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Gulf Today
21 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Gulf Today
Producer Jeffrey Seller shines a light on his own journey
Jeffrey Seller, the Broadway producer behind such landmark hits as 'Rent,' 'Avenue Q' and 'Hamilton,' didn't initially write a memoir for us. He wrote it for himself. 'I really felt a personal existential need to write my story. I had to make sense of where I came from myself,' he says in his memento-filled Times Square office. 'I started doing it as an exercise for me and I ultimately did it for theatre kids of all ages everywhere.' Seller's 'Theater Kid' — which he wrote even before finding a publishing house — traces the rise of an unlikely theater force who was raised in a poor neighbourhood far from Broadway, along the way giving readers a portrait of the Great White Way in the gritty 1970s and 80s. In it, he is brutally honest. 'I am a jealous person. I am an envious person,' he says. 'I'm a kind person, I'm an honest person. Sometimes I am a mean person and a stubborn person and a joyous person. And as the book shows, I was particularly in that era, often a very lonely person.' Seller, 60. who is candid about trysts, professional snubs, mistakes and his unorthodox family, says he wasn't interested in writing a recipe book on how to make a producer. 'I was more interested in exploring, first and foremost, how a poor, gay, adopted Jewish kid from Cardboard Village in Oak Park, Michigan, gets to Broadway and produces 'Rent' at age 31.' 'Theater Kid: A Broadway Memoir' by Jeffrey Seller. AP It is the story of an outsider who is captivated by theatre as a child who acts in Purim plays, directed a musical by Andrew Lippa, becomes a booking agent in New York and then a producer. Then he tracks down his biological family. 'My life has been a process of finally creating groups that I feel part of and accepting where I do fit in,' he says. 'I also wrote this book for anyone who's ever felt out.' Jonathan Karp, president and CEO of Simon & Schuster, says he isn't surprised that Seller delivered such a strong memoir because he believes the producer has an instinctive artistic sensibility. 'There aren't that many producers you could say have literally changed the face of theater. And I think that's what Jeffrey Seller has done,' says Karp. 'It is the work of somebody who is much more than a producer, who is writer in his own right and who has a really interesting and emotional and dramatic story to tell.' The book reaches a crescendo with a behind-the-scenes look at his friendship and collaboration with playwright and composer Jonathan Larson and the making of his 'Rent.' Seller writes about a torturous creative process in which Larson would take one step forward with the script over years only to take two backward. He also writes movingly about carrying on after Larson, who died from an aortic dissection the day before 'Rent's' first off-Broadway preview. ''Rent' changed my life forever, but, more important, 'Rent' changed musical theater forever. There is no 'In the Heights' without 'Rent,'' Seller says. 'I don't think there's a 'Next to Normal' without 'Rent.' I don't think there's a 'Dear Evan Hansen' without 'Rent.'' So enamored was Seller with 'Rent' that he initially ended his memoir there in the mid-'90s. It took some coaxing from Karp to get him to include stories about 'Avenue Q,' 'In the Heights' and 'Hamilton.' ''Hamilton' becomes a cultural phenomenon. It's the biggest hit of my career,' Seller says. 'It's one of the biggest hits in Broadway history. It's much bigger hit than 'Rent' was. But that doesn't change what 'Rent' did.' In a sort of theater flex, the memoir's audiobook has appearances by Annaleigh Ashford, Danny Burstein, Darren Criss, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Lindsay Mendez, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Andrew Rannells, Conrad Ricamora and Christopher Sieber. There's original music composed by Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winner Tom Kitt. The portrait of Broadway Seller offers when he first arrives is one far different from today, where the theaters are bursting with new plays and musicals and the season's box office easily blows past the $1 billion mark. Associated Press
The Spinoff
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Spinoff
Review: La Boheme is intimate but inert
NZ Opera's production of Puccini's masterpiece looks and sounds lovely, but would it work better in a different space? Operas come with their own assumed cultural cache. Even if the general public – if such a thing exists anymore – isn't familiar with specific pieces, they at least know that certain operas exist, and that if they're still being performed they must at least be a little good. The Magic Flute, The Barber of Seville, and a few other Mozarts have this level of recognition. Puccini's La Bohème – the story of doomed bohemians in love – is another one of these. La Bohème is part of the standard opera repertoire, this most recent production being the fourth time that NZ Opera have performed it since the turn of the millennium, and it is regarded as one of the best operas of all time. You might also be familiar with it as the basis for the musical Rent, but La Bohème remains a far more interesting take on the source material, as it is loosely adapted from Henri Murger's Scenes de la vie de Bohème, which nobody reading this has read. (By the way, calling La Bohème a more interesting version of Rent is a surefire way to piss off fans of both shows.) Director Brad Cohen's new take on the show relocates it to Paris in 1947 – one of those oddly specific directorial setting choices that seems trendy in this artform – but otherwise feels fairly safe. For opera, it is a remarkably small scale story. Men hang out, men fall in love, woman gets sick, woman gets sicker, people get sadder. While there are a few moments where the stage is flooded by the ensemble, for the most part we remain with our core cast. Some of the singing seems oddly underpowered, sometimes lost under the orchestra. The men in the cast suffer the most here, stuck in the uncanny valley between mimicking the physicality of dudes hanging out with each other with the need to play out to the massive venue. As the doomed Mimi, Elena Perroni fares better, helped along by a gorgeous blue dress that seems to absorb the light, and a florid physicality that immediately defines the character. However, it's Emma Pearson as Musetta, easily the most fun character in the show, who stands out. She plays all the colours of the character, her darkness and her frippery, in a way that fills the stage rather than occupies it, but she also finds intimate moments that really stick out. There is one simple gesture toward the end of the show, a flick of a hand, that was so small and so specifically human, but still stood out in the massive space. 'Why do we go to the opera?' is a question I find myself asking when I see any opera, which is perhaps an unfair thing to ask of any one show. I don't watch an episode of Severance or say, even Family Guy, and ponder the value of TV as an artform. Opera is, however, a form that I am still very much in the process of understanding, and by proxy, truly appreciating. What I love about it is the spectacle, the fact that you can see every dollar onstage, and see what happens when art is supported to achieve that spectacle. Opera is a big artform, it involves human beings going large to achieve human truths even larger. La Bohème, or at least this production of it, is not what I go to the opera for. There is an intimacy to it that is lost in the Kiri Te Kanawa, and while the set strikes an initial gorgeous image – like the memory of a Parisian apartment in 1947 dropped in a sack onto the stage, complete with a sunlight hanging over them – the effect is lessened. Similarly, the moments of snow falling from the sky is also initially impressive, even moving, but becomes less effective on repetition. The tension of this intimacy is felt by the entire production (and perhaps this is the fault of the libretto). The moments where the ensemble come onstage feel obligatory rather than organic, and Chris McRae's delightful clown Parpignol, who entertains some children, is as much a jarring intrusion as his inclusion in the second to last paragraph of this review. I wondered what La Bohème might feel like in a more intimate space, whether a theatre like the ASB Waterfront or even Q's Rangatira could capture the small moments at the heart of this show. The show feels unfortunately inert, stuck on this massive stage rather than reaching out to grab us in the stalls. As a result, I felt similarly unmoved. I appreciate the beauty, the music, and what spectacle there is, but it sits at such a distance from me that it might as well be a sculpture. As with all opera, the human truths are there, but I wish I didn't have to squint to see them.
