Jonathan Larson

American composer, lyricist and playwright (1960–1996)

For the American journalist, see Jonathan Larsen.

"Jon Larson" redirects here. For other people with similar names, see John Larson (disambiguation).

Jonathan Larson

Born| Jonathan David Larson
(1960-02-04)February 4, 1960
Mount Vernon, New York, U.S.
Died| January 25, 1996(1996-01-25) (aged 35)
New York City, U.S.
Occupation|

* Composer
* lyricist
* playwright

Education| Adelphi University (BFA)
Years active| 1982–1996
Notable works|

* Rent (1996)
* Tick, Tick... Boom! (2001)
* Superbia (not officially published)

Jonathan David Larson (February 4, 1960 – January 25, 1996) was an American composer, lyricist and playwright, most famous for writing the musicals Rent and Tick, Tick... Boom!, which explored the social issues of multiculturalism, substance use disorder, and homophobia.

Larson had worked on both musicals throughout the late 1980s and into the 1990s. After several years of workshopping, Rent began an Off-Broadway run in early 1996, though Larson died from an aortic dissection the day before its first preview performance. The show went onto enjoy critical and commercial success, and transferred to Broadway that April. Larson posthumously received three Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Rent was also adapted into a 2005 film. Tick, Tick... Boom! received an Off-Broadway production in 2001, and was also adapted into a film, which was released in 2021.

## Early years

[edit]

Jonathan David Larson was born on February 4, 1960, in Mount Vernon, New York, to Nanette (née Notarius) and Allan Larson of White Plains, New York.[1][2][3][4] His family was Jewish.[5] His grandfather, Bernard Isaac Lazarson, who was born in Russia, changed the family surname from Lazarson.[6] At an early age, Larson played the trumpet and tuba, sang in his school's choir, and took piano lessons. His early musical influences and his favorite rock musicians included Elton John, The Doors, The Who, and Billy Joel, as well as the classic composers of musical theatre, especially Stephen Sondheim. He also loved Pete Townshend, The Police, Prince, Liz Phair, and The Beatles.[7] Larson attended White Plains High School, where he was also involved in acting, performing in lead roles in various productions, graduating in 1978.[8] He had a sister, Julie.

Larson attended Adelphi University in Garden City, New York, with a four-year scholarship as an acting major, in addition to performing in numerous plays and musical theatre, graduating in 1982 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Larson stopped acting to focus on compositions. During his college years, he began music composition, composing music first for small student productions, called cabarets, and later the score to a musical entitled The Book of Good Love (Libro de Buen Amor), written by the department head, Jacques Burdick, who was also Larson's college mentor.

As a student at Adelphi University, Larson co-wrote Sacrimmoralinority, a Brechtian-themed cabaret musical and his first musical, with David Glenn Armstrong. It was first staged at Adelphi University in the winter of 1981. After Larson and Armstrong graduated in 1982, they renamed it Saved! - An Immoral Musical on the Moral Majority. It played a four-week showcase run at Rusty's Storefront Blitz, a small theatre on 42nd Street in New York, Manhattan, and won both authors a writing award from ASCAP.

After graduating, Larson participated in a summer stock theatre program at the Barn Theatre in Augusta, Michigan, as a piano player, which resulted in his earning an Equity card for membership in the Actors' Equity Association.

## Works

[edit]

### Superbia

[edit]

Main article: Superbia (musical)

In 1983, Larson planned to write a musical adaptation of George Orwell's book Nineteen Eighty-Four, which he planned to get produced in the year 1984; however, the Orwell estate denied him permission. Larson then began the process of adapting his work on 1984 into a futuristic story of his own, titled Superbia.[9]

Superbia was modified many times. In the first drafts, the story, set in the year 2064, followed the character Josh Out, a member of OUTLAND, a society where emotions are erased from everyone at birth. Due to complications at birth, Josh maintained his emotions, and spent his life as an inventor, searching for something that could wake up the rest of his family and society. One day, Josh discovers a Music Box, which has the power to bring emotions to the other members of OUTLAND. He meets Elizabeth In, a girl his age from INCITY, who convinces him to spread the power of the music box. Josh travels to INCITY, where the INs live. The INs are the celebrities of this society who spend their days having their scripted lives filmed and transmitted to the OUTs as entertainment. In INCITY, Josh must face the temptations of fame in order to succeed on his mission. By the time Larson finished his final draft of the show, it was a much darker piece that took a deeper look into the power of emotions and mankind's attachment to technology. In this version, Josh was already married to Elizabeth at the beginning of the story and they are both OUTs. Like the other OUTs, Elizabeth is addicted to technology, and is unable to truly love. As the story begins, Josh leaves Elizabeth in order to find a greater life. Elizabeth wakes up from her technological trance and pursues Josh.[10]

Superbia won the Richard Rodgers Production Award and the Richard Rodgers Development Grant.[8] However, despite performances at Playwrights Horizons and a rock concert version produced by Larson's close friend and producer Victoria Leacock at the Village Gate in September 1989, Superbia never received a full production.[9]

In the 2001 three-person musical version of Larson's monologue TICK, TICK... BOOM, the 11 o'clock number from the Musical Comedy version of Superbia, "Come to your Senses" was included. Another song from Superbia ("LCD Readout") was included on the 2007 album "Jonathan Sings Larson". In 2019, the song "One of these Days", originally sung by Josh near the beginning of the early drafts of Superbia, was included on the album "The Jonathan Larson Project".

