Emerging Artists: Rathskeller The Musical

Rathskeller: A Musical Elixir is part rock concert— part social experiment. This bold, immersive new musical asks: Can a person’s life be reduced to their choices? Which ones count? And who gets to decide? This is a story about choices – and the audience gets to choose how the story ends.

Rathskeller follows the story of John Casey, an ambitious young songwriter determined to get his mom out of her abusive marriage to his alcoholic father. When ambition turns to desperation and confidence turns to pride, John finds himself haunted by the addiction he grew up resenting. On the night of his worst choice, he wakes up in Rathskeller – an eerie dive bar in the basement of the afterlife. The devilish Bartender and her ghostly staff of souls offer him the elixir of a lifetime— but the consequences could be deadly. 

With a powerhouse punk rock score and what the Virginian Pilot called “a radically ambiguous stance on mercy and justice,” Rathskeller: A Musical Elixir will not only have you head-banging but also asking, “If your story was in the spotlight, what would you deserve?”

Brianna Kothari Barnes (Book, Music, & Lyrics) is a multi-dimensional artist who works professionally as an actor, singer-songwriter, and playwright/composer. She is a 2022 NYC Women’s Fund Grant Recipient and 2021 Jonathan Larson Grant Finalist. Writing Credits: Let There Be Light (Book, Music, & Lyrics) – Best Musical/Best Score at The New York Theatre Festival (2018), Walking With Bubbles (Music & Lyrics) – Drama Desk Nomination and Off-Broadway Alliance Award Winner for Best Solo Performance (2023), and Rathskeller: A Musical Elixir (Book, Music, & Lyrics) which has received workshop productions at The SheAtlanta Festival (2023) and The Z Theater (2024).  Her debut album, Hierophanies: Manifestations of the Sacred, made the first round on the 2021 Grammy Awards® ballot for consideration under Best Contemporary Christian Album. Brianna has headlined at iconic NYC venues like The Cutting Room and Green Room 42 with her original music. As a professional actor and graduate of the esteemed Musical Theater Program at The University of Cincinnati (CCM), she has performed at Florida Studio Theater, The Engeman Theater, Wick Theater, Theatre Aspen, and Capital Repertory Theater as well as The National Tour of A Charlie Brown Christmas. She was most recently seen performing as Jenna in Waitress at Northern Stage and has received critical acclaim for her performance as Carole King in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical at The Maltz Jupiter Theatre, Stages St. Louis, White Plains Performing Arts Center, Forestburgh Playhouse, and Virginia Musical Theatre. www.brianna-barnes.com

Dame Productions (Concept Creator) is a theatrical company dedicated to helping young women find their voice. Their New Works program seeks to work with female and BIPOC creators and teams to help bring their work to life and foster the development of original concepts in musical theatre. Founded by actor, choreographer, and songwriter, Grace Rudd, Dame Productions aims to share its passion for musical theatre and social justice with the world. www.dameproductions.org

About the Festival

The Emerging Artists Festival began in 2020 after the Renaissance received support from the National Endowment for the Arts to encourage, develop, and champion artists creating original work. Since its inception, the festival has provided playwrights, composers, lyricists, filmmakers, and theatre artists with opportunities to collaborate, refine new ideas, and share them with audiences.

As the festival has grown, so has its impact. For the 2026–2027 season, the Emerging Artists Festival enters an exciting new chapter, expanding beyond workshop readings to present selected works as fully staged black box productions. This evolution allows audiences to experience original theatre in a more immersive setting while providing artists with an even richer development process.

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Pricing

Pricing listed does not include applicable fees.

General Admission Price: $20+
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