The Stories Behind
the Song Characters We Love!
Six Short Fiction Plays (3 per act)
Listening to classic ’70s music, have you ever wondered:
⦁ Did Jolene ever really want that guy?
⦁ Who was it that didn’t want Roxanne to turn on the red light and why?
⦁ What brought Davey-who’s-still-in-the-Navy into the piano man’s bar that night?
⦁ Why didn’t that guy give the dang horse in the desert a name?
⦁ Why doesn’t that husband bring his wife flowers anymore?
Well, we won’t answer these particular questions, but playwright Milo Shapiro has reshaped the characters from six other favorite 1970s hits into six fascinating short plays where we learn the back story or, even, what comes next for those folks!
Why are we being mysterious about which six songs? Because part of the fun, as you watch the scenes, is figuring out what song story we’re delving into! So once you’ve seen the show, shhhh! Keep the secrets!
A little drama, some humor, and some very unexpected twists will have you thinking about this show any time you hear these songs for the rest of your life!
Join us for this fun musical fantasy look at what maybe − possibly − could be Behind the Lyrics.
How do you pull off the music parts? Immediately after each mini-play (10-20 minutes each), we hear all or some of the song that the previous scene was based upon, satisfying the craving to hear it after being teased by the story line (and, just in case some attendees still haven’t figured out what song it was.) Also, we’ve found that when people hear the song, lyrics they forgot come back to them, explaining more of what some of the characters said in the scene.
So what’s the best way to share the music part? That’s an option for each company to decide! Among the options:
- Play all or some of the classic hit
- Have live musicians perform the song (as it happens, all the songs feature a male lead, so it could be as small as one man on a piano or guitar or be more robust, if you like!)
- Play a Karaoke version and have the audience sing along, possibly as you project lyrics on the wall and/or have someone(s) lead them in song.
Licensing issues could be a factor and we count upon the theaters to know how to best approach this topic.
How many actors does the show require? Because of the multiple unrelated scenes, you could have a nice big cast where people are main characters in only one or two scenes. Or, crunching the numbers, you could pull this off with as few as seven actors, though at least one or two more would probably be beneficial.
Where did the idea come from? Milo was in the car, listening to a famous ’70s song and thought, “I wonder what would have become of the person in this song?” That idea snowballed into thinking about what other songs left us wondering things or, in some cases, what might we never have known that makes the song way more interesting when enhanced with a plot!
How can I learn more? Write to Milo directly at MiloOnStage at gmail.
Copyright 2025, 2026 Milo Shapiro. All rights reserved.