Cool is a new American musical that rips into the myths around the suffering artist, addiction, intervention, recovery, therapy, helpful people, young lovers, old lovers and the stew that's brewed when a witch plays her tricks on your mind. Cool finds himself in a mystical de-tox encampment where everyone is intensely caring for themselves. Young Will, a wanna-be blues player, asks Cool for the thing, the stuff, the key, the answer"How do I become the musician in me?

A sobering question-requiring rigorous honesty-or at least, an inspired vamp during which to ponder one's life. Cool puts it straight up to the kid: "Be what you is, cuz if you be what you ain't, then you ain't what you is." Silence ensues. The band, a local bunch of resident players at The Pond, the local club, can't play another note. Margaret, former jazz singer turned therapist/witch/mother-of-us-all decides she wants some of Cool's stuff too. And when the action ensues, the music, mayhem, and merriment at the bottom of The Pond turns into a gig from another place.

Cool is! He's got a gift and he might give it up for just the right audience. Will and Jennifer(nurse at the nuthouse and waitress at the Pond) crave the magic they think is out there. The trees hear every word and record every note. Everyone's looking for a lick in someone else's song. We wonder if a "recovering artist" is an oxymoron? What is it about blues and jazz that makes you feel like someone is trying to tell you the truth? The answer comes together at the bottom of The Pond with players who risk putting it out there just because it's Cool.