It Ain’t Shakespeare Contributes
Script and Lyrics to KaTonga
Orlando, Florida, April 2004 Busch
Gardens Tampa Bay has collected rave reviews for its new musical stage
spectacular, KaTonga. Critics have hailed it as a brave and innovative
show and touted its creative team’s pedigree, brimming with Broadway
luminaries. But not all of KaTonga’s creative genius hails from
the Great White Way. The woman responsible for much of the storytelling,
the show’s script, and many of the song lyrics lives in Orlando,
Florida.
Colette Piceau, writer and President of It Ain’t Shakespeare,
Inc. already had a client list that reads like a who’s who of
the world’s top entertainment companies when she was tapped as
a writer for the show. She spent the last two years developing and
writing the 40-minute musical celebration of storytelling, animals,
and folklore. Collaborating with New York producer, Don Frantz, director
Chase Senge, and the rest of the high-powered creative team, Piceau
wrote the original African legends upon which the show’s four
stories are based. She also developed the storyteller characters and
honed the characters of the animal heroes. Working with Franz and Senge,
Piceau wrote the script, and in collaboration with Busch Gardens Tampa
Bay resident composer Desmond Boone, she wrote the lyrics for many
of the songs. But her creative spark alone composed the lyrics for
the show-stopping, climactic ballad, Celebrate
the Light.
“At times, working on this project was as thrilling as a rollercoaster
ride,” Piceau says. “I flew up to New York to meet with
the entire creative team, including puppet designer Michael Curry,” (of
The Lion King). “It was an amazing process - the meetings crackled
with energy...so many brilliant creative minds in one room.”
Piceau feels that these two years of creative joys and challenges have
helped her grow and evolve as an artist. “I poured my love for
animals and nature into Celebrate the Light, my proudest career achievement
to date. I was given an open creative environment where I could stretch
and I’ll always be grateful to Busch Entertainment for taking
a chance on this groundbreaking show.”
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November 2004