Hear it. Feel it. Live it.
Their love shaped a movement. Their faith changed history.
Hear it. Feel it. Live it.
Their love shaped a movement. Their faith changed history.
The Story You Thought You Knew
The true story of Joseph and Emma Smith's love, faith, and devotion to Jesus Christ unfolds amid mounting opposition and fear—a sweeping musical journey where light pierces darkness, courage conquers adversity, and a new faith refuses to die.
This Project
Why Joseph Smith?
Why Joseph Smith?
BROTHER JOSEPH is a sweeping mega-musical inspired by the epic, true-life love story of Joseph and Emma Smith and their shared mission to restore the fulness of the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ. The work currently exists as a 2½-hour Original Concept Album—a deeply spiritual journey and a poignant, often heartbreaking love story. It
BROTHER JOSEPH is a sweeping mega-musical inspired by the epic, true-life love story of Joseph and Emma Smith and their shared mission to restore the fulness of the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ. The work currently exists as a 2½-hour Original Concept Album—a deeply spiritual journey and a poignant, often heartbreaking love story. It is not a sentimental or sugar-coated portrayal, but an honest, true-to-history exploration of faith, devotion, sacrifice, and redemption. Though the concept album is complete, development continues as the project moves toward the stage, expanding and refining key episodes that deserve a fuller telling.
Why embark on such an endeavor?
Jack Viertel, professor of Musical Theatre at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and a seasoned Broadway executive, once observed:
“Unlike in any other kind of story, characters in musicals keep interrupting themselves to burst into song. They dance, they leap, they speak one line and sing the next; they convey what’s in their brains in dialogue; but they turn what’s in their hearts into melody and movement.”
That, precisely, is why Joseph’s story must be told through this extraordinary medium. Religious conversion is not a purely intellectual exercise—it is a story of the heart. It springs from deep spiritual feelings, from moments when the veil lifts and the soul recognizes truth. For most of us, our relationship with Jesus Christ begins not when we reason out every detail, but when we feel the truth burn within us.
A Moment of Conversion
Consider the experience of Ezra Thayer, one of the earliest converts to the restored gospel:
Ezra attended a meeting in the yard of the Smith home where Hyrum Smith was preaching. Afterward, Hyrum handed him a copy of the Book of Mormon. Ezra later wrote, “I said let me see it. I then opened the book and I received a shock with such exquisite joy that no pen can write and no tongue can express.” All this—without reading a single word.
When he opened the book again, he felt “a double portion of the spirit.” He wrote, “I did not know whether I was in the world or not. I felt as though I was truly in heaven.” [1]
Ezra’s experience was not unique. For many early converts, the power of the Book of Mormon transcended its text. The Spirit spoke directly to their souls. They acted not merely on ideas but on revelation—selling homes, crossing oceans, and uprooting their lives because of a fire that burned within them: a profound love for Jesus Christ and an unshakable witness of His restored gospel. [2]
Why Music?
Words can express what we think—and they can be beautiful, stirring, even life-changing—but music does something words alone cannot. It bypasses the intellect and speaks straight to the soul, carrying truth on its wings. As director Steven Spielberg said,
“All human beings come equipped to be able to suspend our disbelief, to be transported more by music than any other single art stimulus. Music...will take us places that no other medium or art form can take us.” [3]
That is what I hope Brother Joseph will do—carry the story of Joseph, Emma, and the Restoration beyond the page and into your soul. Books and testimonies can describe the Restoration with reverent eloquence, but music allows us to feel it—to live it anew through melody, harmony, and the divine language of the heart.
A Personal Note
This is why I have embarked on this endeavor.
I hope your time spent listening to BROTHER JOSEPH is a sublime and spiritually fulfilling experience. Creating it has been exactly that for me.
References
[1] Larry C. Porter, A Study of the Origins of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the States of New York and Pennsylvania, 1816–1831 (1971), p. 99, as quoted in Richard L. Bushman, Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism, p. 141.
[2] Paraphrased from Richard L. Bushman, Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism, p. 141.
[3] Steven Spielberg, Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story.
