New Seattle Web Series “Six Months For Six Weeks” Debuts…And, It’s A Charmer

A screen grab from episode 1 of “Six Months for Six Weeks” a new musical web series from John Coons and Alex Berry.

We loved the sound of it back in May. That’s when local musician/performer John Coons and videographer Alex Berry announced their Kickstarter campaign to achieve funding to film a web series based on John’s “semi-autobiographical one man show” called SIX MONTHS FOR SIX WEEKS about “two twenty-something men in Portland, Maine, their six-week “relationship with an expiration date” and its aftermath, set against 2009′s “Question 1” same-sex marriage debate…” Featuring original songs and monologues by Mr. Coons, the project aimed to turn the live stage show into 5 or 6 webisodes all shot and edited by Mr. Berry. Happily, they achieved their Kickstarter goal and the pair immediately began filming material for the project.

The first of the episodes debuted last week on YouTube and the quirky charms of the material (and Mr. Coons) quickly caught the attention of national outlets like Towleroad. “Six Months for Six Weeks” is charmingly fresh and intriguing…one of those rare video experiences where you’re not entirely sure what will come next. It’s greatly aided by the original songs and the wryly comic performance skills of Mr. Coons. We’re looking forward to seeing future installments of the series.

And, we won’t have long to wait. Episode # 2 of “Six Months for Six Weeks” will debut next Friday, October 4 at Lobby Bar, 916 East Pike Street from 6:30 pm to 8 pm.  Stop by for a drink and to hang out with John and Alex and see the premiere of the 2nd episode…and, obviously, it will also start popping up online as well if you CAN’T make it to Lobby…

Here’s a bit more skinny about John and the project:

Who are you? 

I’m a 27 year old gay singer-songwriter/actor/playwright living in Seattle. I moved here a year and a half ago from Boston (but I’m a Maine boy at heart). I’ve sung as a soloist with the Boston Symphony POPS, Pittsburgh Symphony, Portland Symphony POPS, Rhode Island Philharmonic and performed the national anthem for the Red Sox at Fenway. I was an Emerging Artist with PORTopera for three seasons and I’ve shared the stage with Ben Folds, Foreigner, Amanda Palmer, and the Jane Austen Argument.

How did you get here?

I premiered “Six Months” as a live one-man show in Seattle in June 2012, and I’ve since performed it twice in Boston (once at the Cloud Club), in the PortFringe 2012 festival in Portland, Maine, as a fundraiser for Washington United for Marriage, and at “Don’t Tell Mama” in NYC’s theater district. I was looking for a way to bring it to a larger audience and also to collaborate with other artists I like…. so I came up with the idea to turn it into a web-based miniseries. I pitched it to filmmaker extraordinaire Alex Berry (you may know him as the man behind the  series of Jinkx Monsoon documentaries, “Drag Becomes Him”), and he and I immediately began brainstorming ways to adapt it for the small screen…“Six Months for Six Weeks” packs a punch with its unique blend of honest romance, blistering satire, and tender empathy. What other musical do you know that deals with an intense gay relationship, robot dads, the inner monologue of an anti-same sex marriage voter, and a scathing Cabaret summation of a list of ex-boyfriends?

We’re looking forward to seeing the entire completed project…and, the live show as well!