things. And now, I have my concert at The Public Theatre VIA Joe’s Pub coming up in august! To any artist also feeling lost just don’t give up, and keep finding a way. It’s all a leap of faith
Contact Info:
- Website: https://twoprincesmusical.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whitemageoscar/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Ralph.Oscar.Selby
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KeVK4obics
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/twoprincesmusical/sets/two-princes-demos-2022
- Other: Tickets to my next show- https://publictheater.org/productions/joes-pub/2024/t/two-princes/
Image Credits
Headshot by Carlos Gonzalez
Photography By Garrick Anthony Sather