The Courier
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Courier
The Dundee folk who go from everyday jobs to stage stardom by night
IT guy Paul Creegan is dressed in a mesh cropped top as he waits to practise his song. Nearby Robert Oakes is having his make-up done. He's dressed in a skirt and fishnet tights. Ellen Ryder, who works in a clothes boutique, is about to portray a drug addicted stripper. They are members of Dundee-based Thomson-Leng Musical Society who are about to present Rent. The rock musical follows a group of impoverished, artistic friends living in 1980s New York under the shadow of HIV and AIDS. A diverse group of amateur actors, singers and dancers will bring the show to Dundee from Wednesday. So we went along to a dress rehearsal to find out what it's like going from ordinary day jobs to stage stardom. Rachel Hogg, 31, from Newport, plays Maureen Johnson, a fiery and flirtatious performance artist. Her work environment as a PA at St Andrews University is, she says, 'straight-laced, reserved and calm'. 'Then I get to come here and roll about the stage!' It's 'liberating' playing a character like Maureen, she says. 'She likes to take the spotlight and does all the things you wouldn't dare do in public.' Rehearsals are in full swing in a small room in St Paul's Cathedral. Cast members are belting out the show's hits. Until their set is built at The Space Theatre a couple of tables pushed together suffice. Opening night is fast approaching. Despite having been involved in musical theatre from childhood, Rachel says that is 'exciting yet terrifying'. But excitement appears to be triumphing over terror. 'I think we're all just excited to get it on stage and get onto the set. 'We're going to have loads of steel deck and things to climb up and we don't get to play with any of that until we get to the theatre!' Also relishing her gritty part is Ellen, 32, from Dundee, who plays Mimi Márquez. 'Mimi is a drug addict and she's one of the characters that has AIDs,' she says. 'I normally play princesses so this is the other end of the scale! 'It's a challenge but I like a challenge. 'It's quite nice being a bit moody, I'm normally really smiley.' Ellen has been with Thomson-Leng Musical Society, which also puts on an annual pantomime, since she was 10 and is excited to get yet another show on the road. 'I love opening night, it's always such a buzz.' Robert's transformation into drag queen drummer Angel Dumott Schunard is the most visually arresting. Make-up done, he pulls on a black wig before he teeters in his high heels to join the rehearsal. Robert, 30, says: 'It's very interesting to play this kind of character because it's so far from who I am. 'There's a lot of heavy stuff in this show and Angel is a nice ray of positivity – very bubbly, very eccentric.' Robert lives in Dundee but is from Blairgowrie. He's no stranger to the stage, working as a visitor experience team member at Perth Theatre and Concert Hall and having done musical theatre since he was six years old. 'It's just exciting every single time,' he says. 'Everybody around you is there to have a good time, the audience is there to have a good time. 'The atmosphere is just something wonderful.' Ensuring everything goes to plan on the night is director and choreographer Donna Bustard. By day the mum-of-two from Forfar is a youth and employability worker for Barnardo's. But she's choreographed professional and amateur productions around the UK. While the cast have had months to prepare, the technical stuff happens only in the last couple of days. Donna says: 'Opening night is nerve-racking because you're bringing everything together, the sound, the set, lighting. 'You're just willing the whole thing to come together and just be a great, positive, fun experience.' So far she is feeling relaxed and confident. 'We're in a really good space, we're dead chilled.' And her work means people like Paul, 42, can focus on putting on a good show. Stepping onto stage in front of a audience is far cry from his job as an ICT technician in the NHS. 'The same amount of drama but absolutely, completely different!' he jokes. He plays several parts in the ensemble, including 'Steve' and 'The Cop'. Again he's been doing shows since he was a schoolboy. 'Whenever you're doing rehearsals you always feel you're not ready but you get to the theatre and it all comes together.' Tickets are on sale for Rent by Thomson-Leng Musical Society at The Space Theatre from May 28 to 31. Donations will be collected at shows for Waverley Care.
Straits Times
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
Power producer of musicals Rent and Hamilton is now telling his own story
Power producer of musicals Rent and Hamilton is now telling his own story NEW YORK – American Broadway producer Jeffrey Seller is, by any measure, enormously successful. He has produced – always in collaboration with others – about 10 shows that have collectively grossed US$4.74 billion (S$6.1 billion) , about one-third of which was profit for producers, investors and others. His first big hit was Rent (1996) and his most recent, Hamilton (2015). In between were Avenue Q (2003) and In The Heights (2008), but also plenty of others that did not flourish. For a long time, Seller, now 60 and the winner of four best-musical Tony Awards, had complicated feelings about how he fit in. He was adopted as an infant and grew up in a downwardly mobile and fractious family in a Detroit suburb. Theatre was where he found pleasure and meaning – a way out and a way up. Now, he has written a memoir, Theater Kid, published on May 6. It is a coming-of-age and rags-to-riches story that is unsparing in its description of his colourfully challenged and challenging father, unabashed in its description of his sexual awakening, and packed with behind-the-scenes