On February 4, 2022, "Sextet Montage" was released on streaming platforms as a single.[11]

### Tick, Tick... Boom!

[edit]

Main article: Tick, Tick... Boom!

His next work, completed in 1991, was an autobiographical "rock monologue" entitled 30/90, which was later renamed Boho Days and finally titled Tick, Tick... Boom! This piece, written for only Larson with a piano and rock band, drew on his feelings of rejection caused by the disappointment of Superbia. The show was performed off-Broadway at the Village Gate in Greenwich Village, then at the Second Stage Theater on the Upper West Side. Both of these productions were produced by Victoria Leacock. The producer Jeffrey Seller saw a reading of Boho Days and expressed interest in producing Larson's musicals. After Larson's death, the work was reworked into a stage musical by playwright David Auburn and arranger and musical director Stephen Oremus. The stage version premiered off-Broadway in 2001 and starred Raúl Esparza as Larson, a performance for which he earned an Obie Award. It has since been produced on a West End theatre. A film adaptation of tick, tick... BOOM!, directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda and starring Andrew Garfield (in an Academy Award nominated performance) as Larson, with a rewritten script by Steven Levenson was released on Netflix on November 12, 2021.

In 1992, Larson collaborated with fellow composer/lyricists Rusty Magee, Bob Golden, Paul Scott Goodman, and Jeremy Roberts on Sacred Cows, which was devised and pitched to television networks as a weekly anthology with each episode taking a different Biblical or mythological story and giving it a '90s celebrity twist. The project was shelved due to scheduling conflicts among the five composers but resurfaced over 20 years later in a six-page Playbill article. The demo for Sacred Cows was released on iTunes.[12]

Larson's strongest musical theatre influence was Stephen Sondheim, with whom he corresponded, and to whom he occasionally submitted his work for review. One tick, tick... BOOM! song, called "Sunday," is a homage to Sondheim, who supported Larson, staying close to the melody and lyrics of Sondheim's own song of the same title but turning it from a manifesto about art into a waiter's lament. Sondheim wrote several letters of recommendation for Larson to various producers. Larson later won the Stephen Sondheim Award.[13]

In addition to his three larger theatrical pieces written before Rent, Larson also wrote music for J.P. Morgan Saves the Nation;[14] numerous individual numbers; music for Sesame Street; music for the children's book cassettes of An American Tail and The Land Before Time; music for Rolling Stone magazine publisher Jann Wenner; a musical called Mowgli; and four songs for the children's video Away We Go!, which he also conceived with collaborator and composer Bob Golden and directed. He performed in John MacLachlan Gray's musical Billy Bishop Goes to War, which starred his close friend actor Roger Bart. For his early works, Larson won a grant and award from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers and the Gilman & Gonzalez-Falla Theatre Foundation's Commendation Award.[15]

### Rent

[edit]

Main article: Rent (musical)

Larson, year unknown

In 1988, playwright Billy Aronson wanted to create "a musical inspired by Giacomo Puccini's La bohème, in which the luscious splendor of Puccini's world would be replaced with the coarseness and noise of modern New York".[16]

In 1989, Aronson called Ira Weitzman, asking for ideas for collaborators, and Weitzman introduced Larson to Aronson to collaborate on the new project. Larson came up with the title and suggested moving the setting from the Upper West Side to Lower Manhattan, where Larson and his roommates lived in a rundown apartment.

Rent started as a staged reading in 1993 at the New York Theatre Workshop, followed by a studio production that played a three-week run a year later. However, the version that is now known worldwide, the result of three years of collaboration and editing between Larson and the producers and director, was not publicly performed before Larson's death as Larson died the day before the first preview performance. The show premiered Off-Broadway on schedule. According to lead performer Anthony Rapp, Larson's parents, who were flying in for the show anyway, gave their blessing to perform the show despite Larson's death a day earlier, and the cast agreed that they would premiere the show by simply singing it through, all the while sitting at three prop tables lined up on stage. But by the time the show got to its high energy "La Vie Boheme", the cast could no longer contain themselves and did the rest of the show as it was meant to be, minus costumes, to the crowd and the Larson family's approval. Once the show was over, there was a long applause followed by silence which was eventually broken when an audience member shouted out "Thank you, Jonathan Larson."[17]

Rent played through its planned engagement to sold-out crowds and was continually extended. The decision was finally made to move the show to a Broadway theatre, and it opened at the Nederlander Theatre on April 29, 1996.[18] In addition to the New York Theatre Workshop, Rent was produced by Jeffrey Seller, who was introduced to Larson's work when attending an off-Broadway performance of Boho Days, and two of his producer friends who also wished to support the work, Kevin McCollum and Allan S. Gordon.

