How Elyssa Samsel and Kate Anderson Make "Central Park" Sing
Central Park was an important place for songwriters Elyssa Samsel and Kate Anderson long before they started writing music for the animated TV show of the same name. When the two met at the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, Anderson was a recent college graduate working at the Public Theater's Shakespeare In The Park while Samsel was auditioning for acting gigs and busking in the park. On the first day of the BMI workshop, the two were randomly assigned to write a song together. Ten years later, Samsel and Anderson remain a songwriting team and "best friend partners."
The two first met actor Josh Gad while writing songs for the Disney short "Olaf's Frozen Adventure." Not long after, the actor, who Samsel calls a "warm, energetic, hilarious spirit," contacted them about a new project he was creating with "Bob's Burgers'" Loren Bouchard. The two say it was a "dream project." Not just was each episode to be a fully cohesive 30-minute musical with three to four original songs, but it centered around a New York landmark they loved. Gad was even going to portray a busker who played violin in the park – just like Samsel did.
In season one, "Central Park" introduced us to the Tillerman family and the embittered heiress trying to buy up the park. Season two, which premiered on June 25th on Apple TV+, keeps the focus on the family but expands its scope. Samsel and Anderson have written dozens of songs for "Central Park" – from pop-rock to rap to Disney-esque ballads. The show has also employed guest composers like Sara Bareilles, Cyndi Lauper, Rufus Wainright and They Might Be Giants. While the show's debut season was charming and highly entertaining, the new batch of eight episodes is more ambitious, more heartfelt, and just plain funnier. It's even more impressive when you learn most of the production took place in quarantine, with writers, actors, animators, and songwriters working from home.
To learn more about finding the musical voice of "Central Park" and writing for the all-star cast (that includes Leslie Odom Jr., Kathryn Hahn, Titus Burgess, Daveed Diggs, and Emmy Raver-Lampman, among many others), I spoke to Elyssa Samsel and Kate Anderson over Zoom. Our conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
THE SONGS OF "CENTRAL PARK" ARE UNIQUE BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT THE PARODIES WE OFTEN SEE IN ANIMATED SHOWS, BUT PROPER MUSICAL THEATER NUMBERS. WAS THAT ALWAYS A PART OF THE PLAN?
Elyssa Samsel [ES]: From the beginning, our goal was to have the songs further the plot and to really make it feel like a true musical. I think that's why Josh [Gad] wanted us involved. He also really wanted these songs to be very musical theater in nature but still have a fresh sound. That was exactly what we wanted to write as well, so it was very serendipitous.
Kate Anderson [KA]: Josh has been the one to push that we do not just do a parody. Not just pick a genre and write a song in the style of [blank]. It's been amazing to have him pushing back in this way that's using the musical theater craft the way we know it can on stage. It's pushed us as songwriters. It's pushed the writers as well. What we have is something that feels really cohesive and rewarding and fun and exciting.
ES: Season two really steps outside of what we could do in season one. I think we get to go further emotionally.
WHAT WAS YOUR PROCESS FOR FINDING THE STYLE OF THE SCORE?
KA: We knew what actors we had. Coming from our fandom of them, we wanted to write to their strengths. We also had beautiful character development that had been set up by the writers. We ran in a direction that felt befitting to the character traits, but also to the strength of the actors [like] giving Leslie [Odom Jr.] the soulful moments, but also these fun, rhythmic, cool things that we knew he would do so well. Also, the patter-y stuff that would speak to his character's neurosis and anxiety. And then Kristen Bell in season one and now Emmy [Raver-Lampman] are just incredible vocalists who have these beautiful voices that you want to hear sing these soaring songs. Then Titus — c'mon.
ES: It's the dream to have this incredible cast as our muses; they really are so inspirational. Knowing that you're about to hand "Keep it Low Key" to Daveed Diggs and he's going to sing it with his incredible talents. You just want to highlight that. It's all about them.
KA: It's a credit to the writers too, because often they will say, "we're thinking of this style, but if you feel a different instinct, run with it." They give us the keys to the kingdom. Having that freedom to try and do something crazy blows the doors wide open.
WHAT'S YOUR WRITING PROCESS? DO YOU GET A FINISHED SCRIPT OR WORK FROM STORY BEATS?
ES: In some episodes, we get an outline, some episodes we get a full script.
KA: Our favorite thing is to get those scripts because there's so much to mine. We always send each other the lines that tickle us most. Sometimes we have to use it in the song because it's so fun. One case I can think of is that they wrote in season one that [park employee] Elwood had a pet worm named Diane. We just loved that so much. We kept bringing that back into our songs to the point where they were like, "Guys, stop writing Diane in." [Laughs] Our process has changed a lot over the years. We used to write everything in the same room. As we've had more work, we've developed a really effective process. Usually, we get the assignment and spend some time mulling it over. Then we talk through the structure, the thesis, how to take the song from point A to point C, and how to use the hook most effectively. From there, Elyssa will generally get into the music. She's more music and I'm more lyrics, but we both have a hand in both. It's such a cohesive process.
ES: Our philosophy is that the music couldn't exist without the lyrics nor the lyrics without the music, so we like to share credit for both music and lyrics because that's how our collaboration functions.
WHAT WAS IT LIKE WRITING THIS ENTIRE SEASON AT HOME DURING QUARANTINE?
ES: Whether it was getting a paragraph describing what the song should be or an entire script, it made us so happy because it was funny, it was heartfelt and it was uplifting in a time where the world was going through such a dramatic period. Our process would be just trying to send back a song that was equally as uplifting and equally as encouraging.
KA: "Central Park" was our rock for a lot of the time. It was the thing that we held on to. We're so lucky and grateful because the theater community suffered so much. We had a show lined up off-Broadway that we've been developing for six years. To lose it days away from starting rehearsal was the biggest blow. We had "Central Park." Executive producer Janelle Momary and her team moved with lightning speed to adapt to an at-home environment. The music team worked tirelessly to get everybody set up so that every actor could record from home. It really is kind of a miracle that it was all pulled off.
ES: Even though Kate and I are within walking distance, we were following the rules and staying very isolated. Writing this show was a way for the two of us to stay connected and still be making each other laugh all day long through Zoom. We felt very lucky to focus on comedy at such a time.
DO YOU HAVE ANY FAVORITE MUSICAL MOMENTS IN SEASON TWO?
KA: I'd say my favorite for this season are definitely "Trying Too Hard" for Molly's superhero episode and then Gavin Creel's song "The Moment Forever Ago" in episode six. It's really, really special and very personal.
ES: We got to write this incredibly wacky song for Paige [in episode eight] and reference an author we get to work with named Jodi Picoult. We love Jodi so much, so getting to slip that in there was one of my favorite moments. Then, in "The Shadow," there's a five-minute violin piece Loren Bouchard asked me to write. It was just one of my favorite things that I've gotten to do for the show because it brought me right back to when I would play violin in Central Park and the people who would come up to me and tell me their stories. It made me feel very connected to Central Park in so many ways. It was really fun and brought it back full circle. Getting to play the violin for the show is the best. It makes me so happy.
For more information on Elyssa Samsel and Kate Anderson, you can visit their website. Their musical "Between The Lines" (with a book by Timothy Allen McDonald, based on the book by Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer) is looking to reschedule their Off-Broadway premiere in the spring of '22.