IMAGINARY GIRL: The Occupation of Patty Hearst

Book, Lyrics + Music by Leonard Dolivio Cetrangolo

                    Part
                          – Heartbreaking Family Drama
                          – Psychological Thriller
                          – Spectacular Farce             
                          – True Crime Mystery
                          – Verbatim Docu-Musical
                     100%   New Independent Musical Theater 

IMAGINARY GIRL: The Occupation of Patty Hearst (an alternative identity musical)

Set in 1974, this all-original MUSICAL HISTORY PLAY responsibly tells the 
TRUE STORY of the political kidnapping of 19-year-old Patty Hearst. 
After being held captive for 59 days by a ragtag militant group, she emerges 
declaring her new identity as Tania and her “choice” to join her kidnappers' 
mission to overthrow the US government.

As her ongoing ordeal unfolds it’s dissected, distorted, and exploited by 
The News Media, and holds the world spellbound as Patty changes from an 
innocent victim into a fugitive outlaw right in front of our eyes.

The play’s unbelievable true story centers on a strong complex protagonist 
who eventually discovers she’s the only one who can save herself.

The play examines how The News Media – along with the criminal-justice/
incarceration system, and the mental health system – misinterpret, exploit, 
and compound the suffering of trauma victims, while its central character 
models survivorship, hope, and healing.

This new work’s unique underlying subject matter speaks to the psychological 
and spiritual dilemmas of survivors of child abuse, domestic violence, 
military combat, human trafficking, and extremist religious & extremist political cults.

Through a not-so-distant mirror...
        The play takes on A NEWLY-EMERGING 21st CENTURY THEME: 
        THE DISINTEGRATION OF CONSENSUS REALITY – the end of our once-universal 
        & once-dependable shared reality.

The play prompts the question:
        HOW MUCH OF OUR PERSONAL & POLITICAL IDENTITY IS GUIDED BY FORCES 
        BEYOND OUR OWN FREE WILL?

The story explores:
       TRAUMA’S IMPACT ON IDENTITY 
       & how ALL CONFLICTS – INTERNAL, INTERPERSONAL, AND POLITICAL – 
       ARE BATTLES OF COMPETING VERSIONS OF REALITY. 

Ultimately,
       IMAGINARY GIRL: The Occupation of Patty Hearst is 
       AN UPLIFTING STORY OF SURVIVAL, SELF-DISCOVERY & SELF-LIBERATION, 
       as its historic central-figure triumphantly overcomes 
       seemingly impossible internal and external obstacles.

BAND SIZE:
5 musicians

CAST SIZE:
10+ 
This can be easily/practically scaled up for regional theaters or college & Uni to 25+ or more.

INCLUSIVE CAST + TEAM NOTE:
Although the race and gender of the historical characters are fixed,
ANY performer may portray ANY role:

For example, in this “alternative identity musical” the role of Randolph Hearst, Patty’s father, 
could be played by a Norm Lewis- or a Wayne Brady-type (Black). Or, the doubling role 
of Walter Cronkite and F. Lee Bailey could be played by a Rosie O’Donnell- or a Cherry Jones-type (female).

IMAGINARY GIRL has been developed by 
a team of Interdisciplinary Artists & Associates 
for 5DMEDIALAB

2023 — NATIONAL SEMI-FINALIST
The Eugene O’Neill National Musical Theatre Conference

2021 — INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP of selected scenes
La Mama International Director’s Symposium — Umbria, Italy 

2021 — 2 READINGS (one week apart) with invited audience
Felirene (Fe) Bongolan – Arts Activist + Dramaturg — 5DMEDIALAB, San Francisco

2021 — 2 READINGS (one week apart) of selected scenes with invited audience
Dr. Kathleen Tarr – Race + Gender Representation Advisor — 5DMEDIALAB, San Francisco

2020 — WORKSHOP to develop NEW SCORE ARRANGEMENTS for all songs – still need new vocal demos
Gary Adler – Veteran B’way MD + Interim Arranger — 5DMEDIALAB, San Francisco