For his work on Rent, Larson was posthumously awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama,[15] the Tony Award for Best Musical, Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical, and Tony Award for Best Original Score;[19] the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical, Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music, and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics; the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical; the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical in the Off-Broadway category; and Obie Awards for Outstanding Book, Outstanding Lyrics, and Outstanding Music.

Larson's estate was scheduled to earn one-third of the amount earned by Rent.[20]

## Death

[edit]

In the days preceding Rent's first previews in January 1996, Larson began experiencing pain in his chest and back, fever, dizziness, and shortness of breath. He was assessed at Cabrini Medical Center on January 21 and at St. Vincent's Hospital on January 23, but doctors found nothing of concern in X-rays or electrocardiograms (EKGs), and variously attributed his symptoms to stress, food poisoning, or a virus; a note from one doctor on an EKG speculated about a possible myocardial infarction, but the matter was not further pursued.[1][21] Larson continued to complain of severe and persistent pain and discomfort throughout this period.[21]

At around 12:30 a.m. on January 25, 1996, the scheduled day of the first preview performance, Larson returned to his apartment from a production meeting, and collapsed in the kitchen.[21] During the 3 a.m. hour,[a] his body was discovered by his roommate, who called emergency services and attempted CPR.[1] Police arrived and pronounced Larson dead at the scene, aged 35.[1] The cause of death was found to be an aortic dissection.[21] A court found that Larson had been misdiagnosed by doctors at both hospitals he had visited.[20] A medical malpractice lawsuit was settled for an undisclosed amount. The New York State Department of Health launched an investigation and concluded that it is possible he could have lived if the aortic dissection had been properly diagnosed and treated with cardiac surgery.[22][23] Cabrini Medical Center and St. Vincent's Hospital were fined $10,000 and $6,000, respectively.[1]

Larson may have had an undiagnosed case of Marfan syndrome, which increases the risk of aortic dissection; the possibility was publicly promoted by the National Marfan Foundation to raise awareness about the condition, at the urging of the New York State Health Department.[24]

## Legacy

[edit]

Rent played on Broadway at the Nederlander Theatre from its debut in April 1996 until September 7, 2008.[25] It is the 11th longest running show in Broadway history. In addition, it has toured throughout the United States, Canada, Brazil, Japan, United Kingdom, Australia, China, Singapore, Philippines, Mexico, Germany, Poland, and throughout Europe, as well as in other locations. A film version of Rent was released in 2005.

After his death, Larson's family and friends started the Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation to provide monetary grants to artists, especially musical theatre composers and writers, to support their creative work. The Jonathan Larson Grants are now administered by the American Theatre Wing, thanks to an endowment funded by the Foundation and the Larson Family.[26]

In December 2003, Larson's work was given to the Library of Congress. The collection includes numerous musicals, revues, cabarets, pop songs, dance and video projects – both produced and un-produced.[27]

Less than three years after Rent closed on Broadway, the show was revived Off-Broadway at Stage 1 of New World Stages just outside the Theater District. The show was directed by Michael Greif, who had directed the original productions. The show began previews on July 14, 2011, and opened August 11, 2011.

Andrew Garfield as Jonathan Larson in Tick, Tick... Boom!

From October 9 to 14, 2018, Feinstein's/54 Below presented The Jonathan Larson Project, a concert of several previously unheard songs by Larson. The show was conceived and directed by Jennifer Ashley Tepper. It starred George Salazar, Lauren Marcus, Andy Mientus, Krysta Rodriguez, and Nick Blaemire. A CD of the show was released by Ghostlight Records in April 2019.[28][29]

Jonathan is portrayed by actor Andrew Garfield in the biographical musical drama Tick, Tick... Boom! which was released on the streaming service Netflix on November 19, 2021. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, with high praise for director Lin-Manuel Miranda’s direction in his directorial debut, score, and musical sequences, and Garfield's performance garnering universal acclaim. It was named one of the best films of 2021 by the American Film Institute, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy (Garfield) at the 79th Golden Globe Awards, with Garfield winning the latter.

### Jonathan Larson Grants

[edit]

In memory of Larson, in 1996, the Larson family along with the Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation established an award honoring emerging musical theater writers and composers.[30] In 2008, the American Theatre Wing adopted and continued on the legacy through the Jonathan Larson Grants, an unrestricted cash gift to aid in the creative endeavors of the writers and promote their work.[26] Notable winners of the grant include Dave Malloy, Laurence O'Keefe, Nell Benjamin, Amanda Green, Joe Iconis, Pasek and Paul, Shaina Taub and Michael R. Jackson.

