OaU Square_cover art.png

Onward & Upward Full Demo Tracks

by Charlie Romano (music & book), Will Wegner (lyrics & book)

In 1983, Walter Griffin made headlines after tying a lawnchair to a cluster of weather balloons and flying three miles into the sky. Nearly two decades later, Walter is searching for his next great invention, but he struggles to get his ideas off the ground. His wife, Helen, would prefer that he find a normal job, while their son, Mikey, searches desperately for recognition of his own. Things are looking up when Mikey and Walter both begin new careers, but it soon becomes apparent that the family’s situation is more precarious than it seems, threatening to topple at any moment.

Student workshop production produced at Union Church Theatre in Glencoe, IL, December 2020

Staged reading produced by Yale Undergraduate Productions, Fall 2021

Staged reading produced by the Phoenix Theatre Company, April 2023

Eugene O’Neill Semifinalist (2023)

Workshop production by Amas Musical Theatre, New York City, November 2023