About Equinox the Musical
Just twice a year, on the spring and fall equinox, there is equal day and night, equal darkness and light; a picture of balance – everywhere on earth.
Balance can be similarly fleeting in our daily lives.
How do we cope with the stressors that threaten to push us off our stride?
How does someone in less fortunate circumstances – someone who is destitute, or even homeless – maintain any sense of balance in the daily struggle just to survive?
Everyone has a story, and when we see someone on the street, we often have no idea what their story is.
The public face of homelessness is too often someone suffering from serious mental health issues or addiction.
But many others endure the indignities of a life gone awry with a quiet dignity, a loving word, a generous gesture.
The need to tell their stories inspired the creation of Equinox the Musical in story and song.
At a time of social upheaval, the world needs to see and hear this tale of compassion and perseverance in the face of conflict, and I’ve made it my personal mission to bring it to the screen.
– Armand Ruby
Synopsis
The film takes place in and around a homeless shelter, all in the course of one day – the fall Equinox – a day where there is equal day and equal night everywhere in the world, a picture of balance. In a way all of the characters are searching for balance, whether they’re destitute and homeless, or housed and gainfully employed.
From the energetic opening ensemble dance number, “It’s A New Day”, to the emotional turning point of the movie, “Everybody Needs to Love”, and the desperate, plaintive cry for help of “Where Do I Go Now?”, the songs bring depth of feeling and emotional intimacy to the story.
There are 9 principal lead singing roles: 4 of whom are homeless, living either in the shelter or out on the street, and 5 who are not – all of them subject to their own challenges.
For the homeless clients, the challenges are diverse, relating to the circumstances that resulted in their becoming unhoused. And social service workers, like hospital staff, experience stress in their professional lives, trying to provide a safe haven for the most vulnerable members of society; they carry the burden of mediating between the homeless population and the public.
Three romances weave through the story: youthful Jason and his girlfriend Katie, who both live at the shelter; William the former attorney, now a recovering addict who hopes to reunite with his estranged wife; and two of the professional staff: Michelle, the shelter administrator, and Dr. Roberts, the staff psychologist, who tentatively experience the possibility of love in middle age.
Cast (Lead singing roles)
JASON: male, ~20 years old; recently aged out of the foster home system, where he’s spent most of his life. He was able to get a spot in the shelter, but early in the film he learns he’s being exited from the shelter for breaking the rules, and now, as the day goes on, he’s in real danger
KATIE: female, ~19 years old; staying in the homeless shelter as she escapes from a domestic situation in which she was abused by her best friend’s father, and did not receive support from her own single-parent mother; newly Jason’s girlfriend
PHOEBE: female, elderly, homeless, wise-woman/crone who’s lost her husband, her home, and recently her car, and yet who is able to draw on a deep well of forgiveness to help her survive, even while living on the street; she provides inspiration and hope to Katie
WILLIAM THE ATTORNEY: male, ~40s; attorney and recovering addict, whose successful law practice dissolved in a haze of opiate addiction, he is staying at the homeless shelter while he regains his sanity and strives to regain life on a new sober footing, and return to his family
BENJAMIN: male, ~30s; homeless shelter staff; the cheerful and gregarious young counselor at the shelter who has a knack for relating to people of all ages, especially the homeless clients, and maintains a positive/hopeful yet non-naïve outlook on life and approach to his work
DR. ROBERTS: male, ~40s-50s; the well-loved and respected county psychologist, known for his ability to be a helping force for the struggling clients at the shelter; attractive and personable, he is also single, and is also secretly attracted to his colleague, Michelle…
MICHELLE: female, ~40s-50s; the Shelter Administrator, she has grown somewhat tired in her career, and loneliness in her personal life contributes to that, even while she is attractive, intelligent, and accomplished; she has a secret attraction to Dr. Roberts, but doesn’t realize he is also interested in her
THE PROFESSOR: male, ~60s; semi-retired faculty, tech entrepreneur, friend to Dr. Roberts; the old Professor has lived a privileged life, but on this day comes to a realization that not only does everybody need love, but also that everyone needs to love; his change of heart towards the less fortunate is the emotional turning point of the film
AMY THE WAITRESS: female, ~20s-30s, caring and compassionate soul who stands up for the homeless veteran sitting on the sidewalk outside the cafe, and opens The Professor’s heart to a new way of seeing his fellow man