''The Light in the Piazza'' is a

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

with music and lyrics by

Adam Guettel Adam Guettel (; born December 16, 1964) is an American composer- lyricist of musical theater and opera. The grandson of musical theatre composer Richard Rodgers, he is best known for his musical '' The Light in the Piazza'', for which he won the ...

, and a book by

Craig Lucas Craig Lucas (born April 30, 1951) is an American playwright, screenwriter, theatre director, musical actor, and film director. Biography Born on April 30, 1951, he was found abandoned in a car in Atlanta, Georgia. Lucas was adopted when he wa ...

. Based on the 1960 novella by Elizabeth Spencer, the show is set in the 1950s and tells the story of Margaret Johnson, a wealthy Southern woman, and Clara, her daughter, who is developmentally disabled due to a childhood accident. The two spend a summer together in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. When Clara falls in love with a young Italian man, Fabrizio, Margaret is forced to reconsider not only Clara's future, but her own deep-seated hopes and regrets as well. The score breaks from the 21st century tradition of pop music on Broadway by moving into the territory of Neoromantic classical music and

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

, with unexpected harmonic shifts and extended melodic structures, and is more heavily orchestrated than most Broadway scores. Many of the lyrics are in Italian or broken English, as many of the characters are fluent only in Italian.

Productions

Original production

''The Light in the Piazza'' was developed as a musical at the

Intiman Playhouse Intiman Theatre Festival in Seattle, Washington, was founded in 1972 as a resident theatre by Margaret "Megs" Booker, who named it for August Strindberg's Stockholm theater.

in Seattle in June 2003 and then at the

Goodman Theatre Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of the Chicago theatre scene, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization. Part of its present theater complex occupies the lan ...

in Chicago in early 2004.

Victoria Clark Victoria Clark (born October 10, 1959) is an American actress, musical theatre singer and director. Clark has performed in numerous Broadway musicals and in other theatre, film and television works. Her soprano voice can also be heard on innu ...

starred as Margaret Johnson,

Celia Keenan-Bolger Celia Keenan-Bolger (born January 26, 1978) is an American actress and singer. She is known for portraying Scout Finch in the play ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' (2018), which earned her a Tony Award. She has also won three Drama Desk Awards and an ...

played Clara Johnson, and

Steven Pasquale Steven Pasquale (pronounced ; born November 18, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as the New York City Firefighter/Emergency Medical Technician Sean Garrity in the series '' Rescue Me''. He made his television debut on the ...

played Fabrizio Naccarelli.

Kelli O'Hara Kelli Christine O'Hara (born April 16, 1976) is an American actress and singer, most known for her work on the Broadway and opera stages. A seven-time Tony Award nominee, O'Hara won the 2015 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her pe ...

also played Franca Naccarelli. When the show transferred to

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

, Pasquale stepped away due to a conflict with the television series '' Rescue Met''. In addition, O'Hara assumed the role of Clara.

Broadway production and national tour

After 36 previews, the Broadway production opened on April 18, 2005, at the

Vivian Beaumont Theater The Vivian Beaumont Theater is a Broadway theater in the Lincoln Center complex at 150 West 65th Street on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Operated by the nonprofit Lincoln Center Theater (LCT), the Beaumont is the only Broad ...

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 millio ...

, where it ran for 504 performances and closed on July 2, 2006. The musical was directed by

Bartlett Sher Bartlett B. Sher (born March 27, 1959) is an American theatre director. '' The New York Times'' has described him as "one of the most original and exciting directors, not only in the American theater but also in the international world of opera" ...

, choreographed by

Jonathan Butterell Jonathan Butterell is an English choreographer, stage director, and film director. He has worked in the West End, on Broadway, and Off-Broadway. Biography Butterell grew up in "a tough part of Sheffield, England", and was an actor and dancer. ...

, with lighting by

Christopher Akerlind Christopher Akerlind (born May 1, 1962, in Hartford, Connecticut) is an American lighting designer for theatre, opera, and dance. He won the Tony Award for Best Lighting Design for ''Indecent''. He also won the Tony Award for Best Lighting Desig ...

, set by Michael Yeargan and costumes by

Catherine Zuber Catherine Zuber is a costume designer for the Broadway theater and opera, among other venues. She is a graduate of the Yale School of Drama, and has been referred to as "one of theater's most sought-after costume designers on both coasts."Hefflet, ...

