The Scarlet Letter Musical is a folk musical retelling of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s classic story from a modern perspective. Grown Pearl tells a story about how her mother, Hester, was forced to wear a letter A for all to see. Hester longs for a better life for her child as she lives under the judging eye of the Puritan town and her husband. All the while, her forbidden love and beloved preacher is withering from his guilt. The Scarlet Letter Musical is a story of transformation. Hester Prynne the Adulterer becomes Hester the Able. Pearl, the embodiment of her parents’ transgression, becomes a woman in her own right. Hester the Able becomes a beacon of hope for all women caught in shame. All are welcome.

SheNYC Semi-Finalist 2022

July 2023

The Table Co/lab produced a staged workshop of The Scarlet Letter Musical.

July 2022

“Welcome” featured in the MusicalWriters Festival in their New Works Cabaret.

Bios

Christine Hand Jones

Christine (lyricist, composer, and bookwriter) is a singer-songwriter and an Assistant Professor of English at Dallas Baptist University, where she teaches Writing, Literature, and Songwriting courses. She has a PhD in literary studies from the University of Texas at Dallas, which she earned largely by writing about the music and lyrics of Bob Dylan. When she’s not in the classroom, she performs her original soulful folk-rock music around the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Her most recent album, The Book of the World, features sweet, bluesy vocals over vintage folk-rock instrumentation. She has also written original settings of Shakespeare’s lyrics for The Stolen Shakespeare Guild in Fort Worth, TX, as well as the original folk-rock children’s musical, On the Mountain, an adaptation of the teachings of Jesus’ sermon on the mount.

Kenady Sean

Kenady (lyricist, composer, bookwriter, and owner of Kenady Sean Productions) is currently working on three musical projects other than The Scarlet Letter Musical: a dystopian, sci-fi musical called Beyond Perfection, a children’s musical and an all-women show set in World War II. Beyond Perfection was a Rave Festival Finalist as well as an ImaGen New Musicals finalist. She was the community manager for MusicalWriters.com in 2021-2022, a site that offers advice and community to musical theatre writers. Kenady graduated with an MBA and a BS in Music Business from Dallas Baptist University where she received the Texas Business Hall of Fame Scholarship.