Michael Alvarez

Question: What’s the most under-appreciated song in a musical?

A: “Stranger in the Rain” by Stephen Schwartz from Children of Eden.

I don’t think “Stranger in the Rain” has ever really done well, and it’s for that reason I just want to direct it. It is sung by the character of Yonah in Act 2 of Children of Eden. It’s kind of a retelling of Noah and the Ark, and basically anyone who has the mark of Cain can’t be on the ark because he’s cursed and all that. Yonah has that mark. She has this line: “I won’t say I’ve never felt the pain. But I am not a stranger to the rain.” Then it really gets to this core of trauma: We’re conditioned to feel numb, but at the same time it’s a song where she’s found love and allowed herself to be. It’s a song about empowerment. And every time I hear it I cry.

MICHAEL ALVAREZ is a program director for the Western Stage (see Face to Face story). He is currently helping reimagine the Salinas-based theater company’s popular 2X4 Bash into a professional training program.