For Immediate Release:Contact: David Kuehn, Executive DirectorCotuit Center for the ArtsPhone: (508) 428-0669Email: David@cotuitcenterforthearts.orgWebsite: ArtsOnTheCape.org

“My Music and Me” a Solo Show by Glenn Starner-Tate at Cotuit Center for the Arts

Composer/pianist Glenn Starner-Tate presents his musical biography in “My Music and Me,” a solo show, in the Black Box Theater at Cotuit Center for the Arts July 7 to 24. Performances are Thursday through Sat at 7:30 PM and Sunday at 4 PM.

My Music and Me" is an evening of storytelling, piano music, humor and honest insights, as Starner-Tate shares his story about his gift for piano playing, his fascination with Liberace, and the influence of his family and their fundamentalist religious background on his life.

He introduces us to his parents, who worried he would lose his way in the big world outside the church; David, whose inner child is always present; Dennis, who is painfully realistic about everything from religion to music; and Pastor Judy, who challenged Starner-Tate to quit worrying about his “Liberace syndrome.”

Starner-Tate has been working on the show for five years, getting help along the way from directors PJ McKey and Karen McPherson. An early influence was playwright and performer Bronwen Prosser, who teaches a Solo Show workshop that Starner-Tate attended in 2012. Prosser led the class in writing exercises.

“’Write a super-hero story in which you are the super-hero,’ she told us, ‘and make sure you have at least one magical power,’” said Starner-Tate. The assignment was easy for him because he did have a super-power. "There once was a little boy in a basement in Kansas," he began, "who could play the piano WITHOUT piano lessons."

“I discovered the piano at the age of 5, when my family visited someone who had a piano. Before we left I was able to play a little song.” His mother taught him to read music, but, otherwise, he was on his own until he took his first lesson at the age of 27.

Church music played a large role in Starner-Tate’s musical development. “In the religious environment where I grew up, my musical talent was considered a gift from God, and it was appropriate that I use my gift for God,” he said.

He still loves the music of the church, particularly the old hymns. “It is the music that has gotten me through,” he said. “I play it because it is beautiful music, and it says something to me. It seems to speak to other people too. There is something in the music that makes you listen.”

“The piano was always my go-to place,” said Starner-Tate. “It is a place of harmony, a place of very little dissonance, very little stress. It’s a place of comfort and quiet, for the most part.”

Starner-Tate’s story has its dark moments, but he tells his tale with humor and honest reflection. “Ultimately, we come to the point where we have to stop blaming others for our problems and go ahead and fix ourselves. That’s ultimately what my story is about—coming to that realization and how I accomplished it,” he said.

Starner-Tate ends his performance with his first original composition, the part one of a seven-part work. “I’ve always tried to play music that people would recognize,” he said, “so this has been a new experience for me, but it is an important part of my story. Be yourself. Always.”

Tickets are $18, $15 for members. To purchase tickets and for more information, visit artsonthecape.org, or call 508-428-0069.

Cotuit Center for the Arts is at 4404 Route 28 in Cotuit. For more information, and to purchase tickets visit artsonthecape.org or call 508-428-0669.

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What: “My Music and Me,” a solo show by Glenn Starner-Tate

Where: Cotuit Center for the Arts, 4404 Route 28, Cotuit

When: July 7 to 24, Thursday through Saturday at 7:30 PM; Sunday at 4 PM.

Admission:$18, $15 for members

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