## Personal life

[edit]

In college, Larson dated Victoria Leacock.[31] He also dated a dancer for four years who sometimes left him for other men, though she eventually left him for a woman. These experiences influenced the autobiographical aspects of Rent.

Larson lived and died in a loft with no heat on the fifth floor of 508 Greenwich Street, on the corner of Greenwich Street and Spring Street in Lower Manhattan. He lived with various roommates over the years, including Greg Beals, a journalist for Newsweek magazine and the brother of actress Jennifer Beals. For a while, he and his roommates kept an illegal wood-burning stove because of lack of heat in their building.

From the spring of 1985, when he was 25 years old, until October 21, 1995, when he quit since Rent was being produced by the New York Theatre Workshop, Larson worked as a waiter at the Moondance Diner on the weekends and worked on composing and writing musicals during the week. Many people came to the diner to meet Larson. He was involved in writing the employee manual.[32] At the diner, Larson met Jesse L. Martin, who was his waiting trainee and later performed the role of Tom Collins in the original cast of Larson's Rent.

## Awards and nominations

[edit]

Year  | Award  | Category  | Work  | Result

|
|
|
|

1996  | Pulitzer Prize | Drama | Rent | Won
Tony Award | Best Book of a Musical | Won
Best Musical | Won
Best Original Score | Won
Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Book of a Musical | Won
Outstanding Music | Won
Outstanding Lyrics | Won
New York Drama Critics' Circle | Best Musical  | Won
2002  | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Book of a Musical | Tick, Tick... Boom! | Nominated
Outstanding Music | Nominated
Outstanding Lyrics | Nominated

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ Variously reported as 3:00,[16] "around 3:30",[21] or 3:40 a.m.[1]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f "The Story of Jonathan— One Week in January". Journal of Urgent Care Medicine. Urgent Care Association. June 15, 2009. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
2. ^ Evans, Greg (January 1, 2022). "Allan Larson Dies: Father Of Playwright Jonathan Larson And Caretaker Of Legacy". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
3. ^ "Nanette T. Larson Obituary (1927-2018)". The Journal News. February 11, 2019.
4. ^ "Jonathan Larson". PBS. Archived from the original on April 20, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
5. ^ GRANT, BRIGIT (December 9, 2021). "Stephen Sondheim's last message". Jewish News. Archived from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
6. ^ "Jews in News: Alana Haim, Sean Penn and Andrew Garfield". Tampa JCCS and Federation. November 25, 2021. Archived from the original on December 1, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
7. ^ ISTEL, JOHN (July 1996). "Jonathan Larson Talks About His Writing Process and Making 'Rent'". Theatre Communications Group. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
8. ^ a b Gussow, Mel (January 26, 1996). "Jonathan Larson, 35, Composer of Rock Opera and Musicals". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 2, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
9. ^ a b TEPPER, JENNIFER ASHLEY (October 9, 2018). "5 Jonathan Larson Songs You've Probably Never Heard". Playbill. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
10. ^ Collis, Jonathon (July 17, 2018). Boho Days: The Wider Works of Jonathan Larson. Outer Obscurity. ISBN 9783000591129. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
11. ^ "LISTEN: TICK, TICK...BOOM! Releases 'Sextet Montage' From SUPERBIA". BroadwayWorld. February 4, 2022. Archived from the original on February 4, 2022. Retrieved February 5, 2022.
12. ^ Collis, Jonathon (March 4, 2013). "How the Feverish Imaginations of Jonathan Larson, Rusty Magee and Friends Birthed the Musical 'Sacred Cows'". Playbill. Archived from the original on April 2, 2022. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
13. ^ "To Sontag, to Sondheim, to anything taboo!". Signature Theatre. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
14. ^ "Last Chance". The New York Times. July 7, 1995. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
15. ^ a b Pacheco, Patrick (April 14, 1996). "Life, Death and 'Rent'". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 22, 2020.
16. ^ a b Tommasini, Anthony (March 17, 1996). "Theater; The Seven-Year Odyssey that Led to 'Rent'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 28, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
17. ^ Rapp, Anthony (October 31, 2006). Without You: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and the Musical Rent. Simon & Schuster. p. 136\. ISBN 9780743269773.
18. ^ Winer, Laurie (April 30, 1996). "'Rent' Goes Up -- to Broadway". The Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020.
19. ^ "Rent, Master Class Win Top Tonys". Playbill. June 3, 1996. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
20. ^ a b Span, Paula (December 14, 1996). "JUST WHAT IS THE PRICE OF FAME? 'RENT' AUTHOR'S FAMILY SEEKS ANSWER IN SUIT". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on August 28, 2017. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
21. ^ a b c d e Van Gelder, Lawrence (December 13, 1996). "On the Eve of a New Life, an Untimely Death". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 21, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
22. ^ Nicholson, Joe; Kornblut, Anne (December 13, 1996). "State Faults Hosps for 'Rent' Tragedy". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
23. ^ Rosenthal, Elisabeth (December 13, 1996). "2 Hospitals Fined In Wake of Death Of 'Rent' Creator". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 17, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
24. ^ "No Rest for the Parents of the Parent of 'Rent'". The New York Times. June 12, 2001. Archived from the original on July 9, 2022. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
25. ^ Jones, Kenneth (March 26, 2008). "Rent Extension: Hit Show Will Close Sept. 7". Playbill. Archived from the original on November 27, 2021. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
26. ^ a b Bloom, Julie (September 16, 2008). "Footnotes". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 6, 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2017.
27. ^ "Jonathan Larson papers". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
28. ^ "The Jonathan Larson Project". Feinstein's/54 Below. Archived from the original on April 8, 2019. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
29. ^ Peikert, Mark (January 28, 2019). "The Jonathan Larson Project Album Sets April Release Date". Playbill. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
30. ^ Gans, Andrew (February 14, 2008). "Jonathan Larson Award Winners Announced; Rapp, Testa and Harris to Perform at Ceremony". Playbill. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
31. ^ Pullar, Jess (November 22, 2021). "The Tragic True Story Behind Netflix's New Musical, 'Tick Tick... Boom!'". Marie Claire. Archived from the original on April 22, 2022. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
32. ^ Stevens-Garmon, Morgen (November 23, 2021). "Waiting with Jonathan Larson". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on May 22, 2022. Retrieved April 2, 2022.

