Luke Kolbe Mannikus, Carson Stewart and Jessica Money play high school pals colliding in the new musical “Ten Brave Seconds.” (Photo by BW Productions)
Pioneer Theatre Company’s tradition of world-premiere productions continues this winter with Ten Brave Seconds, a new pop musical by Will Van Dyke and Jeff Talbott, running Jan. 30–Feb. 14. Leading the show’s rueful, funny and fraught day in the life of a high schooler are Carson Stewart (Broadway’s The Notebook), John Cariani (Broadway’s The Band’s Visit, Fiddler on the Roof), Will Blum (Broadway’s Beetlejuice), Luke Kolbe Mannikus (Broadway’s Matilda, Pippin), Jessica Money (Arden Theatre’s Spelling Bee) and Heidi Farber.
Ellie Heyman, who directed Van Dyke and Talbott’s award-winning musical fuzzy to acclaim at Barrington Stage Company in summer 2025, helms the new show, which had a fall 2025 developmental reading at PTC in Salt Lake City. Tony Award nominee Cariani and Stewart reprise their roles. (Cariani also starred in fuzzy last summer.) International artist Reed Luplau, whose work has been seen in ballet, concerts and musicals, serves as choreographer.
Ten Brave Seconds — a rare musical not based on I.P. or source material — has music and lyrics by Van Dyke and book and lyrics by Talbott. Van Dyke shares vocal arrangement and orchestration credit with music supervisor and conductor Patrick Sulken (Barrington’s fuzzy, Off-Broadway’s Little Shop of Horrors, Broadway’s Pretty Woman).
L-R, choreographer Reed Luplau, composer-lyricist Will Van Dyke, director Ellie Heyman, librettist-lyricist Jeff Talbott, music supervisor, co-orchestrator/vocal arranger Patrick Sulken. (Photo by BW Productions)
Here’s how the authors characterize Ten Brave Seconds: “One day can change everything if you pay attention. And Mike is certainly looking for something to change. He and his family are finding their way the best they can on a new and rocky road. Mike has also been sitting on something about himself that he’s been waiting to say, but he’s got a thing or two to find out first. What he is learning is that in order to step into his community, he’s going to have to be brave and join in. And today’s the day. Ten Brave Seconds is a vibrant and heartfelt new musical for everybody that all takes place on one day in the life of an American teenager that will open your eyes and recalibrate your heart.”
Want a preview of songs from Ten Brave Seconds? In anticipation of the production’s premiere, during the month of January, Joy Machine Records is releasing a five-track Ten Brave Seconds EP, titled “Astronaut 63.” Individual tracks will be released each Friday in the leadup to PTC’s Jan. 30 premiere. Carson Stewart sings the EP’s title track. Remaining tracks feature Jordan Tyson, Nathan Levy, Jake Pedersen, Zachary Noah Piser, Stark Sands, Makai Hernandez and Joy Woods. The EP can be heard on your favorite streaming services.
“We have spent almost seven years crafting the story of Mike and his family, and the fact that we now get to share it with audiences alongside our artistic family at Pioneer Theatre Company makes us the luckiest writers in the world,” Van Dyke and Talbott said in a joint statement. “As writers, we are very committed to making theatre that opens channels to both feeling and talking, and getting to start that conversation in a production created for the Utah audience is thrilling. Using pop music as a gateway to emotion is something we passionately believe in, and we cannot wait to open our hearts with PTC’s audiences.”
Carson Stewart, Will Blum and Heidi Farber play a family at a crossroads in “Ten Brave Seconds.” (Photo by BW Productions)
“Pioneer Theatre Company is thrilled to present the world premiere of Ten Brave Seconds, written by two of PTC’s most treasured collaborating artists: Will Van Dyke and Jeff Talbott,” said PTC artistic director Karen Azenberg. “From the moment I read the script, I knew this story needed a spotlight in our community. As a theatre company, we at PTC have a responsibility to champion new voices and develop original works that move the American theatre forward. By bringing new stories to the stage, we help expand the canon and ensure the art form remains vibrant, relevant, and responsive to the world around us.”
“For a long time, stories like the one portrayed in Ten Brave Seconds were rarely shared onstage,” added PTC managing director Adrian Budhu. “This production is not only a prime example of PTC’s commitment to developing new work, but also a powerful reminder that when authentic lived experiences are placed at the center of the story, they create recognition, belonging, and courage — and that visibility can be life-changing.”
The ensemble includes Nick Eibler (Broadway’s The Prom); Zachary Daniel Jones (Broadway’s Gypsy, Wicked); PTC alum Jalen Michael Jones (PTC’s The Prom, Bye Bye Birdie at The Kennedy Center); Laura Leo Kelly (West Side Story international tour, Regency Girls at The Old Globe); PTC alum Jordan Cruz (PTC’s Jersey Boys, Waitress). Ariana Bagley and Kaden Conrad are swings. Harrison Timm, a senior in the University of Utah’s Actor Training Program; and Sydney Rudel and Ella Mei Williams — both seniors in the U’s Musical Theatre Program — join the production’s ensemble as 2025-2026 season PTC interns.
Will Van Dyke and Jeff Talbott (top row, middle) with members of the world premiere cast of “Ten Brave Seconds.” (Photo BW Productions)
Both Will Van Dyke and Jeff Talbott are alumni of PTC. Van Dyke was the composer of incidental scores for Noises Off, The Lehman Trilogy, Ass, i and The Messenger. Talbott has been featured onstage (The Lehman Trilogy, Oslo, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Doubt and The Odd Couple) and as playwright of the PTC world premieres of i and The Messenger (and in other works in the Play By Play reading series). Together, Van Dyke and Talbott they have written the musicals fuzzy, Imagine Harry, Wintersong, Seven Broken Hearts and The Circle and the Wheel.
Learn more about their work at vandykeandtalbott.com.
The creative team features scenic designer James Noone (PTC’s Alabama Story and PTC/ATC’s co-pro of Dial M for Murder, Broadway’s Sunset Boulevard); costume designer Brenda Van der Wiel (PTC’s Jersey Boys, Sweeney Todd); lighting designer José Santiago (PTC’s Prayer for the French Republic, Bonnie & Clyde); sound designer Aaron Hubbard (PTC’s Dear Evan Hansen, Sweeney Todd), and hair and makeup designer Kate Casalino (PTC’s Noises Off, Beautiful). James O. Hansen is production stage manager. Casting is by Andrew Fem, Casting by Them.
Pioneer Theatre Company’s track record of world-premiere productions spans both plays and musicals, including Bess Wohl’s Touch(ed) and In; Jeff Talbott’s i and The Messenger; the co-production of Kareem Fahmy’s A Distinct Society; the pre-Broadway run of Shucked; Ellen Simon’s Ass; Kenneth Jones’ Alabama Story; Wendy MacLeod’s Find and Sign; A Joyful Noise by Tim Slover; The Pirated Penzance by James Christian; and several works by longtime artistic director Charles Morey, including Dumas’ Camille, The Yellow Leaf, Laughing Stock and The Ladies Man, plus his adaptations of five classic novels: The Three Musketeers, Dracula, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, A Tale of Two Cities and The Count of Monte Cristo.
For ticket information, visit PioneerTheatre.org.
Check out this behind the scenes video:
