Led by award-winning writer/director P Burton-Morgan and composer Ben Glasstone, the film will be released episodically from 19 April.
Olivier award winner and Metta patron Clive Rowe accompanies rising star Lem Knights in the project. Centred around human connection, the uplifting musical spans a range of topics, including male friendship, university life, and online gaming.
Royal and Derngate Northampton, Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch and the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough have partnered with Metta, and will each host an episode on their respective websites. Launching on 19 April, with subsequent episodes released daily, the full film will be available on 26 April; The accompanying album will be available on Spotify and other digital platforms.
P Burton-Morgan, who won the 2020 Writers’ Guild of Great Britain Award in musical theatre book writing for In the Willows, said: ‘I've been talking to Clive about writing something specifically for him ever since we met four years ago, so I'm thrilled to have this opportunity.’
‘It’s been a wild adventure creating a music video musical for this brave new world of “digital theatre” in which we find ourselves. Hopefully we've succeeded in taking the best of both theatre and film to create something intimate and unique.’
Alongside P Burton-Morgan and Ben Glasstone, Simon Small has mixed and mastered the music, and the Musical Director is Phil Cornwell. Joining the project as the Director of Photography is Jon Dickinson, and the episodes are edited by Will Reynolds.
The work will be free to access via YouTube with a suggested donation (£3 per episode, £10 for the whole film) – all of which will go to the three regional theatres to help aid their recovery.
Cells is recommended for ages 11+.