A symphonic pageant written for the sesquicentennial of the District of Columbia and to open Carter Barron Amphitheater.
Theater
The Flamingo Hat
Complete show here. Set in Colonial Georgetown, an enchanted hat causes havoc.
The Houseboat on the Styx
Based on a whimiscal novel by John Kendrick Bangs, the shades of famous men and women vie for control of an elegant club on the River Styx.
The Rose and the Ring
Complete show here.From an 1854 Christmas Pantomime of William Makepeace Thackery. Magical tokens cause the holders to love or be loved, bringing personal and political problems to the kingdom of Crim Tartary.
Tularosa
Complete show here. A large New Mexican ranch secedes from the Union over 1960s political issues.
Houseboat
Complete show here plus videos below. This re-write of the 1957 show adds star turns for Sherlock Holmes, Captain Kidd and Lucretia Borgia.
Houseboat 7 from Mark Dirksen on Vimeo.
Incidental music for Galileo Galilei
Brecht’s play includes poetic quatrains before each scene as well as a marvelous “Ballad of the Orders” mocking society stratification. A humanist and satirical masterpiece. Audio includes music cues as well as Dirksen’s own digest of the full show.
The Ballad of Dr. Faustus
Christopher Marlowe’s Faust is transplanted to the American frontier. Videos below, music cues also posted.