## External links

[edit]

Archives at

| Location| Music Division, Library of Congress

|

Source| Jonathan Larson papers, 1978-1996
How to use archival material

* Jonathan Larson at the Internet Broadway Database
* Jonathan Larson at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
* Jonathan Larson at IMDb

* v
* t
* e

Jonathan Larson

Musicals|

* El libro de buen amor (1979)
* Sacrimmoralinority (1981)
* J.P. Morgan Saves the Nation
* Mowgli (unproduced)
* Superbia (unproduced)
* Tick, Tick... Boom! (1993)
* Rent (1996)

Songs|

* "Come To Your Senses"
* "Sextet"
* "30/90"
* "Rent"
* "One Song Glory"
* "Light My Candle"
* "Tango: Maureen"
* "Will I?"
* "Over the Moon"
* "I Should Tell You"
* "Seasons of Love"
* "Take Me or Leave Me"
* "Without You"
* "Finale B"

Film and television|

* Rent (2005 film)
* Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway (2008 film)
* Rent: Live (2019)
* Revolution Rent (2021)
* Tick, Tick... Boom! (2021)

Albums/soundtracks|

* Rent albums (1996 / 2005)
* Jonathan Sings Larson (2007)
* The Jonathan Larson Project (2018)
* Tick, Tick... Boom! film soundtrack (2021)

Other|

* Away We Go! (children's video)
* Boho Days: The Wider Works (by J. Collins)
* Without You (by Anthony Rapp)
* Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation
* Library of Congress (contains Jonathan Larson papers collection)
* Sesame Street (wrote songs 1992-3)

Awards for Jonathan Larson

* v
* t
* e

Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical

1970–2000|

* George Furth (1970)
* Burt Shevelove (1971)
* John Guare and Mel Shapiro (1972)
* Hugh Wheeler (1973)
* Hugh Wheeler (1974)
* No Award (1975)
* James Kirkwood and Nicholas Dante (1976)
* Thomas Meehan (1977)
* Hugh Wheeler (1979)
* No Awards (1980–1983)
* James Lapine (1984)
* Jerry Colker (1985)
* Rupert Holmes (1986)
* L. Arthur Rose, Douglas Furber, Stephen Fry, and Mike Ockrent (1987)
* James Lapine (1988)
* Larry Gelbart (1990)
* Marsha Norman (1991)
* George C. Wolfe (1992)
* James Lapine (1994)
* Jonathan Larson (1996)
* Terrence McNally (1998)
* Alfred Uhry (1999)
* No Award (2000)

2001–present|

* Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan (2001)
* John Lahr and Elaine Stritch (2002)
* Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan (2003)
* Winnie Holzman (2004)
* Rachel Sheinkin (2005)
* Bob Martin and Don McKellar (2006)
* Rupert Holmes and Peter Stone (2007)
* Douglas Carter Beane (2008)
* Lee Hall (2009)
* Alex Timbers (2010)
* Adam Mathias (2011)
* Joe DiPietro (2012)
* Dennis Kelly (2013)
* Robert L. Freedman (2014)
* Lin-Manuel Miranda (2015)
* John Caird (2016)
* Irene Sankoff and David Hein (2017)
* Tina Fey (2018)
* Robert Horn (2019)
* Michael R. Jackson (2020)
* No Award (2021)
* Bruce Sussman (2022)
* Matthew Lopez and Amber Ruffin (2023)
* Itamar Moses (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics

