Paul Tosh presents ◆ A Premium Solo Show ◆ tosh42.com
Paper Gun
This is mine, but you can have it.
A man. A piano. A reckoning.
EMOTIONALLY ENGAGING · THEATRICAL · INDEPENDENCE
Paper Gun is an original song cycle — An operetta in three acts of twenty minutes each. A paper theme tied to the shadow and Talmudic parallels about sacrifice, in which one man plays both sides of himself. Ending in independence and warmth, taking no prisoners on the way.
A notable feature: Paper Gun typically incorporates a small number of cover songs thematically related to specific moments in the operetta. This means there will always be an element of surprise in what appears during the running order — the show breathes differently each time without losing its dramatic spine.
See It For Yourself
An Introduction
A short preview of the show — the tone, the presence, the dramatic arc in miniature. To see the full rehearsal run of all three acts, email me directly and I'll send you a link — [email protected]
This work is personal and cathartic — but in delivery the perspectives broaden. I find myself more careful for the audience's sake than I am for my own. I still want to be honest — but it has been the privilege of getting to explore the ideas in a way that makes a connection, that you come to know yourself better. It is an alchemy that feels like it comes from above.
The pieces were all tested out live — see below.
Live in the Making (clips version)
Full Programme Poster
The Programme
Twenty-Seven Songs. One Reckoning.
There are two people in every difficult relationship. In my experience — they're often the same person. Say something true to someone you love and if the painter takes themselves out of the painting, you are left in something beautiful, but still holding both sides of whether you did the right thing. Tonight you're going to get a sense of independence, and what that means for better for worse, and ultimately for better. A vicarious exercise through your French brother "I'm alright, Jack" — your shadow work — whoever that is for you, because it's in you / not outside of you.
The protagonist contains extremes. "I know in this song the bully is me, but the bully is feeling free." He's not the innocent party observing. He's someone who recognises the negative pull in himself, fights it, and emerges. That's the whole arc. This work operates on multiple registers simultaneously — emotional, theatrical, talmudic — and different audiences will unlock different layers.
It will touch you like lightning and leave you with gold.
Click a song, see a line.
Act One · The Trap · Paper Gun
1.Beautiful Sunshine / You Make Me Rock N RollThe opening›
"Your life is amazing — you still have some left."
2.The VisitorThe shadow arrives›
"Your voice has got that colour, the sound of 'I don't care.'"
3.From a Watcher's Point of ViewThe narcissist observed›
"He agrees with everything you do. But you've got to admire him for being so shrewd."
4.BarristerDon't mistake talent for character›
"Love is not bought nor sold — it is first given away, then earned."
5.Who Knows Just WhyThe protagonist questions himself›
"Who knows just why we turned around and hide when reminded of love?"
6.Paper GunThe weapon named›
"I've justified most every lie. Morality can feign."
7.Don't Say AnythingThe silence and isolation›
"I was so generous on stage, but in private I couldn't give anything away."
8.Fear HateThe universal warning›
"One of life's hardest things is not to allow fear to turn to hate."
Act Two · The Struggle · Paper Crown
9.PressuresThe weight of it›
"Value is not defined by vocation, by season, or even a kiss."
10.Bully the BullyFighting back›
"I know in this song the bully is me, but the bully is feeling free."
11.ForgivingThe impossible ask›
"A bit faster than mountains, but slower than clouds. Contradiction's the terms — it's all that's allowed."
12.LemonSourness, deflection, raw confrontation›
"When I'm raw from something I saw — to keep me alive I kill it inside."
13.The Space BetweenThe prayer in the eye of the storm›
"The space above is filled with love, but the space between is what gets you there."
14.Trauma ResponseThe most raw and honest piece in the collection›
"When we both are gone, please G-d we'll get along."
15.A Little AmnestyThe plea›
"Whatever the scheme, in the lines or in between — try to broker a little amnesty."
16.Broken ManThe raw plea›
"Don't test me or arrest me, but don't second guess me — bless me."
17.Paper CrownThe turning point›
"If you had faith you'd feel secure, you wouldn't need control, then you could be vulnerable, then authentic, then intimate."
18.the paintingsoliloquy›
"that's Torah!, that's the difference."
19.An ArtistWe sang alone›
"so we sang together we sang together we sang alone."
Act Three · The Emergence · Paper Heart
20.This Is MineReclamation›
"This is mine, but you can have it — 'cause it's all I've got to give."
21.You and Your OwnUnderstanding the pattern›
"We always hurt the ones we love — it's not just you, everyone."
22.From a Living GraveThe descent and the return›
"Love is a gamble at first sighting."
23.Painful BotherFarewell to the dynamic›
"As much as you are inseparable from your nose and thumb."
24.By HertzFaith applied›
"For if the road you have chosen is just — one also travels in trust."
25.FaithThe resolution›
"If you've seen the good, you'll see the best."
26.Let Me CryThe release›
"With our tears we'd find a way — we'd recognise what we want to say."
27.Truthful LoveThe arrival›
"Are you in the mood to sacrifice truth for love?"
