Michigan ✋

Full-Length Musical, Comedy, Drama, Family

Book, Music, and Lyrics by David Quang Pham

^Plot

When a data center threatens their grandparents' lake house, Lulu and Petoskey – a fierce Dearborn city girl and hopeful Yooper farm boy – must conquer years of grief to save their home... and the world. Set during a family reunion in Elk Rapids, this folksy musical dramedy follows the Van Otterloo family rallying the community against a predatory tech giant. Driven by her brother’s death in the Great Lakes, the company's grieving founder uses AI avatars of dead members of the Van Otterloos to steal their land and drain the lakes as environmental vendetta. Lulu, “pearl” in Arabic, is a metaphor for those who try to break out of their shells. Petoskey, the native fossil that reveals its true pattern in water, serves as a metaphor for ancestry, memory, and grief.

Characters

^{The Van Otterloos Family}

Lulu Van Otterloo Abughosh, Middle Eastern girl, describes herself as a Middle Eastern girl in the middle of the Midwestern world. A 13-year-old born and raised in Dearborn, she wears solid colors, hoping to collect better rocks than Cousin Petoskey every year. She is writing Dearborn, a musical about deer navigating the talking Great Lakes. She plays banjo and is Iggy Pop’s biggest fan. Her name is Arabic meaning “pearl.”

Petoskey Van Otterloo, boy (can be portrayed by a girl or woman), describes himself as a rocky Yooper farm boy skipping the Great Lakes water. A 13-year-old from Skandia, he wears patterns and trapper hats. He connects with his ancestors through his heart-shaped Petoskey heirloom with an elk symbol. He loves to go fishing; he just needs a parent to do it with.

Lizzie Glynn Van Otterloo, woman, Petoskey’s mother and narrator in Skandia. After a tragedy in 2008, she stops crossing the Mackinac Bridge to attend Harbor Days and family gatherings. Liz is a proud Yooper and shipbuilder. Michigan State University.

Petey Van Otterloo, man, Petoskey's father, Liz's husband, and Willy and Milly's only son of four. During the recession, his and Liz’s blue-collar shipyard job replaces them with migrants. His spirit lives within Petoskey. Michigan State University.

Shelby Van Otterloo Abughosh, woman, Lulu's mother, Petoskey's aunt, and Petey's little sister in Dearborn. She is a Ford Motor worker. As the family member who broke the mold by being a Midwesterner who fell in love with a Middle Easterner, she and Petey has a tumultuous relationship. Kettering University.

Perry Van Otterloo, woman, Petoskey's aunt and Petey's older sister in Lansing. Her heart is in science, yet she has a conspiracy theory mindset and plotted to kidnap the governor. Michigan Technological University and Eastern Michigan dropout.

Cherry Van Otterloo Jacobowitz, woman, Petoskey’s aunt and Petey’s oldest sister in Kalamazoo. She arranges the theme and costumes for the annual Harbor Days parade. She is married to a Grand Rapids Griffins hockey manager. Hope College.

Jacob Van Otterloo Jacobowitz, young Jewish man, Cherry’s son who is a Broadway actor in New York. He is the 2022 Grand Marshal for the Harbor Days Grande Parade where he is dressed as Wednesday from The Addams Family. He recently performed on the national tour of this show. Western Michigan University.

Liberty & Bailey Van Otterloo, any gender, twin siblings and Petoskey, Lulu, and Jacob’s little cousins removed from reality. They are from Hell... Michigan.

Milly Van Otterloo, elderly woman, Petoskey’s bold grandmother and inventor. She invented the auto-toilet. With Willy, she owns a Lake House by Elk Lake in Elk Rapids. She and Willy stumble into the audience every so often. Central Michigan University.

Willy Van Otterloo, elderly man, Petoskey’s chill grandfather and gardener. With Milly, he owns a Lake House by Elk Lake in Elk Rapids. He and Milly stumble into the audience every so often. Northern Michigan University.

^Michiganders

Jasper Vinh Chin, Asian of any gender, Petey’s resourceful childhood friend and Petoskey’s godfather/godmother who runs the BANH MIchigan Vietnamese restaurant and a golf course. As a teen, they once looked down on the migrant community when a Lebanese family bought out his family’s original struggling restaurant. Ferris State University.

Amanda Wayland, woman, the founder of Turkey Ventures from Muskegon with a deep resentment for water and a goal to turn every Michigan town into data centers. In her youth, she was once an accomplished watercolor artist. After her brother Conor drowned in the Great Lakes, she lost her creative spirit and took over her brother’s business to create Afterlife.AI to bring late loved ones back as avatars. At Hope College art school, she was Cherry’s friend before becoming rivals when she started using technology for her work and ultimately getting expelled. University of Michigan.

Detective, any gender, an investigator along Mackinac Bridge.

The Ghost of Henry Ford, any gender, an inhabitant of Hell.

Michilimackinac, the Mackinac spirit resembling the Great Turtle.

The Keepers of Faith, Fire, Trade, the original people of the land.

Michiganders, Residents, Lawmakers, Oligarchs, Radio, people who speak by the "ope."

^Keywords

Adolescence / Childhood / Coming-of-Age / Fable / Family / Friendship / Grief / Parenting / Suicide / Teens

^Music

Musical Style: Folk, Gospel, Hip Hop, Jazz, Pop, Rock

Vocal Demands: Easy-Moderate

Orchestra: Banjo, Bass, Cello, Drum Set, Harmonica, Glockenspiel, Guitar (Classical & Electric), Marimba, Piano, Violin

Dance Requirements: Moderate-Advanced

1) Overture/The Mitten Song

2) Life is Complete

3) Body of Water

4) Yoopers and Trolls

5) It Would be a Shame

6) Dad Tax

7) Dearborn

8) AI Does the Work for Me

9) Wild Midwest

10) Fish for Mom and Dad

11) Time Does Heal

12) Gichigamiin

13) The Starving Artist

14) Fraudway

15) Kick Rocks

16) Hands Come in Handy

17) Petoskey

18) North South East West

19) Natural Beauty

20) Rock Bottom

21) Family's in the Fossils

22) Leave No Stones Unturned

23) Water to My Soul

24) Michigan