 The musical's storyline explores the divisions between art and commerce and between European and American culture, dichotomies that have also shaped much of Sparks' own career. Described as a "dark fairy tale" by Stephen Dalton in The Times – "The Wizard of Oz meets The Truman Show, with a light sprinkling of Life On Mars" – it is based on imaginary events in the career of Swedish film director Ingmar Bergman.