28.Paper Heart (Your Tikkun)I believe in your pain, I believe in you›
"I believe in your pain, I believe in you."
29.Beautiful Sunshine (Reprise)The return — earned, not given›
"You make me rock n roll."
Live in the Making
The Songs Before the Show
On March 3rd 2026 I had a full, clear epiphany for Paper Gun — the kind that could only have arrived through a combination and orchestration of many specific events in my life at once. Not least the years of familiarity with a body of my original works, from performing them in my regular bookings.
What I suddenly saw was the thread — what all that material had been spelling out the whole time.
Full pieces below live — see how they land in a room.
"It's Beatles, it's U2, it's Bob Dylan, Lenny Kravitz and Billy Joel, it's jazz — you write this style and that style — you have obviously been influenced by all the songs you have been playing through the years. The world would welcome something like this now with open arms. The songs are timeless. It's an album like Sgt. Pepper."
"Really good solid organic original material — it has to be experienced live. They're not simple in terms of structure nor in terms of emotional content."
Miguel Cavazos — Session drummer, LA
"I can't believe the level of artistry you're bringing to the people in these residential homes. I bet they'd never seen anything like it before."
Joe Tepperman — Author & theater writer
"Light, serious, fun. Paul's songs are alive — you have to live with them. Paul also sets the standard when it comes to camaraderie and healthy artistic sharing."
Mesoud Benasuly — Session bass player, New York City
"I think I've listened to that song a hundred times — but that might be the first time I've actually heard it."
Video testimonial — audience member
"A poetic call to presence — reminding us that the pursuit itself is the purpose, and that love, more than anything, is the foundation of it all. So much fun to watch Paul's creative brain at work… a true pleasure."
Amy Kirshtein — at Libby & Daniel's home concert
"This is as different a performance as anything I've seen in the Listening Room Network. It's really more performance art than musical performance — as much poetry as it is music. His piano playing is just exceptional."
Listening Room Network — Audition Review, August 2025
From the audience —
"When people don't get up, you know we don't want to leave."
"You made me cry several times. I wasn't planning to."
"Even as the performance ended and we instinctively returned to lighthearted conversation, the depth of what we had experienced lingered within each of us, waiting to be unpacked in solitude. Unforgettable."
"You love what you're doing, and that love comes out to all of us."
"You are amongst those that keep the world alive."
"I like to get into your mode though. Because I haven't heard music like this before. And you're free — you know some people stick to things, but you're very fluid."
For Whom & Where
The Right Room Matters
This is not background music. It is not ambient entertainment. It is a performance that asks something of its audience — and gives a great deal more in return.
It's a solo show in which one performer holds two characters. The audience tracks two distinct presences, even though it's one body at the piano. If the audience has the booklet with the character lines marked, they become co-readers of the drama as it unfolds.
The Audience
Those with cultural depth and patience for emotional arc
Appreciators of literary and dramatic work over production spectacle
The genuinely musically literate
Those who come ready to be moved
People who value presence and authenticity over celebrity
The Venues
Small theatres (50–150 seats)
Art galleries and literary events
Thoughtful fundraisers
Private salon performances
College and university arts programmes
Retreats and conferences
Supper clubs
Hotel special engagements
Cruise special shows
Piano shops and showrooms
Shuls and church halls
Community centres
Festivals
Investment
$1,400
All-inclusive · Travel · Accommodation · Sound
Paul travels in a custom self-contained performance camper, making him available for venues across the entire United States and Canada — with no hotel riders, no staging requirements, no hidden costs.
I work across a wide range of venues and budgets. Please get in touch to discuss.
Referrals
Know the Right Room?
If a venue or community comes to mind that you think would be a good fit — a country club, a shul, a JCC, a supper club, a home concert host — I'd love to hear from you. I offer a referral fee for any booking that comes through your introduction.
Born in Scotland. Formed in Europe. Seasoned across a decade of performances for senior communities on the American East Coast. Paul Tosh is a therapeutic musical performer whose work refuses the easy distinction between entertainment and art.
His signature approach — Song Is The Play — treats every performance as a piece of theatre: looping piano, dramatic song, and the kind of presence that makes a familiar melody feel heard for the first time. Paper Gun is his most personal and fully realised work to date: a show about damage, clarity, and the quiet violence of the truth.
Paul Tosh Presents ◆ A Premium Solo Show ◆ Tosh42.com
PAPER Gun
This is mine, but you can have it.
A Man. A Piano. A Reckoning.
Emotionally Engaging · Theatrical · Independence
Paper Gun is an original song cycle — An operetta in three acts of twenty minutes each. A paper theme tied to the shadow and Talmudic parallels about sacrifice, in which one man plays both sides of himself. Ending in independence and warmth, taking no prisoners on the way.
"Made me feel like the pre-WWII era of the arts in society!"
"The songs are timeless — an album like Sgt. Pepper"
"I can't believe the level of artistry you're bringing"
"His piano playing is just exceptional."
"You remind me of the inspiring Shlomo Carlebach ע״ש"