1969–2000|

* Fred Ebb (1969)
* Stephen Sondheim / Bertolt Brecht (1970)
* Stephen Sondheim (1971)
* John Guare (1972)
* Stephen Sondheim (1973)
* Al Carmines (1974)
* Charlie Smalls (1975)
* Edward Kleban (1976)
* Martin Charnin (1977)
* Carol Hall (1978)
* Stephen Sondheim (1979)
* Tim Rice (1980)
* Stephen Sondheim / Maury Yeston (1982)
* Howard Ashman (1983)
* Stephen Sondheim (1984)
* Roger Miller (1985)
* Stephen Sondheim (1988)
* David Zippel (1990)
* William Finn (1991)
* Susan Birkenhead (1992)
* Denis Markell and Douglas Bernstein (1993)
* Stephen Sondheim (1994)
* Jonathan Larson (1996)
* Gerard Alessandrini (1997)
* Lynn Ahrens (1998)
* Gerard Alessandrini (1999)
* Stephen Sondheim (2000)

2001–present|

* Mel Brooks (2001)
* Jason Robert Brown (2002)
* Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman (2003)
* Stephen Schwartz (2004)
* Eric Idle (2005)
* Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison (2006)
* Steven Sater (2007)
* Stew (2008)
* Stephen Sondheim (2009)
* John Kander and Fred Ebb (2010)
* Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, and Matt Stone (2011)
* Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová (2012)
* Tim Minchin (2013)
* Robert L. Freedman and Steven Lutvak (2014)
* Lin-Manuel Miranda (2015)
* Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (2016)
* David Yazbek (2017)
* Peter Kellogg (2018)
* David Yazbek (2019)
* Michael R. Jackson (2020)
* No Award (2021)
* Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss (2022)
* Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman (2023)
* David Yazbek and Erik Della Penna (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music

1969–2000|

* Al Carmines / Burt Bacharach (1969)
* Stephen Sondheim / Kurt Weill (1970)
* Stephen Sondheim (1971)
* Galt MacDermot (1972)
* Stephen Sondheim (1973)
* Al Carmines (1974)
* Charlie Smalls (1975)
* Marvin Hamlisch (1976)
* Cy Coleman (1977)
* Cy Coleman / Carol Hall (1978)
* Stephen Sondheim (1979)
* Andrew Lloyd Webber (1980)
* Maury Yeston (1982)
* Andrew Lloyd Webber (1983)
* Jerry Herman (1984)
* Larry Grossman (1985)
* Rupert Holmes (1986)
* Noel Gay / Claude-Michel Schönberg (1987)
* Andrew Lloyd Webber (1988)
* Cy Coleman (1990)
* Cy Coleman (1991)
* Erik Frandsen, Michael Garin, Paul Lockheart, and Robert Hipkins (1992)
* Marvin Hamlisch (1993)
* Stephen Sondheim (1994)
* Jonathan Larson (1996)
* Cy Coleman (1997)
* Stephen Flaherty (1998)
* Jason Robert Brown (1999)
* Andrew Lippa (2000)

2001–present|

* David Yazbek (2001)
* Jason Robert Brown (2002)
* Marc Shaiman (2003)
* Jeanine Tesori (2004)
* Adam Guettel (2005)
* Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison (2006)
* Duncan Sheik (2007)
* Stew and Heidi Rodewald (2008)
* Elton John (2009)
* David Bryan (2010)
* Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, and Matt Stone (2011)
* Alan Menken (2012)
* David Byrne and Fatboy Slim (2013)
* Jason Robert Brown (2014)
* Lin-Manuel Miranda (2015)
* Steve Martin and Edie Brickell (2016)
* David Yazbek (2017)
* David Friedman (2018)
* David Yazbek (2019)
* Dave Malloy (2020)
* No Award (2021)
* Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss (2022)
* Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally (2023)
* Shaina Taub (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Pulitzer Prize for Drama: Authors

