CALGARY – Like most people with a really big secret, Ellen Braun wanted her one-woman musical that debuts this week to remain just as intended.
However, as time went on, the Canmore musician and performer changed her opinion about the tight-lipped playwright, which, in many ways, opens into the writings of her personal journal and reveals “what it’s like to be me.”
“I think I’m just at a stage of life where I feel more scared about not sharing who I am than about actually being authentic in the world,” said Braun. “I feel excited about letting this out into the world in a really big way.”
Each & Every Song, written and performed by Braun, runs Thursday to Saturday (May 18-20) at Work Nicer, Rail Yards in Calgary.
With music and monologues, the story of Each & Every Song tells of heartfelt tales of losing touch with one’s authenticity and the deep journey of reclaiming it.
“If you had met me 30 years ago, I was a much more closed person,” said Braun. “My siblings called me ‘Indestructible’ because if I got hurt or injured, I wouldn’t cry. I would apologize to my mom if she had to put Band-Aids on me after I fell. Like, very always thinking about everyone else’s comfort.
“[Recently in life], I started to learn to take up space and share what it feels like to be me in this world and to ask for people to join me in that.”
Six years ago, Braun was affected by depression and she stopped working full-time. With the support of her family, she began expressing her creative side musically with her folk band Trundled and as a solo musician, as well as live performances in theatre and a web series.
During one weekend in November 2021, Each & Every Song was born.
Alone and sick of snapping together IKEA furniture, Braun’s artistic juices began flowing, and in less than 72 hours, she created and sculpted what is her first-ever playwright.
It was an intense, emotional, personal experience that turned into the “most organic art” she’s ever made. But beyond that, she didn’t have plans for the hush-hush project.
Until one day…
“I told my partner and it felt like a really big secret and it just sort of took off from there,” said Braun. “It was sort of like the art itself told me, ‘OK, now I’m ready to be shared.’”
Wanting to find a creative outlet for the personal project, Braun shyly reached out to organizers at the Calgary-based DIY Theatre and pitched her idea. Within a short amount of time, the wheels were in motion to make Each & Every Song a reality.
With Braun as the creative force and talent in front of audiences, behind the scenes, DIY Theatre’s Shelby Reinitz and Cayley Wreggitt are directing it.
There’s been a lot of support in crafting it on stage, said Braun, who added Each & Every Song isn’t a documentary on her, but it feels like she’s opened the pages to her life.
“Honestly, it feels a lot more vulnerable,” said Braun. “I think that when I write songs, you know, people literally read between the lines and they try to apply it to their own lives. I feel as though, even though there’s a lot of fiction involved in this performance, too, but it is much more on the nose.”
Each & Every Song starts at 7:30 p.m. all three evenings. Tickets are available at www.diytheatre.org/tickets/eachandeverysong.