detail, especially about the birth of Rent. In an interview at his office in the theatre district, Seller spoke about his life, his career and his book. These are edited excerpts from the interview. Producer Jeffrey Seller accepts the Tony Award for Hamilton, which won for Best Musical at the 70th Annual Tony Awards in New York in June 2016. PHOTO: SARA KRULWICH/NYTIMES You do not need the money or the attention. Why write a memoir? I wrote it to figure out why I am here. I wrote it to try to figure out how I fit in. And I guess I wrote it as an exercise in squashing all of my shame at being an adopted, gay, Jewish, poor kid and always feeling like an outsider. What did you learn about yourself? I think maybe we adoptees are never sure we are going to be okay. There is something so deep about what it means to not know where you come from, and to feel that you have been rejected by the very people who created you. That has affected every part of my life. And I think that through some process of psychoanalysis, therapy and this book, I maybe have come to see that I am okay, and I am going to be okay. You grew up in a Detroit suburb, among far more affluent families, in a neighbourhood nicknamed Cardboard Village. I was so ashamed of it that I would experience extreme anxiety if someone aske d w here I lived. Everybody else was doing a little better every year, including my cousins and my friends. I just remember being so angry, like why can't we get out of here? And we never did until I produced Rent. The story of Rent is so complicated because it is this enormous success wrapped up with the enormous tragedy of the death of Jonathan Larson, the show's composer and author, hours before the first off-Broadway preview. The cast of Rent during a rehearsal in New York in March 1996. PHOTO: SARA KRULWICH/NYTIMES For many years, I felt guilty. I reap these benefits from Rent, and Jonathan never got to see it. But with the passage of time, my feeling has changed because now I realise that Jonathan changed American musical theatre forever, and all contemporary American musical theatre now stands on his shoulders. Jonathan changed Broadway, and Broadway is better for it. Your other key creative relationship has been with Hamilton's creator and star Lin-Manuel Miranda. In the book, you describe wondering if his gift was divine. Actor and composer Lin-Manuel Miranda on stage during a Hamilton performance at Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York City in February 2016 for the 58th Grammy Awards. PHOTO: AFP I remember two things the first time we did a reading of In The Heights. The first was the opening number. Every hair on my arm rose because the juxtaposition of this warm rap with this Broadway choral singing was completely new to my ears. And a half-hour later, when this older woma n s ings about her experience arriving on the shores from Cuba as a little girl and becoming a housekeeper on the Upper East Side, I thought it was one of the most beautiful arias I 'd heard in my life. But I also went, 'How does this young man understand the lifeblood of a 70something Cuban woman?' And that's when I thought for the first time, 'Is he channelling God?' You knew from the beginning that Hamilton would be amazing? I knew from the beginning that Hamilton was yet another step forward. I did not know from the beginning that it would become a phenomenon. That came with time, and with the audience. We talked a lot about your successes. You've also had failures. How do you handle that? Failure at making a new musical is crushing to me, and I spend hours, days, weeks, months, years after analysing what went wrong. What could I have done differently? I was developing The Last Ship (a musical with a score by English singer-musician Sting) at the same time that I was developing Hamilton, and I was a fervent believer in both. And when The Last Ship could not find a Broadway audience, it broke my heart. I love all of my shows, and all I can do is my best, and know that ultimately I do not control their destiny. What I must do as a producer, though, is accept their fate. And that means making the tough decision to close when you know it is not working. How are you feeling about the state of Broadway, artistically and financially? I'm going to equivocate. On a positive level, this year, we are going to do the highest attendance we have had since 2018 to 2019. We have seen the arrival of more than 10 new musicals. Both of those facts are cause for celebration. But it is getting harder and harder to make money, and I am concerned about if and when the investment money starts drying up. We have not had a megahit since Hamilton, and that is a problem. What is your advice for someone who wants to be a theatre producer? Find the next Jonathan Larson. Find the next Lin-Manuel Miranda. Everything else will fall in place if you get the team. Find the artists. NYTIMES Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
New York Times
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Jeffrey Seller Produced ‘Hamilton.' Now, in ‘Theater Kid,' He's Telling His Story.
The Broadway producer Jeffrey Seller is, by any measure, enormously successful. He's produced (always in collaboration with others) about 10 shows that have, collectively, grossed $4.74 billion, approximately one-third of which was profit for producers, investors and others. You've probably heard of several of those shows. His first big hit was 'Rent.' His most recent: 'Hamilton.' In between were 'Avenue Q' and 'In the Heights,' but also plenty of others that didn't flourish. For a long time, Seller, now 60 and the winner of four best-musical Tony Awards, had complicated feelings about how he fit in. He was adopted as an infant and grew up in a downwardly mobile and fractious family in a Detroit suburb.
