Stone Silk Productions presents
A NEW MUSICAL
Love can change a life.
Power changes everything.
Imagining the Stage
The Story
In a time of immense power and rigid convention, Emperor Ai of the Han Dynasty formed a bond with Dong Xian that would challenge tradition, reshape a court, and leave a story still told two thousand years later.
Cut Sleeve explores love, loyalty, memory, and what it means to remain human inside the machinery of history.
Discover the vision →“A personal story.
A universal resonance.”
Creative Vision
Cut Sleeve invites audiences into the late Western Han court, where a gesture can carry the weight of an imperial command, and silence can reveal what words must conceal. Ceremony, music, and the space between people shape a story of intimacy and power.
Historical research and consultation inform the world of the musical, alongside dramatic invention.
An original theatrical score in development, exploring the meeting of contemporary musical theatre and historically informed instrumental colors.
The scale of empire is always measured against the private lives moving within it.
Ceremony in Motion
Processional banners, measured movement, and the sound of a visible ensemble draw the audience into the court’s public world.
The staging vision explores a procession through the aisles toward the stage: an opening gesture that makes the scale of imperial authority felt throughout the room.
An evolving theatrical vision. Final staging will be developed with the creative team.
Development Update · November 2026
The next chapter is taking shape: refining the story, developing an original score, and bringing together the artists who will give CUT SLEEVE its theatrical life. A developmental reading is planned for Spring 2027, with a world premiere targeted for Fall 2028. Dates, venues, and participation details will be announced when confirmed.
Meet the Creator
Creator & Executive Producer
Richard Birchard is the creator and executive producer of CUT SLEEVE and leads its development through Stone Silk Productions, LLC, in San Francisco.
A clarinetist with a Bachelor of Arts in Music from California State University, Long Beach, he trained at the Armed Forces School of Music and served with the U.S. Army European Band from 1976 to 1980.
His work on CUT SLEEVE brings together musical storytelling, historical inquiry, and the human lives behind the record of empire.
“The record keeps appointments. Harvests. Floods. Memorials.
Sometimes, it keeps something smaller.”
— Cut Sleeve
Contact
For producing, creative-team, casting, venue, development, and press inquiries:
info@cutsleevemusical.comJoin the Journey
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