Peace on Your Wings

Music and Book by Jenny Taira
Lyrics and Book by Laurie Rubin

PEACE ON YOUR WINGS is inspired by the real-life story of Sadako Sasaki and her one thousand paper cranes. Set in post-war, 1950’s Japan, the musical follows the lives of middle school students in Hiroshima.  When one of them falls seriously ill, the childrens’ lives and their tenuous bonds with each other seem to unravel. But one girl‘s struggle and dreams for a better tomorrow teach the children and the worldabout courage, love, and peace.

Regular price $12.00
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Quick Details

  • Type: Musical
  • Length:
  • Availability:
  • Cast Size: 24+ young actors ages 6-24
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Roles:

Roles indicated with a * must be played by Asian-American/Pacific Islander (AAPI) actors, as they portray real individuals. All other roles may be cast with actors of all backgrounds to create an ensemble reflecting the global experience of children in wartime

  • Sadako, 12yo Female*
  • Shizuka, Sadako's best friend, 12yo Female
  • Aiko, Kenji's best friend, 12yo Female
  • Kenji, Aiko's best friend, 12yo Male
  • Kazuko, Sadako's school friend, 12yo Female
  • Kiyoshi, Sadako's crush, 12yo Male*
  • Minoru, Sadako's classmate, 12yo Male
  • Setsuko, Patient at the Hospital, 10yo Female
  • Itsue, Patient at the Hospital, 6yo Female
  • Haru, Patient at the Hospital, 9yo Male
  • Reiko, Patient at the Hospital, 8yo Female
  • Shigeno, Patient at the Hospital, 11yo Female
  • Kiyo, Sadako's Hospital Roommate, 14yo Female
  • Masahiro, Sadako's older brother, 14yo Male*
  • Eiji, Sadako's younger brother, 4yo Male*
  • Mitsue, Sadako's younger sister, 6yo Female*
  • Young Sadako, Prologue, 2yo Female
  • Young Masahiro, Prologue, 4yo Male

Ensemble includes Hospital Patients, Townspeople, and Schoolmates. Voiceovers includes Nomura Sensei and Grand Field Day Announcer

The following resources are included in each performance license:
  • Permission to photocopy the PDF script and piano/vocal score for your production so there is no additional cost for these assets.
  • Logo/Media package
  • Performance Tracks

Jenny Taira

Composer, clarinetist, and pianist Jenny Taira is known in Hawaii and beyond for her work in several genres, including musical theater, pop and choral music. An activeperformer, she has performed extensively throughout the United States as a
clarinetist and collaborative pianist. Recent career highlights include international recital tours throughout North America and Europe, and performances at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, Ravinia Festival, the Philharmonic Hall in Brasov Transylvania, Greenwich Music Festival, and the 92nd Street Y in New York City; and a Lucas Artist Residency at Montalvo Arts Center. As a clarinetist, she received top prizes in the Hennings-Fischer Foundation Young Artist Competition and Kingsville International Competition, and has performed with the Burbank Philharmonic, Moscow Chamber Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, New Britain Symphony, Hawaii Symphony, and the Royal Hawaiian Band. In 2013, she and Laurie Rubin also branded as a new pop duo under the name, PureLand. Jenny is a graduate of Northwestern University and the Yale School of Music. An advocate for arts education, Ms. Taira is Co-Founder, Executive & Co-Artistic Director of Ohana Arts, a performing arts festival and training program on Oahu serving youth ages 6-18 which aims to cultivate peace through the arts.  She is the composer and
co-bookwriter of the original musical, “Peace On Your Wings,” based on the true
story of 12 year old Hiroshima atomic bomb victim Sadako Sasaki and her
thousand paper cranes which has toured ten cities, including Honolulu, Los
Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Fukuoka, and Hiroshima Japan, among others.
 Jenny has served as music director on over 40 fully staged musical theater productions, as well as conductor of their pit orchestras.  She has music directed/conducted productions of “The Wizard of Oz,” “Oliver,” "Footloose,” “Hairspray,” “Cats,” “Little Shop of Horrors,” West Side Story,”
among others.

Laurie Rubin

Laurie Rubin is an author, motivational speaker and singer who performs in a variety of genres, including classical, pop, and musical theater. New York Times critic Anthony Tommasini praised her “compelling artistry,” “communicative power,” and the “earthy, rich, and poignant qualities” of her voice. Los Angeles Times critic Mark Swed described her as “a young mezzo-soprano whose voice is darkly complex and mysteriously soulful and who adds intense emphasis to every word of text.” Laurie has performed with the likes of conductor John Williams and opera star Frederica von Stade. She has given concerts at London’s Wigmore Hall, The Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center and the White House, among others, presenting programs that tell her unique story through music. Her album, Do You Dream In Color? was released in 2012, the same year as her memoir of the same name, published by Seven Stories Press. The title track of the album, co-written by Laurie and composer Bruce Adolphe, premiered in its orchestral version in a performance she gave at the International Human Rights Conference in Lucerne, Switzerland and in a performance she gave with the LA Chamber Orchestra. She has performed a number of operatic roles including Penelope in Monteverdi’s “The Return of Ulysses” and Elle in Poulenc’s one woman opera, “La Voix Humaine” with the Greenwich Music Festival, The Witch/Voice in Lisa Bielawa’s episodic TV opera, “Vireo” for the KCET Artsbound program, “Karen in Gordon Beeferman’s “The Rat Lan” for New York City Opera’s Vox Festival, Anne in Nadia Boulanger’s recently rediscovered opera “La Ville Morte” with Greek National Opera and Catapult Opera in Athens Greece and New York City, among many others.  She and composer/producer, Jenny Taira form the pop duo PureLand. Laurie is Co-founder and Co-Artistic Director of Ohana Arts, serving as the organization’s resident voice
instructor.  She also served as lyricist and co-bookwriter for the musical, “Peace On Your Wings,” based on the true story of 12 year old Hiroshima atomic bomb victim Sadako Sasaki and her thousand paper cranes which has toured over ten cities, including Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Fukuoka and Hiroshima Japan, among others.  Laurie is a graduate of Oberlin Conservatory and the Yale School of Music.

Peace On Your Wings had its world premiere in 2014 on Oahu at Leeward Community College to a weekend of consistent, sold out houses and enthusiastic responses from audience members. Since then, the production has toured around the world including to Hiroshima.

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Reviews

It was an exceptionally powerful production, made even more exceptional by the cast being exclusively children and adolescents

- Academic Psychiatry by Anthony P. S. Guerrero

The subject matter of Peace On Your Wings may be sad, but the story is uplifting

- San Gabriel Valley Tribune