. The cast featured Clark, O'Hara,

Matthew Morrison Matthew James Morrison (born October 30, 1978) is an American actor, dancer and singer-songwriter, best known for his role as Will Schuester on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox television show ''Glee (TV series), Glee'' (2009–2015). He has s ...

Michael Berresse Michael Berresse (born August 15, 1964) is an American actor, dancer, choreographer, and director. Life and career Born in Holyoke, Massachusetts, but reared primarily in Joliet, Illinois, Berresse's father was a chemical engineer and his mothe ...

and

Sarah Uriarte Berry Sarah Uriarte Berry is an American actress and singer. Career Berry is a native of California and graduated from UCLA in 1992. She made her Broadway debut as Eponine in ''Les Misérables'' in 1993.Chris Sarandon Christopher Sarandon (; born July 24, 1942) is an American actor. He is well known for playing a variety of iconic characters, including Jerry Dandrige in ''Fright Night'' (1985), Prince Humperdinck in ''The Princess Bride'' (1987), Detective Mik ...

joined the cast as Signor Naccarelli later in the run,

Aaron Lazar Aaron Scott Lazar is an American actor, artist and entrepreneur. Early life and education Lazar was born in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Lazar is of Jewish descent. He graduated from Cherry Hill High School West where he first started singing and per ...

was a replacement in the role of Fabrizio and

Katie Rose Clarke Katherine "Katie" Rose Clarke (born August 25, 1984 in Friendswood, Texas) is an American musical theater actress. Early life Clarke was born on August 25, 1984 in Friendswood, Texas. She got her start acting and singing in the United Methodist ...

was a replacement in the role of Clara. On June 15, 2006, shortly before its closing night, the show was broadcast on the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

television series ''

Live from Lincoln Center ''Live from Lincoln Center'' is a seventeen-time Emmy Award-winning series that has broadcast notable performances from the Lincoln Center in New York City on PBS since 1976. The program airs between six and nine times per season. Episodes of ''L ...

'', and drew more than two million viewers. The cast consisted of Victoria Clark (Margaret), Katie Rose Clarke (Clara), Aaron Lazar (Fabrizio), Chris Sarandon (Signor Naccarelli),

Patti Cohenour Patti Cohenour (born October 17, 1952 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.) is an American actress and singer. She last performed as the standby for Elizabeth Arden in the Broadway musical '' War Paint'', a position she also held in the pre Broadway ...

(Signora Naccarelli),

(Giuseppe), Sarah Uriarte Berry (Franca), and Beau Gravitte (Roy). A United States national tour starring

Christine Andreas Christine Andreas (born October 1, 1951) is an American Broadway actress and singer. Biography Andreas was born in Camden, New Jersey, to James Francis Andreas, a systems analyst, and Teresa Cecilia Genovese Andreas. She graduated from Suffe ...

as Margaret,

Elena Shaddow Elena Shaddow is an American singer and actress. She is originally from Chagrin Falls, Ohio.Orpheum Theatre in San Francisco, California, in August 2006 and ended in Chicago on July 22, 2007.

Other Productions

A Japanese production of the musical was produced in December 2007, having a limited engagement of about a month. It starred Kaho Shimada as Margaret Johnson. An Australian concert version had a one-night presentation at the Lyric Theatre, Star City in Sydney on August 17, 2008. The cast consisted of members of the Australian company of ''

The Phantom of the Opera ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (french: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra) is a novel by French author Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serial in from 23 September 1909 to 8 January 1910, and was released in volume form in late March 1910 by Pierr ...

'', with Jackie Rees as Margaret, Kathleen Moore as Clara and James Pratt as Fabrizio. The production was directed by

John O'May John O'May is an American-born Australian actor, best known for his stage performances. O'May grew up in Baltimore and went to Patapsco High School, where he later become a teacher. He came to Australia in 1972, where he replaced John Waters as ...

. In the summer of 2008, Guettel reconfigured the musical as a smaller chamber piece for the

Weston Playhouse Theatre Company Weston Theater Company (formerly known as Weston Playhouse Theatre Company) is a theater company in Weston, Vermont, United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or ...

in Vermont, where Sarah Uriarte Berry reprised her role as Franca. The show had its opera house premiere in October 2008 at Piedmont Opera in

Winston-Salem Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in N ...

