Two years in the making, SDSU presents developing musical “Tomorrow, the Island Dies”

At San Diego State University, the developing musical, "Tomorrow, the Island Dies," has evolved from page to stage through collaboration with the SDSU Musical Theatre Initiative.

Over two years, the new musical by Ryan Scott Oliver, award-winning musical theatre composer and lyricist, has undergone a significant transformation through a revision and workshopping process involving faculty, MFA musical theatre students, and undergraduates in the School of Theatre, Television, and Film. What began as a one-act work returned to a two-act structure, and an entire guiding ensemble was removed.

According to director Stephen Brotebeck, the ending of the show is now “far different than the ending that was brought to us.”

Ryan Scott Oliver, known for his genre-bending and emotionally charged works such as “35MM: A Musical Exhibition” and “Jasper in Deadland,” describes the creation of “Tomorrow, the Island Dies” as unfolding in numerous steps.  

The creative process began in 2020 with an unexpected Facebook message from Chelsea Nicholson, a fan of his work and a fellow admirer of psychological horror writer Shirley Jackson. Nicholson had been following two collections of songs Oliver released, inspired by Jackson’s short stories, and the two soon became better acquainted. 

Over the next year, Oliver learned that Nicholson ran a musical theatre program at Samford University in Alabama and was interested in collaborating. He initially pitched adapting one of Jackson’s novels for the stage. Although that did not move forward, Oliver proposed a different idea.

“I suggested writing a “descendant” story, one that would share some DNA with Shirley’s work but be wholly original. And so the Island was born,” Oliver said. 

From that original Facebook conversation emerged a musical now described as a work of folk horror.

The background 

The premise is deceptively simple: a group of young people remains on an island about to be destroyed by a looming storm, and climate change has rendered it uninhabitable. When something unimaginable occurs, they are compelled to enact the roles of judge and jury.

Brotebeck, who has directed the piece through its two-year development, explained the selection process and why Oliver’s work stood out among a record of 308 submissions.  

“We narrow it down to about nine or ten for a semi-final round, and then we look at 3 finalists,” he said.  

When making the selection decision, Brotebeck said that the faculty was drawn to the age-appropriate roles and the generational tension at the center of the story.

“These folks are doing something that no one’s ever done before,” he said, referring to the students bringing the revised version to life. “There’s no video to look at. No famous people that have done these roles. That brings an exciting energy.”

What followed is full of collaboration with the playwright. 

“We would go through something and they would say, ‘This doesn’t really ring true,’ and he’d be like, ‘Great, let me look at that,’” Brotebeck said.

For Oliver, the show resonates with young people not only because it focuses on their age group, but also because it engages and opens the door to broader cultural conversations.

“Over the past decade, our world has wrestled with some hard truths,” Oliver said. “Young people have been at the heart of so much of that progress.”

At the same time, Oliver explained that rapid cultural shifts can create tension even within generations. 

“I think the real challenge for all of us, in any generation, is learning how to hold strong convictions while still leaving room for grace. Progress and compassion don’t have to compete,” he said. 

Climate change is a punishing reality in “Tomorrow, the Island Dies”. 

“It’s sort of a cautionary tale,” Brotebeck said. “If we leave this and it goes unchecked, this is what could happen.”

Opportunity for students 

For students, participating in a musical that was still under construction required flexibility and resilience. Roles changed over the two years, with some songs cut and the material evolving. 

“One of the things we always say is we try to focus the piece as a piece of pedagogy,” Brotebeck said. “We are all here to serve the piece, to make the piece better.”

That mindset reflects Oliver’s own thoughts on personal growth. When asked what advice he would give to his younger self, his response was clear.

“Talk less, listen more. Get a mentor. You don’t know everything,” he said.

For MFA student Rebecca Murillo, collaborating directly with Oliver has been a full-circle moment. As an undergraduate at Pace University, Murillo first studied musical theater writing with Oliver, making the opportunity to now develop one of his works especially meaningful.

“It is a gracious experience to work in tandem with the playwright and composer because you get to ask the questions in real time and collaborate on who these characters are,” Murillo said.

Working closely with Oliver has also allowed her to shape her character, Widow, through ongoing conversations about the story and its themes.

“Getting to mold Widow with Ryan’s guidance has been monumental especially because she is a character that, originally coming into it, felt outside of my comfort zone, let alone is so opposite from my natural demeanor,” Murillo said. 

Unlike established productions with decades of performance history, "Tomorrow, the Island Dies" offers no clear blueprint of how a character should present themselves, so student artists are granted the rare opportunity to explore their creative potential.  

“The ever-changing nature of this process asks us to continue being curious about how characters function in the story, how relationships evolve throughout, and even how each draft of the ending supports the overall message,” Murillo said. 

Technically, the production is ambitious. Design MFA students have built an enormous lighthouse that anchors the set.

“It’s probably our biggest show of the year,” Brotebeck said, noting the extensive collaboration in scenic, lighting, and costume design.

After two years in the making, “Tomorrow, the Island Dies” will be the result of a process that reflects its own themes of evolution.   

“Mining the material with Ryan as well as Rob Meffe and Stephen Brotebeck over the last two years has been monumental in building what will be seen on stage in May,” Murillo said. “It’s about uplifting how in the hardest and heaviest moments of life we must find strength and continue to grow.”  

“Tomorrow the Island Dies” runs in the SDSU Main Stage Theatre  May 1-6, 2026 at 7:30 p.m, with one 2:00 p.m. matinee on May 3rd. Tickets ranging from $17-20 can be purchased at https://ttf.sdsu.edu/calendar.