BIRDLAND ... A short flight of departure from Gollywood, Here I Come! by Terry John Barto

Think “La La Land” set in an animated world of birds, about ‘Anamazie’ a little turkey with big dreams of making it as a performer in BIRDLAND.  She finds that the big city is a chicken and hen kinda town, but overcomes the odds with help from a crew of “others” just like her.

The essence of the story is the same, Anamazie, a small-town turkey pursues an acting/ musical theater-esque dream, pushed along the way by a mother married to the idea that her kid’s as good as they get in Gobbler’s Glen, a turkey-themed town that is charming, simple, and overly sincere… to its own innocent fault. Mom’s right, but let’s face it – her kid’s a big bird in a little barn...*  

Anamazie is discovered in much the same manner as the book, the exception being that the scout is “Mother Hen,” an aggressive no-nonsense agent working in Birdland, a town of big-name talent with nothing but chickens and roosters topping the roster of A-listers. Turns out, turkeys are exactly that in Birdland, no more than comic relief, regulated to supporting roles devoted to pratfalls, punch lines, and pigeon poop.  Suddenly, it’s up to Anamazie and her recently shoved-to-the-sidelines mother to overcome the prejudices of Mother Hen and the entire town’s turkey-typecasting in time to land a leading role in Birdland’s next big blockbuster.  
 

*Let the ever-present bird lexicon begin.