The Pursuit of Persephone

Adapted from This side of Paradise

The Pursuit of Persephone is a musical with music and lyrics by Peter Mills and book by Cara Reichel.[1] The show details F. Scott Fitzgerald's time at Princeton University, and his love for Ginevra King.[2] Elements of the plot are loosely adapted from This Side of Paradise (Fitzgerald's own fictionalized account of his time at Princeton).

## Productions[edit]

The show premiered at the Connelly Theatre in New York City in 2005, featuring Chris Fuller as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Jessica Grové as Ginevra King.[2][3]

In 2006 much of the original cast returned for a concert reading of the show at the Lucille Lortel Theatre.[4] That same year, a production of the show was staged at the University of Michigan, starring Justin Paul as F. Scott Fitzgerald.[5]

In 2014 the show was reworked and presented by the Prospect Theater Company under the name "The Underclassman".[6][7]

## Cast[edit]

| 2005

Off-Broadway[8]

| 2006

Concert Reading[4]

| 2014

Prospect Theater[7]

|
|
|

F. Scott Fitzgerald  | Chris Fuller  | Matt Dengler
Ginevra King  | Jessica Grové
Marie Hersey  | Piper Goodeve
Edmund Wilson | David Abeles  |
John Peale Bishop | Benjamin Sands  | Marrick Smith
Trip Everett  |  |  | Jordan Bondurant
"Ham" Samuels  |  |  | Jeremy Morse
Clive Bagby  |  |  | Jason Edward Cook

## Reception[edit]

The show received some praise for its music, costuming, and casting, but often received criticism for its book.[9][8]

The 2014 production similarly was praised for its music, while critics felt the underlying story was not interesting enough to captivate audiences.[6][7]

## Awards[edit]

Award  | Category  |

|
|

2006 Drama Desk Awards[10] | Best Music  | Nominated
Best Orchestrations  | Nominated

## External links[edit]

* The Pursuit of Persephone Review from Broadway World
* The Pursuit of Persephone Review from Paradise Revisited
* The Pursuit of Persephone Review from The New York Times

## References[edit]

1. ^ Paradise Revisited. "Paradise Revisited Review of The Pursuit of Persephone". Retrieved 2007-12-14.
2. ^ a b The New York Times (2005-05-10). "New York Times Review of The Pursuit of Persephone". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-12-14.
3. ^ Jones, Kenneth (30 April 2005). "New Musical Pursuit of Persephone Tracks Romance of F. Scott Fitzgerald, April 30-May 22 in NYC". Playbill. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
4. ^ a b "The Pursuit of Persephone, a concert reading at the Lucille Lortel Theatre on the 26 Jun 2006". New York Theatre Guide. 2017-10-19. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
5. ^ "Duet for Broadway's next pair of star songwriters". Australian Financial Review. 2016-12-02. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
6. ^ a b Feldman, Adam (21 November 2014). "The Underclassman". Time Out New York. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
7. ^ a b c Karam, Edward (23 November 2014). "This Side of Princeton". Off Off Online. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
8. ^ a b Hoban, Phoebe (2005-05-10). "Fitzgerald's Romance Puts a Song (or 26) in the Heart". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
9. ^ Fox, Jena Tesse. "The Pursuit of Persephone". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
10. ^ "Peter Mills". NewMusicalTheatre. Retrieved 2023-01-24.

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* t
* e

F. Scott Fitzgerald

Bibliography

Novels|

* This Side of Paradise (1920)
* The Beautiful and Damned (1922)
* The Great Gatsby (1925)
* Tender Is the Night (1934)
* The Last Tycoon (1941, unfinished)

Short story
collections|

| Flappers and Philosophers (1920)|

* "The Offshore Pirate"
* "The Ice Palace"
* "Head and Shoulders"
* "The Cut-Glass Bowl"
* "Bernice Bobs Her Hair"
* "Benediction"

|

Tales of the Jazz Age (1922)|

* "May Day"
* The Diamond as Big as the Ritz
* "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"

All the Sad Young Men (1926)|

* "The Rich Boy"
* "Winter Dreams"
* "The Baby Party"
* "Absolution"
* "The Adjuster"

Taps at Reveille (1935)|

* "The Freshest Boy"
* "First Blood"
* "Crazy Sunday"
* "Babylon Revisited"

Posthumous works|

* Babylon Revisited and Other Stories (1960)
* The Basil and Josephine Stories (1962)
* The Pat Hobby Stories (1973)
* The Short Stories of F. Scott Fitzgerald (1989)

Plays|

* The Vegetable (1923)

Screenplays|

* Three Comrades (1938)
* A Yank at Oxford (1938)

Essay collections|

* The Crack-Up (1945)

Portrayals|

* Beloved Infidel (1959 film)
* F. Scott Fitzgerald and 'The Last of the Belles' (1974 film)
* F. Scott Fitzgerald in Hollywood (1975 film)
* Zelda (1993 film)
* Last Call (2002 film)
* The Pursuit of Persephone (2005 musical)
* Waiting for the Moon (2005 musical)
* Midnight in Paris (2011 film)
* Z: The Beginning of Everything (2015 series)
* Genius (2016 film)

People|

* Zelda Fitzgerald (wife)
* Frances Scott Fitzgerald (daughter)
* Ginevra King (literary model)
* Max Gerlach (literary model)
* Maxwell Perkins (literary editor)
* Matthew J. Bruccoli (scholarly editor)

Related|

* F. Scott Fitzgerald House

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