The Project

Rain Follows the Plow might be the next great American musical. Set in the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, the dynamics of faith and hubris in the midst of ecological catastrophe resonates strongly with the contemporary audience.

The story is primarily a family drama, supported by a community of characters providing rich and accurate historical context.

The musical score is rooted in folk/Americana styles, based on a folk opera written by Oklahoma native, Steve Coffee.

This web site remains in large part a time capsule of the initial recording project and performances spanning 2013 to 2016. Since that time, Coffee has been developing a full "book musical" and writing additional songs.

Plot Synopsis

In 1930, the Walkers (Miles, Ruth, and two children) are living in an old homesteader’s dugout in the Texas panhandle. Wanting to make room for their growing family, and to make a little money in the wheat boom, Miles and Ruth goad each other into mortgaging their little piece of ground. Spoiler alert: the rain does not follow the plow. Subplots including a mixed race/class romance between the banker and a prostitute take place in and around the town saloon, where locals gather to listen to “Woody” sing the news on the radio. Years later, in a prolonged drought, the Walkers are still living in the dugout, frightened, chastened, and besieged by dust storms, with dim prospects for their children. Along with their community, they must come to terms with the fact that they have set in motion a disaster of Biblical proportions. Ultimately this is a story of perseverance, a tragedy met with dignity and stubborn pioneer humor.

The Music

In 2013 Coffee began writing songs about the Dust Bowl and became obsessed with the possibility of capturing the complete story of this complex episode, not from a historical perspective but as it was lived. What were these people thinking? What were they feeling? How did they react when the world fell in on top of them?

Several other Washington area musicians, many of them singer-songwriters themselves, were moved to record and perform the songs. These recordings can be streamed individually on The Songs page. The album can be streamed or downloaded from major online vendors and can be purchased as a CD.

"The Impossible Sky" and "Indian Joe" have won significant recognition in national song contests.

Performances

Throughout 2016, Rain Follows the Plow was staged in the DC area as a folk opera, culminating in a triumphant run at the Capital Fringe festival. The first stage adaptation of Rain Follows the Plow was performed on February 8 at the NextStop Theater in Herndon, VA. Photos from that show are below, and audience testimonials can be found on The Shows page.