2016 Off-Broadway revival poster |
Jonathan Larson |
Jonathan Larson |
Jonathan Larson |
|
May 23, 2001: Jane Street Theater, Manhattan, New York City |
2001 Off-Broadway 2003 US Tour 2005 Off-West End 2009 West End 2014 Encores! 2016 Off-Broadway revival |
Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical |
Tick, Tick... Boom! (styled as tick, tick... BOOM!) is a musical by Jonathan Larson. It tells the story of an aspiring composer named Jon, who lives in New York City in 1990. Jon is worried he has made the wrong career choice to be part of the performing arts. The story is semi-autobiographical, as stated by Larson's father in the liner notes of the cast recording – Larson had been trying to establish himself in theater since the early 1980s.
Larson began to perform the piece as a solo work in 1990. After his death in 1996, it was revised and revamped by playwright David Auburn as a three-actor piece and was premiered Off-Broadway in 2001.[1] Since then, the show has had an Off West End production, a West End production, an American national tour, two Off-Broadway revivals, in 2014 and 2016, and numerous local and international productions.
A film adaptation, directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda and starring Andrew Garfield in the lead role, was released by Netflix in November 2021. It was generally well received by critics with Garfield receiving an Academy Award nomination for his performance.
History[edit]
The show was first performed as a workshop between September 6 and September 9, 1990 by Jonathan Larson at the Off-Broadway playhouse Second Stage Theater under the title Boho Days. Larson revised the developing piece following the Second Stage workshop, changing the title to Tick, Tick... Boom!, and presented with him as performer in November 1991 at the Village Gate (produced by Larson's college friend Victoria Leacock), and then later in 1992 and 1993 in the "O Solo Mio" fests at New York Theatre Workshop.[2] Larson performed the show as a "rock monologue", a new form of theatre for the time. The performance attracted the attention of a young producer named Jeffrey Seller, who became a fan of Larson's work. In 1995, he saw the New York Theatre Workshop production of Larson's musical Rent and convinced his fellow producers to bring it to Broadway.
After Larson's death in 1996, Leacock asked David Auburn, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Proof, to reconfigure Tick, Tick... Boom!. He restructured the monologue into a three-actor musical,[3] with one actor playing Jon and the other two actors playing Michael and Susan, as well as all the other roles in the show. Also, the script and score were streamlined and edited. This revised version of the piece premiered Off-Broadway at the Jane Street Theater on May 23, 2001. Auburn received credit as "Script Consultant".[1]
Plot[edit]
Jon is an aspiring composer for musical theater, who lives in SoHo, New York. The year is 1990, and as his 30th birthday approaches Jon is worried about his aging and lack of achievement ("30/90"). Michael, a friend of Jon's since childhood, gave up acting to pursue a more lucrative career in marketing. Susan, Jon's girlfriend, is a dancer who teaches ballet to "wealthy and untalented children". On the roof of his apartment building, Jon reveals that he is nervous about an upcoming workshop of his newest musical, SUPERBIA. When Susan comes to join him, he comments on her dress and how beautiful it makes her look ("Green Green Dress").
The next morning, Susan asks Jon about the possibility of leaving New York. Jon is torn between following his dream of composing and opting for security and family in a different career ("Johnny Can’t Decide"). His reverie is cut short when he remembers his day job as a waiter in a SoHo diner ("Sunday").
After work, Michael picks Jon up in his brand new BMW to show Jon his new apartment. Michael exults at the thought of a life of luxury ("No More"), and pressures Jon further to consider changing his career path. He agrees to accompany Michael to work the next day and visit a brainstorming session at his firm. Back at home, Jon plans to spend the remainder of the evening composing, but is interrupted by a call from Susan ("Therapy").
At Michael's office, the brainstorming session involves naming a cooking fat substitute through a convoluted process. Jon sees the futility of the process and his unwillingness to cooperate gets him removed from the meeting. As Jon drives Michael to the airport for a business trip, they argue about the meeting. Michael tells Jon that the life Susan wants doesn't sound bad, and that he wishes his job could give him the chance to settle down ("Real Life").
After dropping Michael off, Jon goes to a rehearsal for SUPERBIA, but not before stopping to get a snack of Twinkies ("Sugar"). At the market, he spies Karessa Johnson, one of his actors for SUPERBIA. She reveals a similar weakness for Twinkies, and this leads to a sudden friendship between the two. After the rehearsal, Susan sees Jon and Karessa walking together and becomes jealous. Jon begs Susan to stay and be with him. Despite this, she leaves for home, and Jon thinks about what may have happened to make her behave this way ("See Her Smile").