* Jesse Lynch Williams (1918)
* Eugene O'Neill (1920)
* Zona Gale (1921)
* Eugene O'Neill (1922)
* Owen Davis (1923)
* Hatcher Hughes (1924)
* Sidney Howard (1925)
* George Kelly (1926)
* Paul Green (1927)
* Eugene O'Neill (1928)
* Elmer Rice (1929)
* Marc Connelly (1930)
* Susan Glaspell (1931)
* George S. Kaufman, Morrie Ryskind and Ira Gershwin (1932)
* Maxwell Anderson (1933)
* Sidney Kingsley (1934)
* Zoe Akins (1935)
* Robert E. Sherwood (1936)
* Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman (1937)
* Thornton Wilder (1938)
* Robert E. Sherwood (1939)
* William Saroyan (1940)
* Robert E. Sherwood (1941)
* Thornton Wilder (1943)
* Mary Chase (1945)
* Russel Crouse and Howard Lindsay (1946)
* Tennessee Williams (1948)
* Arthur Miller (1949)
* Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II and Joshua Logan (1950)
* Joseph Kramm (1952)
* William Inge (1953)
* John Patrick (1954)
* Tennessee Williams (1955)
* Albert Hackett and Frances Goodrich (1956)
* Eugene O'Neill (1957)
* Ketti Frings (1958)
* Archibald MacLeish (1959)
* Jerome Weidman, George Abbott, Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick (1960)
* Tad Mosel (1961)
* Frank Loesser and Abe Burrows (1962)
* Frank D. Gilroy (1965)
* Edward Albee (1967)
* Howard Sackler (1969)
* Charles Gordone (1970)
* Paul Zindel (1971)
* Jason Miller (1973)
* Edward Albee (1975)
* Michael Bennett, Nicholas Dante, James Kirkwood Jr., Marvin Hamlisch and Edward Kleban (1976)
* Michael Cristofer (1977)
* Donald L. Coburn (1978)
* Sam Shepard (1979)
* Lanford Wilson (1980)
* Beth Henley (1981)
* Charles Fuller (1982)
* Marsha Norman (1983)
* David Mamet (1984)
* James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim (1985)
* August Wilson (1987)
* Alfred Uhry (1988)
* Wendy Wasserstein (1989)
* August Wilson (1990)
* Neil Simon (1991)
* Robert Schenkkan (1992)
* Tony Kushner (1993)
* Edward Albee (1994)
* Horton Foote (1995)
* Jonathan Larson (1996)
* Paula Vogel (1998)
* Margaret Edson (1999)
* Donald Margulies (2000)
* David Auburn (2001)
* Suzan-Lori Parks (2002)
* Nilo Cruz (2003)
* Doug Wright (2004)
* John Patrick Shanley (2005)
* David Lindsay-Abaire (2007)
* Tracy Letts (2008)
* Lynn Nottage (2009)
* Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey (2010)
* Bruce Norris (2011)
* Quiara Alegría Hudes (2012)
* Ayad Akhtar (2013)
* Annie Baker (2014)
* Stephen Adly Guirgis (2015)
* Lin-Manuel Miranda (2016)
* Lynn Nottage (2017)
* Martyna Majok (2018)
* Jackie Sibblies Drury (2019)
* Michael R. Jackson (2020)
* Katori Hall (2021)
* James Ijames (2022)
* Sanaz Toossi (2023)
* Eboni Booth (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical

1950–1975|

* South Pacific by Oscar Hammerstein II and Joshua Logan (1950)
* Hello, Dolly! by Michael Stewart (1964)
* Fiddler on the Roof by Joseph Stein (1965)
* Company by George Furth (1971)
* Two Gentlemen of Verona by John Guare and Mel Shapiro (1972)
* A Little Night Music by Hugh Wheeler (1973)
* Candide by Hugh Wheeler (1974)
* Shenandoah by James Lee Barrett, Peter Udell and Philip Rose (1975)

1976–2000|

* A Chorus Line by James Kirkwood Jr. and Nicholas Dante (1976)
* Annie by Thomas Meehan (1977)
* On the Twentieth Century by Betty Comden and Adolph Green (1978)
* Sweeney Todd by Hugh Wheeler (1979)
* Evita by Tim Rice (1980)
* Woman of the Year by Peter Stone (1981)
* Dreamgirls by Tom Eyen (1982)
* Cats by T. S. Eliot (1983)
* La Cage aux Folles by Harvey Fierstein (1984)
* Big River by William Hauptman (1985)
* The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Rupert Holmes (1986)
* Les Misérables by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg (1987)
* Into the Woods by James Lapine (1988)
* No Award (1989)
* City of Angels by Larry Gelbart (1990)
* The Secret Garden by Marsha Norman (1991)
* Falsettos by William Finn and James Lapine (1992)
* Kiss of the Spider Woman by Terrence McNally (1993)
* Passion by James Lapine (1994)
* Sunset Boulevard by Don Black and Christopher Hampton (1995)
* Rent by Jonathan Larson (1996)
* Titanic by Peter Stone (1997)
* Ragtime by Terrence McNally (1998)
* Parade by Alfred Uhry (1999)
* James Joyce's The Dead by Richard Nelson (2000)