2019 — ARTIST IN RESIDENCE WORKSHOP on Physical Narrative 
SafeHouse Arts – ARTIST IN RESIDENCE — San Francisco

2018 — A STAGED READING & Community SHOWCASE Production – juried selection 
The Marsh Theater – San Francisco

2017 — A READING of SELECTED SONGS & SCENES – with invited audience
Patricia Cotter, Dramaturg + Consultant — 5DMEDIALAB, San Francisco

2016 — Musical Café DEVELOPMENT LAB – juried selection
San Francisco — *Winner: AUDIENCE FAVORITE*  

2016 — A STAGED READING – with invited audience
Nancy Hayes Casting Studio — San Francisco

2016 - 2024 — AN ONGOING SERIES OF INFORMAL READINGS – with invited audience
Dr. Harvey L. Schwartz — Clinical Psychological Consultant – San Francisco

------------  GOALS + NEXT STEPS  ---------------

*** MENTOR / ADVISOR / PRODUCER ***
Top of Our wish list
For experienced strategy & artistic/business guidance
And to help shepherd a Pilot Production

RECORD UPDATED SONG DEMOS
w/ professional singers & our existing new arrangements
Draft orchestrations
Co-create non-traditional integrated sound design

LITERARY AGENT
Representation for outreach

BUDGETS
Draft tiered budgets by Production Manger
     Paid gig — potential royalty share

BOOK, LYRICS + MUSIC – LEONARD DOLIVIO CETRANGOLO 

DRAMATIST / VISUAL STORYTELLER – with a unique vision & voice shaped across multiple creative disciplines. 
Known for synthesizing archetypal story structure with compelling visual narratives.

 REWRITER / GHOSTWRITER OF STUDIO & INDIE FEATURE FILMS:
− Contributed uncredited rewrites for OSCAR-WINNING DIR. JOHN SCHLESINGER (with: MADONNA, RUPERT EVERETT, 
PAUL GIAMATTI, NEIL PATRICK HARRIS)
− Revisions for OSCAR-NOMINATED DIR. LASSE HALLSTRÖM (with: JULIA ROBERTS, ROBERT DUVALL, GENA ROWLANDS)
− Co-wrote a TV pilot for ROLAND EMMERICH (unproduced)
− Co-authored an adaptation of a PHILIP K. DICK novel (produced)

 VISUAL STORYTELLER / PRODUCTION DESIGNER:
− Designed concert stage sets, music videos & album covers, including for: JOAN JETT, THE RAMONES, LOU REED, 
JAMES BROWN, STING, GEORGE MICHAEL, DAVID BOWIE
− Art Directed luxury brand fashion advertising for LOUIS VUITTON, COACH LEATHER, L’OREAL, REVLON, LEVIS, 
ADIDAS, BERGDORF GOODMAN, CARTIER, TIFFANY, GUCCI + fashion editorials for VANITY FAIR, DETAILS, VOGUE, 
HARPER’S BAZAAR, PREMIER, ROLLING STONE, GQ, Details, NEWSWEEK, HIGH TIMES, THE NEW YORK TIMES

 WRITER-DIRECTOR OF AWARD-WINNING SHORT FILM:
– The Paris Crystal won numerous National/International awards & aired on SHOWTIME for several years

 INTERACTIVE STORY ARCHITECT + AWARD-WINNING INFORMATION-PLATFORM CONCEPT DESIGNER:
− Created alternative interactive storytelling game design for Ludinc, Berlin, Germany
− Winner of the $25K FIRST PLACE PRIZE in BearingPoint’s International Innovation Award Competition

 CO-FOUNDER + CREATIVE DIRECTOR OF 5DMEDIALAB – Media Development & Consulting Company:
− DEDICATED TO SYNTHESIZING FIVE DIMENSIONS: INSTINCT, VISION, VOICE, EMOTION + MEANING
  www.5dmedialab.com