The next morning, Jon arrives early at the theater for the workshop of SUPERBIA. Karessa steals the show with her performance of “Come to Your Senses”. Jon gets many congratulations, but no offers to produce the show, and so, in his eyes, the workshop has been a failure. Jon visits Michael and tells him that he is through with music. Michael says that while he enjoys how he makes a lot more money now, he finds the job to be banal and unrewarding. The two argue, and Jon yells at Michael for not understanding fear or insecurity. Michael responds by telling Jon that he is HIV-positive. Shocked, Jon leaves quickly and wanders through Central Park until he finds himself at the closed Delacorte Theater. He finds an old rehearsal piano and begins to play it while collecting his thoughts. Jon ponders on whether the amount of sacrifice required for his career in music is worth it, and whether those telling him to "have it all, play the game" are right ("Why"). Ultimately, he realizes that he will only be happy as a professional composer, no matter what hardships that may bring.
The next morning is Jon's thirtieth birthday party ("30/90 Reprise"). He sees Susan, who is getting ready to leave. She gives him his birthday gift: a thousand sheets of blank manuscript paper. They agree to write to each other, and she leaves. The phone rings, and the caller is Jon's idol, Stephen Sondheim. Sondheim leaves Jon his contact information so they can meet and discuss SUPERBIA. Jon realizes that he is surrounded by friends and that his talents are finally being recognized.[4][5]
Characters[edit]
- Jonathan (also called: Jon, Johnny)
- Michael (also plays: Jon's Dad, Executive, Temp, Market research guy, Counter guy, Rosa Stevens)
- Susan (also plays: Rosa Stevens, Jon's Mom, Secretary, Judy Wright, Karessa Johnson)
Musical numbers[edit]
- "30/90" – Jon, Michael, Susan
- "Green Green Dress" – Jon, Susan
- "Johnny Can't Decide" – Jon, Susan, Michael
- "Sunday" – Jon and Diner Patrons
- "No More" – Michael, Jon
- "Therapy" – Jon, Susan
- "Times Square"
- "Real Life" – Michael and Company
- "Sugar" – Jon, Karessa, Counter Guy
- "See Her Smile" – Jon and Company (including a reprise of "Real Life")
- "Superbia Intro"
- "Come to Your Senses" – Karessa
- "Why" – Jon
- "30/90 Reprise" – Jon
- "Louder Than Words" – Company
Notes
- "No More" features a sample from Movin' On Up, the theme song of the television series The Jeffersons
- "Sunday", Jon's song at the diner, is based on the Act I Finale from the Stephen Sondheim musical Sunday in the Park with George; Larson conceived it as a humorous homage to Sondheim, one of his largest influences.[6]
- In "Johnny Can't Decide", all the characters are referring to themselves in third-person, just like George in the song "Lesson #8" from Sunday in the Park with George. In the monologue version of the musical, only Jon did this.
- Another reference to Sondheim is present in the song "Why". Not only mentioning West Side Story in the lyrics, the song utilizes the same tritone made famous in the West Side Story song "Maria".
- "Why" contains fragments of several other songs: "Yellow Bird", "Let's Go Fly a Kite" from the film Mary Poppins, "Cool" and "Tonight – Quintet" both from West Side Story, and "Come to Your Senses" from Larson's Superbia.
- On the cast recording, there is an additional song cut from the final version of the show, "Boho Days". This track is one of the few recordings of Larson's voice publicly available. It was extracted from a demo tape recorded by Larson during the development of Tick, Tick... Boom![7]
- On the 1989 demo album of Tick, Tick... Boom!, one track is "Why", performed by Larson himself. In this recording, in place of "Come to Your Senses" is a fragment of "LCD Readout", which also comes from Superbia.
Productions[edit]
Casts[edit]
Raúl Esparza | Christian Campbell | Neil Patrick Harris | Andrew Samonsky | Dean Armstrong | Paul Keating | Lin-Manuel Miranda | Nick Blaemire |
Jerry Dixon | Wilson Cruz | Tee Jaye | Wilson Cruz | Michael Dufays | Leon Lopez | Leslie Odom Jr. | George Salazar |
Amy Spanger | Nikki Snelson | Cassidy Janson | Natascia Diaz | Daphne Moens | Julie Atherton | Karen Olivo | Ciara Renée |
- 2001 Off-Broadway premiere
- 2003 American national tour
- 2005 London premiere
- 2005–06 California production
- 2005 Canadian premiere
- 2009 London West End premiere
- 2014 Encores! Off-Center revival
- 2016 Off-Broadway revival
Other productions[edit]
- 2003–2004 European premiere
- 2007 Danish premiere
- 2008 Mexican premiere
- 2008 Canadian premiere
- 2009 Westport production
- 2009 Manila premiere
- 2010 San Francisco premiere
- 2010 German premiere
- 2010 London Fringe production
- 2011 Spanish premiers
- 2011 London revival
- 2012 Argentinian premiere
- 2014 Dutch premiere
- 2018 Czech premiere
- 2018 Hong Kong premiere
- 2018-2019 Brazilian premiere
- 2019 Taiwan premiere
Awards and nominations[edit]
2001 Off-Broadway production[edit]
2002 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical | Won |
Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Musical | Nominated | |
Outstanding Book of a Musical | Jonathan Larson & David Auburn | Nominated | |
Outstanding Music | Jonathan Larson | Nominated | |
Outstanding Lyrics | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Director of a Musical | Scott Schwartz | Nominated | |
Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Raúl Esparza | Nominated | |
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical | Jerry Dixon | Nominated | |
Lucille Lortel Awards | Outstanding Musical | Jonathan Larson (book, music and lyrics); Victoria Leacock, Robyn Goodman, Dede Harris, Lorie Cowen Levy and Beth Smith (producers) | Nominated |
Obie Awards | Distinguished Performance by an Actor | Raúl Esparza | Won |
Film adaptation[edit]
A film adaptation of Tick, Tick... Boom!, directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda, was produced by Ron Howard, Brian Grazer and Julie Oh.[18] The screenplay is written by Steven Levenson. The film was Miranda's feature-length directorial debut.[19][20] It premiered at AFI Fest on November 10, 2021, followed by a limited theatrical release in the United States on November 12, 2021, before being released by Netflix on November 19, 2021.[21] The film stars Andrew Garfield as Larson.[22]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d "Tick, Tick... Boom!". Internet Off-Broadway Database. Archived from the original on March 2, 2021. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
- ^ Jones, Kenneth (11 September 2016). "tick, tick...BOOM! Cast Album Released Sept. 11". Playbill. Archived from the original on 19 November 2016. Retrieved 18 November 2016.
