April 8, 1998
Sculpt to the music
As singer croons, audience plays in Play-Doh
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
Ever hear of a sculpt-along?
Lending a new twist to the concept of audience participation, local musician Sharon O'Malley occasionally brings Play-Doh to her performances and invites the audience to sculpt to the music. As she plays guitar and sings her original compositions, people mold brightly colored people, cats, cakes and abstract shapes. Sculpting tools such as toothpicks, plastic knives and a rolling pin are provided.
"I like the Play-Doh and the music," said Kody Schwartz, 10, of Elmwood Township, during a recent performance at Horizons Books downtown.
Before each Play-Doh performance, O'Malley creates a gallery to display the audience members' creations. The gallery is a multilayered cardboard structure complete with rooms, slides and other props such as miniature plastic table and chairs. It slowly fills up as the evening progresses, as people take great care to place their creations in just the right spot.
"The Play-Doh allows me to air my sense of humor, lighten things up," said O'Malley, who has been performing in local bookstores and at parties and weddings for more than a year. "There are some children who come, but I really encourage adults because we can't play all the time."
O'Malley conceived of the Play-Doh gallery based on her fond memories of growing up in a big family that gathered around the table to do things together. She added sculpting to her performance as to create an evening for people where music is not the only focus. From her perch at the front of the room, O'Malley watches people interact with each other and work together as they sculpt.
"I just thought about what I would like if I were listening to music," the Flint native said. "I get a kick out of the flow of people coming and going more than anything else. It is a real natural flow around the table."
O'Malley came to the Grand Traverse area in 1985 to study music at Interlochen Academy for the Arts. She fell in love with the area and never left.
Now settled in Solon Township, she balances a full-time job at Horizon Books with part-time parenting, song writing and performing, each a distinct career for her.
While she has been a performer since high school, her first love is song writing. O'Malley said she would prefer to spend her time mostly writing and singing, but she understands that live performances are crucial to building a following and getting her songs heard. She has slowly returned to performing in the past year after a few-year hiatus.
She considers her lyrics intense and thought provoking, but allows her sense of humor to creep into her performances, hence the Play-Doh.
"I write from my life experiences and about the human condition and love," O'Malley said. "I enjoy writing about solutions to problems, optimistic songs. People ask me where my dark side is, but it is in there."
O'Malley has self-published two cassettes of her songs and is now working on a compact disk. Two other songs will be included on compilation CDs. She also is writing a song just for the Boardman River Restoration and Protection Project, hoping to raise awareness of the group's work.
"My songs are either a gift from the muses or a product of my overactive right brain," O'Malley said. "But doing what I love is one of my main goals."