 EDUCATION
− NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts — Writing + Directing
      magna cum laude
      Full Merit Scholarship, MCA Lew Wasserman
      Recipient of the Louis B. Mayer Award
      Winner of prestigious (National) Mobil Corporation Award, presented at Lincoln Center
− Parson’s School of Design, New York, NY              
      Drawing, painting, design & art history
− HB STUDIO (Herbert Berghof Studio), New York, NY
      Studied acting with Bill Hickey

_______________________________________
ASSOCIATE COMPOSER + ADDITIONAL MUSIC – SPENCER TEETER 
− Released his first solo album as a teenager, with several songs charting on Canadian radio
− Co-songwriter for recording artists and actor in indie films, TV series, and commercials
− Merges indie rock with poignant storytelling in Imaginary Girl
________________________________________
INTERIM ARRANGER – GARY ADLER
− Veteran B’way Music Director of Avenue Q (TONY AWARD WINNER, Best Musical)
− Arranged dance music for Escape to Margaritaville (Jimmy Buffett’s Broadway musical)
− Co-wrote Altar Boyz (Off-Broadway hit, 2005 Drama Desk nominations)
− Other credits: The Fantasticks, It Shoulda Been You, Nunsense, Urinetown, Hairspray, Kinky Boots
________________________________________
ARTS ACTIVIST + DRAMATURG – FELIRENE (FE) BONGOLAN
− Principal Dramaturg for The Medea Project: Theater for Incarcerated Women
− Uses theater as a vehicle for social change, adapting ancient myths for contemporary storytelling
________________________________________
RACE + GENDER ADVISOR – DR. KATHLEEN TARR
− Harvard Law School graduate and former civil rights attorney
− Lectures at Stanford University on race and gender representation in the entertainment industry
− Advises on socio-political issues in Imaginary Girl
________________________________________
DRAMATURG + SCRIPT CONSULTANT – PATRICIA COTTER
− Emmy Award-winning dramatist and librettist
− Winner of the Richard Rodgers Award, Ovation Award, Garland Award, WGA Award
− Works produced at: TheatreWorks New Works Festival, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Humana Festival, 
Jackalope Theatre, Vineyard Theatre
− Finalist for the 2016 O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, Semi-Finalist for the 2018 O’Neill 
National Playwrights Conference
________________________________________
PSYCHOLOGICAL CONSULTANT – DR. HARVEY SCHWARTZ
− Internationally recognized clinical psychologist specializing in understanding and treating Complex 
Trauma and Dissociative Identity
− Author of two award-winning books on Dissociative Identity and Coerced Perpetration
− Senior Clinician & Lead Trainer for MAPS-sponsored clinical trials in MDMA-assisted psychotherapy
− Co-founder of Polaris Insight Center, the first psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy clinic in the U.S. 
− Director of Clinical Training for Polaris Insight Center’s Program which trains the next generation of 
psyedeclic-assisted psychotherapists to understand and effectively treat trauma and PTSD
________________________________________
CREATIVE PARTNER + ARTISTIC ADVISOR – DAVID SILVERMAN
− Actor, educator, and painter
− Film actor in 1-on-1 scenes with Sigourney Weaver, Holly Hunter, Eddie Murphy, Will Smith
− Exhibited paintings at The de Young Museum (A Tribute to Gilbert and George, Warhol and Beyond)
− Educator for at-risk and gifted youth in the San Francisco Bay Area and Portland, Oregon
− Featured in San Francisco Street Art: Mission Muralismo (Abrams, 2009)
________________________________________
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER + OUTREACH LIAISON – REBEKAH D. VEGA
− Raised in a Pentecostal religious cult, later studied musical theater
− Drawn to Imaginary Girl for its exploration of mind control and indoctrination
− Believes in theater’s transformative power
________________________________________

WE BELIEVE
Theater is a form of magic
That stands between us and a hostile world
Theatre has metaphysical power
It is not merely the making of an aesthetic product
Theater offers us an alchemical vessel to transform our terrors
And for manifesting our dreams
By giving them story, color, shape, and meaning
Theater at its very best helps us come to know our way forward
Together
Better
          – 5DMEDIALAB