- ^ Horng, Susanna (17 August 2001). "Tick, tick...BOOM! – Jonathan Larson". CultureVulture. Archived from the original on 16 November 2006. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
- ^ "Tick, Tick... Boom!". Music Theatre International. 2015-09-16. Archived from the original on 2021-03-07. Retrieved 2021-03-27.
- ^ Gutman, Les (June 22, 2001). "tick, tick...BOOM!, a CurtainUp Review". CurtainUp. Archived from the original on October 23, 2007. Retrieved October 30, 2007.
- ^ Garcia, John (January 9, 2003). "tick, tick ... BOOM!". Talkin' Broadway. Archived from the original on February 12, 2003.
- ^ Tick, Tick...Boom! Cast recording listing Archived 2010-05-02 at the Wayback Machine, amazon.com, accessed December 5, 2008
- ^ Simonson, Robert (May 10, 2002). "James, Benanti, Pitre to Perform at Drama Desk Ceremony May 19; Tix on Sale". Playbill. Archived from the original on June 11, 2021. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
- ^ ASIN: B00005NQK5
- ^ Jones, Kenneth (January 7, 2003). "tick, tick...BOOM! Tour Launches Jan. 7 in Dallas; Dates Continue to June". Playbill. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
- ^ Tripney, Natasha. "Tick, Tick...Boom!". musicOMH.com. Archived from the original on November 20, 2005.
- ^ See Variety, November 28, 2005 – December 4, 2005, Julio Martinez, "Legit Reviews" and LA Weekly (California), June 15, 2006
- ^ "Tick Tick Boom". Notes from New York. Archived from the original on January 30, 2013.
- ^ "Breaking News: Lin-Manuel Miranda & Karen Olivo to Star in tick, tick...BOOM! for Encores! FAUST and PUMP BOYS Announced". BroadwayWorld. March 9, 2014. Archived from the original on March 15, 2021. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
- ^ Clement, Olivia (October 20, 2016). "Tick, Tick…Boom! Opens Tonight". Playbill. Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved May 6, 2017.
- ^ "Lilli Cooper to Join TICK, TICK... BOOM! in Extended Run Off-Broadway". BroadwayWorld. Oct 26, 2016. Archived from the original on October 24, 2017. Retrieved October 23, 2017.
- ^ "Theatre Rhino's 2009-2010 Season". Theatre Rhinoceros. Archived from the original on October 23, 2020. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
- ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (2018-07-19). "Imagine Sets Lin-Manuel Miranda's Helming Debut: 'Rent' Creator Jonathan Larson's 'Tick, Tick…Boom!'; 'Evan Hansen's Steven Levenson Scripting". Deadline. Archived from the original on 2018-07-19. Retrieved 2021-05-29.
- ^ Deb, Sopan (July 19, 2018). "Lin-Manuel Miranda to Direct Film Adaptation of 'Tick, Tick … Boom!'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 20, 2018. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
- ^ Kroll, Justin (2019-06-19). "Netflix Lands Lin Manuel-Miranda's 'Tick, Tick…Boom' – Variety". Variety. Archived from the original on 2020-04-03. Retrieved 2019-06-19.
- ^ Jackson, Angelique (August 11, 2021). "Lin-Manuel Miranda's 'Tick, Tick…Boom!' to Open AFI Fest". Variety. Archived from the original on August 11, 2021. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
- ^ Derschowitz, Jessica. "Tick, Tick… Boom! review: Jonathan Larson's story shines in a musical that sings from the heart", Entertainment Weekly, November 19, 2021
External links[edit]
- Tick, Tick... Boom! at the
Internet Off-Broadway Database
- Tick, Tick... Boom! at the Music Theatre International website
- Raul Esparza – Downstage Center interview at American Theatre Wing.org, April 2005