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Story of the Century
David O. Hill

Set in 1902, Story of the Century is an original musical about Burrell Cannon, the inventor of the Ezekiel Airship. From his small town in Pittsburg, Texas, Cannon invented and flew the Ezekiel Airship a year before the Wright brothers’ historic flight. Combining historic events with fictional characters, Story of the Century captures the spirit of 1902 with rollicking melodies, social consciousness, and heart. With a mixture of historical and fictional characters, The Story of the Century captures the spirit of the turn of the 20th century as a tidal wave of cultural and technological change swept cross the country. By 1902, horseless carriages were appearing and the age of manned flight was dawning. Yet it was less than 40 years after the end of the Civil War, women couldn’t vote, and the Women’s Christian Temperance League was already working to prohibit the use of alcohol throughout the country. In the finale, the whole cast in 1902 ponders the “new world so sweet and strange” that will exist 100 years in the future.

All of us who are living in that world today know about the monumental changes that have occurred in the 115 years since 1902. We also know that some things haven’t changed.

About the Ezekiel Airship

Burrell (Burl) Cannon was a college educated engineer who operated a sawmill near Pittsburg
Texas in 1902. He was also an ordained Baptist minister and an accomplished inventor. Burl had a vision in which God’s plan ... view more »

VIDEOS

  • STORY OF THE CENTURY playwright David O. Hill and director Chris McCoy discuss the process of developing this musical from a 60 minute piece to a complete two-act script and score for the August 2017 reading.

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