, North Carolina. It starred Jill Gardner as Margaret and Sarah Jane McMahon as Clara, directed by Dorothy Danner and conducted by James Allbritten. The first Los Angeles area local premiere was seen at the

Covina Center for the Performing Arts The Covina Center for the Performing Arts is an historic theater located in Covina, California, dedicated to the advancement of theatre. History The original Covina Theater was built in 1920 in the Reed building at the corner of Citrus and Bad ...

in 2009. It starred Christopher Callen as Margaret, Brooke Tansley as Clara, and Craig D' Amico as Fabrizio (all Broadway veterans) under the direction of Brady Schwind. The

Lethbridge Lethbridge ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. With a population of 101,482 in its 2019 Alberta municipal censuses, 2019 municipal census, Lethbridge became the fourth Alberta city to surpass 100,000 people. The nearby Canadian ...

Symphony Orchestra in Alberta presented the musical at the

Genevieve E. Yates Memorial Centre The Genevieve E. Yates Memorial Centre houses two performance theatres in downtown Lethbridge, Alberta. The centre was built starting 15 August 1965 and officially opened 1 May 1966. Deane Yates, a local retailer, donated over $200,000 towards it ...

October 19–21, 2009, which was the Canadian première. Directed by Fran Rude and musical direction by Ken Rogers this production starred Diane Llewelyn-Jones as Margaret, Nicole Higginson as Clara and Steven Morton as Fabrizio. The Berkeley Street Theatre in Toronto saw the Canadian première by Acting Up Stage running in February 2010. The

Arena Stage Arena Stage is a not-for-profit regional theater based in Southwest, Washington, D.C. Established in 1950, it was the first racially integrated theater in Washington, D.C. and its founders helped start the U.S. regional theater movement. It is ...

(Washington, DC) production ran from March 5, 2010 through April 11, 2010, with

Hollis Resnik Hollis Resnik (1955 – April 17, 2022) was an American singer and actress, especially in stage musicals. Biography Raised in Euclid, Ohio (a suburb of Cleveland), as a young girl she studied piano and took voice lessons and performed with the Cl ...

as Margaret. The European premiere was directed by Paul Kerryson at the

Curve In mathematics, a curve (also called a curved line in older texts) is an object similar to a line (geometry), line, but that does not have to be Linearity, straight. Intuitively, a curve may be thought of as the trace left by a moving point (ge ...

theatre, Leicester, UK, in May 2009, starring Lucy Schaufer as Margaret and

Caroline Sheen Caroline Sheen is a Welsh actress who has played leading roles on stage in the West End alongside TV and film appearances. She won a Helen Hayes award for playing the role of Mary Poppins on the National Tour of America. Background Born and ...

as Clara, with design by George Souglides, musical direction by Julian Kelly, lighting design by Giuseppe di Iorio, sound design by Paul Groothuis. A highly acclaimed production at Theo Ubique Cabaret Theater in Chicago opened on March 11, 2012, starring Kelli Harrington as Margaret and Rachel Klippel as Clara. Harrington's performance won the

Jeff Award The Joseph Jefferson Award, more commonly known informally as the Jeff Award, is given for theatre arts produced in the Chicago area. Founded in 1968, the awards are named in tribute to actor Joseph Jefferson, a 19th-century American theater star ...

for Best Actress. The run was extended through June. The 2013

Shaw Festival The Shaw Festival is a not-for-profit theatre festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada. It is the second largest repertory theatre company in North America. The Shaw Festival was founded in 1962. Originally, it only featured production ...

production ran in rep at the Court House Theatre in Niagara on the Lake, Ontario, Canada. Previews began July 4, 2013 with the official opening July 26, 2013; the show closed on October 13. The musical was directed by Jay Turvey and starred Patty Jamieson as Margaret Johnson. Front Porch Theatricals (Pittsburgh) staged a performance in August 2015. It received rave reviews from both local and national critics with

BroadwayWorld BroadwayWorld is a theatre news website based in New York City covering Broadway, Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres ...

hailing the overall production and Josh Grosso in the role of Fabrizio. The cast included Becki Toth as Margaret and Lindsay Bayer as Clara. It was directed by Stephen Santa. On April 4, 2016, the entire original Broadway cast reunited for a benefit concert version of the musical at the Vivian Beaumont Theater, where it originally played. The work was presented by ''Life Like Company'' at the

Arts Centre Melbourne Arts Centre Melbourne, originally known as the Victorian Arts Centre and briefly called the Arts Centre, is a performing arts centre consisting of a complex of theatres and concert halls in the Melbourne Arts Precinct, located in the central M ...

from October 28, 2016 to November 6, 2016, directed by Theresa Borg and starring Chelsea Plumley (Margaret Johnson), Genevieve Kingsford (Clara Johnson) and Jonathan Hickey (Fabrizio Naccarelli). The musical was produced in London at

Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...

from June 14, 2019 to July 6, starring

Renée Fleming Renée Lynn Fleming (born February 14, 1959) is an American soprano, known for performances in opera, concerts, recordings, theater, film, and at major public occasions. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, Fleming has been nominated for 1 ...

as Margaret Johnson and

Dove Cameron Dove Olivia Cameron (born Chloe Celeste Hosterman; January 15, 1996) is an American singer and actress. She became famous for her double role of the eponymous characters in the Disney Channel comedy series ''Liv and Maddie'', for which she won ...

as Clara. Daniel Evans directed. This production then moved to the

Dorothy Chandler Pavilion The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion is one of the halls in the Los Angeles Music Center, which is one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States. The Music Center's other halls include the Mark Taper Forum, Ahmanson Theatre, and Walt ...

in Los Angeles in October, the

Lyric Opera of Chicago Lyric Opera of Chicago is one of the leading opera companies in the United States. It was founded in Chicago in 1954, under the name 'Lyric Theatre of Chicago' by Carol Fox, Nicola Rescigno and Lawrence Kelly, with a season that included Maria ...

in December with

Solea Pfeiffer Solea Pfeiffer is a Zimbabwe-born American actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Eliza Hamilton in the first national tour of ''Hamilton'', which she landed after performing as Maria in ''West Side Story'' at the Hollywood Bowl. ...

taking over as Clara.

Synopsis

Act 1

In the early morning of their first day in Florence, Margaret reads from her guidebook to Clara as the piazza around them is waking up and coming to life ("Statues and Stories"). A breeze carries Clara's hat off her head and across the square where a young Italian man, Fabrizio, catches it, mid-air, and returns it to her. The two are instantly smitten. But Margaret steers her daughter away from the encounter, bringing her next to the

Uffizi Gallery The Uffizi Gallery (; it, Galleria degli Uffizi, italic=no, ) is a prominent art museum located adjacent to the Piazza della Signoria in the Historic Centre of Florence in the region of Tuscany, Italy. One of the most important Italian museums ...

where the reaching figures in the paintings speak to Clara of her own yearnings ("The Beauty Is"). Fabrizio appears, hoping to arrange a time to meet with Clara, but once again Margaret intervenes. Alone, Fabrizio sings in Italian his declaration of love at first sight for Clara, along with a heartfelt cry of fear that she could never love anyone as lost and without position as he ("Il Mondo Era Vuoto"). Fabrizio begs his father and his brother Giuseppe to help him dress more presentably for Clara. Giuseppe attempts to teach Fabrizio some dance steps as well ("American Dancing"). At the Duomo, Fabrizio once again catches up with Margaret and Clara, and this time Fabrizio's father, Signor Naccarelli, is able to help penetrate Margaret's resistance to any further involvement. They all agree to meet at sunset to take a walk and admire the view of the city from above at the Piazzale Michelangelo ("Passeggiata"). Margaret and Clara are invited to have tea at the Naccarelli home. Giuseppe's wife, Franca, takes Clara on a tour of the apartment, and alone in a separate room, she warns Clara about how quickly love can stale in marriage ("The Joy You Feel"). Though the Naccarellis are universally impressed with Clara, Margaret tries without success to share her deep reservations. When she looks in Fabrizio's eyes and sees the love there, she cannot bring herself to disappoint him, as much as she feels she must; for there is something about Clara that none of these people know. Clara secretly makes plans to meet Fabrizio at midnight near the hotel. Margaret calls her husband Roy, who is back in the states. She tries to tell him what is happening with Clara and Fabrizio, but he is brusque and not very understanding, cutting short the conversation. Margaret, alone in her hotel room, reflects on the loneliness in her marriage ("Dividing Day"). She checks in Clara's room and finds that she is missing. On her way to meet Fabrizio, Clara becomes lost in the maze-like streets of Florence. She loses all poise and control, becoming hysterical and screaming like a child ("Hysteria"). Her mother takes her back to the hotel and, as Clara sleeps, reveals the source of her disquiet. When Clara was a young girl, she was kicked in the head by a Shetland pony, and the accident has caused her mental and emotional abilities to develop abnormally. Margaret feels that she must take Clara away from Florence at once, and she steps down into the lobby to have a drink. While she is away, Fabrizio comes to the room, distraught; he cannot find the right words to express his feelings, and Clara urges him to use any other means; Clara accepts Fabrizio's proposal of marriage, and the two are embracing, half undressed, as Margaret walks in on them ("Say It Somehow").

