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SaulPaul’s Alien Adventure, a new family-friendly musical, was inspired by musician SaulPaul’s mission to spread positive messages into the world and also � perhaps more surprisingly � by his catching a dance competition show on TV.

“I was actually inspired by watching ‘World of Dance� � a show I’d never seen before and really wasn’t into,� SaulPaul says. “But I was amazed by the beautiful sets. And each week they’d have these dancers and they’d create this world and they would dance.�

Inspired by the sets and the dancing, he decided to use those tools to create a stage show aimed at kids and families.

“I wanted to create a vehicle that allows us to create amazing sets and do amazing things with dance [that] would incorporate my music,â€� he says. 

To help make that idea a reality, SaulPaul turned to his longtime creative partner Bianca Neal, who was onboard immediately.

“I love musicals. I love anything theatrical,� she says.

Neal and SaulPaul both have a background in film, and their artistic vision leans more toward the cinematic; together, they wrote a script that includes multiple settings, aliens (“Shout out for all my folks that love and like extraterrestrials!� SaulPaul says), time travel, and spaceships.

“I didn’t know all the rules, so I wrote it more like a movie,� SaulPaul says, adding that director Delanté Keys never tried to reign in the script or make it more traditionally play-like. “Later, he was like, ‘It was so out-of-the-box! But I didn’t want to limit your creativity, so we just rose to that occasion.’�

Kenah Benefield stars in the show as Li’l SP, a character based on SaulPaul as a child; he asked for some guidance on capturing the spirit of the character, and “they were just like, ‘Confident, just smiley,’â€� Benefield says. “Everything that SaulPaul [stil] is. And I was like, ‘Yeah, I can do that!’â€� 

The casing makes a lot of sense if you know Benefield and SaulPaul � they share a spirit of enthusiasm and confidence. For example, Benefield doesn’t have a background in musical theater, but was pretty unfazed about playing the lead in a musical.

“After reading the script, it seemed very comfortable,� Benefied says. “It was like, ‘Oh, this is a song right here. We’re dancing, we’re moving, we’re having a good time.’�

Neal says that when she and SaulPaul work together, it’s with a shared goal of spreading positivity.

“We have an overall mission, which is� to make the world a better place,� Neal says. “To change people’s lives and transform them positively.�

SaulPaul says that while SaulPaul’s Alien Adventure is a fun family show, it’s also got a message for its audience.

“The messaging is clear,� he says. “Because it’s really about culture. It’s really about diversity. It’s about inclusion. It’s about learning about others.