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MATTHEW LIGHTSEY

12/14/1999 - 06/02/2022

I met Matthew Lightsey in 2021 when I saw 'The Composer's Melody', a musical he had written with his collaborator John Paul Louis. I thought the show was good, but loved the music and lyrics. After the performance, I asked them if they’d consider collaborating. They said they would. I sent them various scripts, including the book for a musical about Christmas, entitled “The Christmas Express.” 

Songs started coming back late at night full of energy and wit with great music and great, new lyrics.  John wrote most of the music and Matt wrote the lyrics, but they collaborated to write and record songs. I began checking my email at all hours of the night, finding songs waiting there. Each song made my day. I shared some with people who loved them as much as I did.  “Who wrote these?” they asked. Louis and Lightsey.

When we thought the musical was complete, we took it to production at Theater for the New City. Matt was the director and John was musical director as well as a performer. Rehearsals were a joy. 

Two days before opening, though, an actor came down with Covid followed by others. We cancelled the show, hoping to present it again together. That never happened. Matt died in a car crash on June 2, 2022, while he was driving home from work at a farm. He was 22. 

What happened was a tragedy.  It was the loss of a good person as well as, I believe, a great talent. When a person dies, a star goes out. When someone with a particular talent dies, a constellation vanishes. There was too much pain to focus on trying to present a show they had written. Matt left the legacy of memories, laughter, love and enjoyment of what he did. He left his mark on many people, but he also left behind lyrics and music.

This summer, we picked up the project and began moving forward again. John agreed to music direct the show they had written. Robert Liebowitz signed on as director. With some people from the first show and many new to it, we began rehearsing to present at Theater for the New City.

Some in the production know Matt well and some know him through his lyrics and songs. Many still miss Matt. That doesn’t mean carrying around pain and sadness, but living with and honoring the person’s legacy. Matt was so full of joy, which, to me, is an important part of his legacy along with the lyrics and music.  His family remembers sounds coming from his room as he played and sang. I remember late nights when I opened emails to find recordings of new songs. 

Matt truly loved what he did and he did it so well. That love is in every lyric he wrote and continues in beautiful songs he and John created.  When I hear the songs today, they seem as beautiful as the day they were written or at least the day I first heard them. I hope you will experience a similar feeling.

Claude Solnik

And the Cast & Crew

'The Christmas Express'