2001–present|

* The Producers by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan (2001)
* Urinetown by Greg Kotis (2002)
* Hairspray by Thomas Meehan and Mark O'Donnell (2003)
* Avenue Q by Jeff Whitty (2004)
* The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee by Rachel Sheinkin (2005)
* The Drowsy Chaperone by Bob Martin and Don McKellar (2006)
* Spring Awakening by Steven Sater (2007)
* Passing Strange by Stew (2008)
* Billy Elliot the Musical by Lee Hall (2009)
* Memphis by Joe DiPietro (2010)
* The Book of Mormon by Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone (2011)
* Once by Enda Walsh (2012)
* Matilda the Musical by Dennis Kelly (2013)
* A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder by Robert L. Freedman (2014)
* Fun Home by Lisa Kron (2015)
* Hamilton by Lin-Manuel Miranda (2016)
* Dear Evan Hansen by Steven Levenson (2017)
* The Band's Visit by Itamar Moses (2018)
* Tootsie by Robert Horn (2019)
* Jagged Little Pill by Diablo Cody (2020/21)
* A Strange Loop by Michael R. Jackson (2022)
* Kimberly Akimbo by David Lindsay-Abaire (2023)
* Suffs by Shaina Taub (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Tony Award for Best Original Score

1947–1975|

* Street Scene by Kurt Weill (1947)
* Kiss Me, Kate by Cole Porter (1949)
* South Pacific by Richard Rodgers (1950)
* Call Me Madam by Irving Berlin (1951)
* No Strings by Richard Rodgers (1962)
* Oliver! by Lionel Bart (1963)
* Hello, Dolly! by Jerry Herman (1964)
* Fiddler on the Roof by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick (1965)
* Man of La Mancha by Mitch Leigh and Joe Darion (1966)
* Cabaret by John Kander and Fred Ebb (1967)
* Hallelujah, Baby! by Jule Styne, Betty Comden, and Adolph Green (1968)
* Company by Stephen Sondheim (1971)
* Follies by Stephen Sondheim (1972)
* A Little Night Music by Stephen Sondheim (1973)
* Gigi by Frederick Loewe and Alan Jay Lerner (1974)
* The Wiz by Charlie Smalls (1975)

1976–2000|

* A Chorus Line by Marvin Hamlisch and Edward Kleban (1976)
* Annie by Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin (1977)
* On the Twentieth Century by Cy Coleman, Betty Comden, and Adolph Green (1978)
* Sweeney Todd by Stephen Sondheim (1979)
* Evita by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice (1980)
* Woman of the Year by John Kander and Fred Ebb (1981)
* Nine by Maury Yeston (1982)
* Cats by Andrew Lloyd Webber and T. S. Eliot (1983)
* La Cage aux Folles by Jerry Herman (1984)
* Big River by Roger Miller (1985)
* The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Rupert Holmes (1986)
* Les Misérables by Claude-Michel Schönberg, Herbert Kretzmer, and Alain Boublil (1987)
* Into the Woods by Stephen Sondheim (1988)
* No Award (1989)
* City of Angels by Cy Coleman and David Zippel (1990)
* The Will Rogers Follies by Cy Coleman, Betty Comden, and Adolph Green (1991)
* Falsettos by William Finn (1992)
* Kiss of the Spider Woman by John Kander and Fred Ebb / The Who's Tommy by Pete Townshend (1993)
* Passion by Stephen Sondheim (1994)
* Sunset Boulevard by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Don Black, and Christopher Hampton (1995)
* Rent by Jonathan Larson (1996)
* Titanic by Maury Yeston (1997)
* Ragtime by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens (1998)
* Parade by Jason Robert Brown (1999)
* Aida by Elton John and Tim Rice (2000)

2001–present|

* The Producers by Mel Brooks (2001)
* Urinetown by Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis (2002)
* Hairspray by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (2003)
* Avenue Q by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx (2004)
* The Light in the Piazza by Adam Guettel (2005)
* The Drowsy Chaperone by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison (2006)
* Spring Awakening by Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater (2007)
* In the Heights by Lin-Manuel Miranda (2008)
* Next to Normal by Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey (2009)
* Memphis by David Bryan and Joe DiPietro (2010)
* The Book of Mormon by Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone (2011)
* Newsies by Alan Menken and Jack Feldman (2012)
* Kinky Boots by Cyndi Lauper (2013)
* The Bridges of Madison County by Jason Robert Brown (2014)
* Fun Home by Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron (2015)
* Hamilton by Lin-Manuel Miranda (2016)
* Dear Evan Hansen by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (2017)
* The Band's Visit by David Yazbek (2018)
* Hadestown by Anaïs Mitchell (2019)
* A Christmas Carol by Christopher Nightingale (2020/21)
* Six by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss (2022)
* Kimberly Akimbo by Jeanine Tesori and David Lindsay-Abaire (2023)
* Suffs by Shaina Taub (2024)

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
* FAST
* WorldCat

National|

* Germany
* United States
* France
* BnF data
* Czech Republic
* Spain
* Netherlands
* Norway
* Latvia
* Sweden
* Poland
* Israel

Academics|

* CiNii

Artists|

* MusicBrainz

People|

* Deutsche Biographie

Other|

* SNAC
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