(Picture of "Eternally Bound" courtesy of Julie Rogers at JulieRogersArt.com)
Why Joseph Smith?
Why Joseph Smith?
Why Joseph Smith?
Born in 1805, Joseph Smith Jr. is clearly the most controversial religious figure to have ever graced the American stage. Claiming to have been visited by God the Eternal Father and his son, Jesus Christ, when he was just 14 years old, Joseph’s contemporaries fell squarely and passionately into one of only two camps: Joseph Smith was a pr
Born in 1805, Joseph Smith Jr. is clearly the most controversial religious figure to have ever graced the American stage. Claiming to have been visited by God the Eternal Father and his son, Jesus Christ, when he was just 14 years old, Joseph’s contemporaries fell squarely and passionately into one of only two camps: Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and the mouthpiece of the Lord – or he was a dangerous charlatan who needed to be locked in prison or, better yet, killed. When it came to Joseph Smith, there were no fence-sitters. In the end, the latter camp eventually succeeded in effectuating his murder. Joseph Smith was killed for his testimony of Jesus Christ when he was just 38 years old.
Nevertheless, in those intervening 24 years between his first vision of God the Father and Jesus Christ and his martyrdom, Joseph was able to establish the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He restored a number of doctrines to Christianity, many of them controversial to mainstream Christian believers, such as Christ’s “Plan of Salvation” which is so merciful that it provides salvation even to those who are non-believers; the belief in Heavenly Parents, both a Heavenly Mother and a Heavenly Father; and the doctrine of eternal progression. In other words, achieving a place in heaven is not the ultimate objective for our souls. There is more work to do and more things to learn after this life on earth.
Today, the church Joseph established has a total membership of more than 17 million people worldwide; has published the Book of Mormon in 113 languages and provides more than a billion dollars in humanitarian aid in over 180 countries annually.[1]
Joseph was continually persecuted for his beliefs and teachings. He was poisoned, beaten, tarred and feathered, unjustly imprisoned, sentenced to die by firing squad, arrested at least 42 times and saw six of his children die in infancy. Financial difficulties plagued him and his wife all the days of their lives, seldom having a home they could call their own.
Indeed, Joseph led an epic life. Poor and barely educated, the odds against Joseph doing anything worth remembering were substantial. Yet, from the time he was just 14 years old, hardly a day passed that something extraordinary did not happen to him. His journey is one worth remembering and the trials, travails, and prejudices he experienced have meaningful lessons for us even in our day.
This is why I work to tell his story. There is something in Joseph’s story for all of us.
[1] See: https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/2023-statistical-report-church-jesus-christ and https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/church-jesus-christ-caring-summary-2023
A Bit About Me
Why Joseph Smith?
A Bit About Me
I am a believer.
I joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on my testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Since joining, I have spent an enormous amount of time studying the life of the Prophet which has only strengthened my belief that he was in fact everything he claimed to have been and indeed he saw everything he claimed
I am a believer.
I joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on my testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Since joining, I have spent an enormous amount of time studying the life of the Prophet which has only strengthened my belief that he was in fact everything he claimed to have been and indeed he saw everything he claimed to have seen.
For me it simply boils down to this: living the precepts of the Gospel as revealed through Joseph Smith has enriched my life. I find that my life is infinitely better and happier than it was before I joined the church. So then for me faith becomes a conscious decision. I choose to believe and as I seek to draw my soul closer to the Lord, I continually seek for and find more reasons to continue to believe.
As I see it, Jesus Christ did not qualify his promise, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.”[1]. In other words, if one seeks for reasons to believe, one will find them; contrariwise, if one seeks for reasons to not believe, one will find those as well. So I choose to seek for and find reasons to believe. I find that my faith makes me happy and fills my heart with hope and love.
I feel my Savior’s love every day and I am grateful to Joseph and Emma Smith for suffering through all their afflictions so that I could come to experience the joy of knowing Jesus Christ through His restored gospel... and I want to share their story with all those who are willing to honestly listen.
[1] Matthew 7:7,8; KJV