04/28/2025
Redwood Musical
you never know who you may inspire
Last month I was contacted by a Broadway agent, stating her team has been following Tree Climbing Planet for several years and the writers vibed a heartfelt-connection to our philosophy of why we climb, 'connecting people to trees/nature', was fairly parallel to their lives and believes. The agent wanted to put me in contact with one of the writers and the star of the musical, the Queen of Broadway herself…. Idina Menzel! Of course I said, YES! (being a fan of theater, how could I miss an opportunity to talk trees with Elsa from Frozen and Elphaba from Wicked).
Upon our phone conversation, Idina mentioned that a character in this new musical was loosely based off of my unique lifestyle and she’d love to meet up for a chat and if possible a climb. I happened to be wrapping up a Redwood climbing assignment in the Santa Cruz Mountains and mentioned that if we could get together next week, I may be able to secure us a ‘branch meeting’ 200’ above the forest floor on a friends property. She was available and excited at the opportunity!!
The following week we met up and spent over 5hrs climbing, laughing, sharing stories, drifting in and out of meditative states, simply connecting with this 800yr old tree. It was the type of climbing that I love to absorb, slow and attentive — truly sharing and tapping deeply into tree-time.
Once we reached the upper canopy of this magnificent Redwood, Idina FaceTimed her collaborator, the American Playwright and theater director… Tina Landau! The three of us had a beautiful bonding moment, talking trees, sharing passions, sharing stories of how trees heal and the importance of getting people outdoors to slow down and just sit in nature. As we were wrapping up our conversation Tina mentioned that not only is one of the musicals characters loosely based off of ‘myself / career’, but they (the writers) drew inspiration for the musical by observing my path and TCPs mission to reconnect people back to the earth via the trees.
I feel honored knowing that the magical healing properties of Redwood trees will be felt on NYC’s Broadway!
