The Tree and Me Musical

Balbir got the word out and, one day, Mike Marion walked into his office. He and his wife Cindy had written a few musicals—including Trash. He volunteered their services.

Mike and Cindy took their kids to a Holidome to entertain them for a week while their parents created The Tree and Me. This touching and powerful musical drama tells the story of Balbir Mathur’s early life and his mid-life transformation that sparked the start of the Trees for Life movement.

Phil Miller, a former Wichita banker who had given up his business career to become a full-time Trees for Life volunteer, had served on the Board of Directors for Music Theatre of Wichita and was friends with Wayne Bryan, then MTW’s Producing Director. Phil approached Wayne about producing an audio version of The Tree and Me. Wayne willingly accepted the challenge. He assembled a cast of talented singers and musicians who generously donated their time to help spread the word about the worldwide work of Trees for Life. Phil often said being executive producer of The Tree and Me recording was one of his happiest accomplishments.

We hope you will be inspired by this miraculous musical … The Tree and Me.

The Tree and Me

Book and Lyrics by: Cynthia and Michael Marion
Music by: Michael Marion
Recorded at Cornerstone Studios, Channel 3 Productions, Wichita, Kansas, February 17 through March 12, 1997.
Produced by Michael Marion and Steve Falke.

Note: The cast bios below were written in 1997 at the time of production.

Storyteller: Wayne Bryan has performed on Broadway in Good News!, Rodgers and Hart, and the musical Tintypes; and on television for PBS, NBC Movie of the Week, and the series M*A*S*H. Wayne is currently Producing Director of Music Theatre of Wichita.

Balbir: Nicholas Saverine has performed on Broadway in Les Miserables as Jean Valjean and Javert and starred in Broadway, Vienna and Hamburg productions of Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera.

The Tree: Elisa Balleau teaches school in Wichita Public Schools and is a noted church musician.

Young Balbir: Kate Marion has performed at Southwestern College Summer Theatre as Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird.

Balbir’s Mother: Chris Kubik has appeared in numerous roles at Wichita Center for the Arts Center Theatre, including Baby and The Baker’s Wife.

Treva: Christine Tasheff is Producing Director of Cabaret Old Town in Wichita and has performed with Commedia, Wichita Community Theatre, and Wichita Center for the Arts Center Theatre.

Chorus of Creation:
Rachel Wallace is a graduate of Friends University, where she performed internationally with The Singing Quakers

Dale Heidebrecht has performed with The Wichita Center for the Arts Center Theatre, Music Theatre of Wichita, Cabaret Old Town, and other regional theatres.

Cynthia Marion teaches drama and speech at Wichita North High School, and has directed productions at Wichita Center for the Arts, Southwestern College Horsefeathers and Applesauce Summer Theatre, and various community theatres.

Michael Marion has produced two other recordings: This I Know and Nativity, by Scott Farthing. He and his wife Cynthia have co-authored four other musicals: Peace in the Kingdom—A Musical Parable about Shalom, Stranger at the Table—A Musical About Communion, Where the Heart Is—A Musical About the Homeless, and Trash—The Earth Day Musical.

Orchestra
Michael Marion: Conductor, Keyboards, Piano, Tabla
Scott Farthing: Piano
Phil Hawkins: Percussion
Murugan Mohan: Tabla
Steve Falke: Synthesizer Programming

Executive producer: Phillip Miller
Editorial supervision: Jeffrey Faus
Cover Illustration: Brian Haney

Click on the image to play The Tree and Me musical.