Miscellaneous
When words are not enough, we turn to music to express our deepest, most complicated feelings. Bandstand , an original musical composed by Richard Oberacker, with lyrics and book by Oberacker with Robert Taylor, is just such a musical. Set in post-World War II New York City, the plot revolves around Private First Class Donny Novitski as he tries to fit in and rebuild his life after the war. Donny is a singer and songwriter, and when he hears the news about a national competition to find the next big thing in music, he gathers his fellow veterans to form a band of musicians that will outshine them all, and win them the prize of performing their song onstage in Hollywood. Bandstand was the first musical that achieved 6 Certified, a designation awarded by the veterans group Got Your 6. In 2015, Oberacker and Taylor sought feedback from Got Your 6 in order to provide an accurate picture of the veterans and the issues they faced, including post-traumatic stress and survivor guilt, and, most