Act 2

Margaret takes Clara to Rome to distract her and put an end to the affair. Back in Florence, the Naccarelli household is in complete chaos. As the family despairs, Signora Naccarelli translates in an aside; Fabrizio believes he has ruined everything with Clara, his father attempts to comfort him, and Giuseppe and Franca desire finer details ("Aiutami"). No matter what Margaret tries, her daughter refuses to give her an inch, culminating in a painful confrontation wherein Margaret slaps Clara across the face. Clara erupts with a torrent of feeling, centered on Fabrizio and the nature of love ("The Light in the Piazza"). This causes Margaret to relent, to set aside her doubts and considerations, and to no longer stand in the way of the wedding. The two return to Florence. Clara is instructed in the Latin catechism in preparation for converting to Catholicism while around her everyone in the extended family sings of their feelings, stirred up by the immediate presence of such intense, young love ("Octet Part 1"). Franca, in an attempt to arouse her husband's jealousy, kisses Fabrizio right on the mouth, and Clara witnesses it, breaking into a furious rant that ends with her throwing a drink on Franca. As Clara breaks down, Franca commends her for her bravery and declares her own desire to fight for Giuseppe. She toasts the upcoming union and is joined by the rest of the family ("Octet Part 2"). At the wedding rehearsal, Clara and Fabrizio are filling out the necessary forms when Signor Naccarelli sees something on Clara's form that causes him to call off the wedding and take his family away at once. Clara wants to know what is wrong with her, but her mother says there is nothing at all wrong. With Clara sobbing and broken, alone in one of the pews of the church, Margaret reveals her worst fears and her shame at having been the source of her daughter's lifelong suffering. She resolves to do whatever it takes to give Clara a chance for happiness ("The Beauty Is eprise). Margaret tries to reason with Signor Naccarelli, who saw Clara's childlike handwriting as she completed her marriage form. Seemingly unconcerned with her immaturity or her handwriting, Signor Naccarelli admits that he saw Clara write her age on the forms – 26 – and that this makes her an unsuitable bride for his son who is only 20. Relieved that he has not discovered their secret, Margaret begs him to change his mind, but he will not. She invites him to take a walk with her, and the two wander from one end of Florence to the other as the sun slowly sets and the night comes on ("Let's Walk"). By giving him time to mull things over and by not pressuring him, Margaret succeeds in putting the wedding back on track; Signor Naccarelli says he will meet them at the church the following morning. From the hotel room, Margaret calls Roy to tell him about the wedding. As might be predicted, he insists that Clara cannot handle the responsibilities of marriage. Clara, in her wedding dress, stands in the shadows, overhearing her mother's side of the conversation. Margaret says, "Just because she isn't normal, Roy, doesn't mean she's consigned to a life of loneliness. She mustn't be made to accept less from life just because she isn't like you or me." Shattered, Clara slips out of the hotel room and runs once more through Florence ("Interlude"), meeting Fabrizio at the church in order to tell him that she cannot marry him; she won't allow herself to cause him any pain. Fabrizio assuages all of her fears ("Love to Me"). Moments before the wedding, Clara tells Margaret she can't leave her; Margaret assures her she can. Left alone, Margaret breaks open all the repressed doubts and yearnings that she has carried for years on end about love, realizing at last that the chance of love somehow outweighs the terrible risks. She joins the wedding ceremony ("Fable").

Song list

;Act 1 *"Overture" – Orchestra *"Statues and Stories" – Margaret Johnson and Clara Johnson *"The Beauty Is" – Clara *"Il Mondo Era Vuoto" – Fabrizio Naccarelli *"American Dancing" – Orchestra *"Passeggiata" – Fabrizio and Clara *"The Joy You Feel" – Franca Naccarelli *"Dividing Day" – Margaret *"Hysteria" – Clara and Margaret *"Say It Somehow" – Clara and Fabrizio ;Act 2 *"Entr'acte" – Orchestra *"Aiutami" – The Naccarelli Family *"The Light in the Piazza" – Clara *"Octet / Clara's Tirade" – Company *"The Beauty Is (Reprise)" – Margaret *"Let's Walk" – Signor Naccarelli and Margaret *"Love to Me" – Fabrizio *"Fable" – Margaret

Original cast

Broadway replacements

replaced Morrison as Fabrizio Naccarelli on September 2, 2005 *

Chris Sarandon Christopher Sarandon (; born July 24, 1942) is an American actor. He is well known for playing a variety of iconic characters, including Jerry Dandrige in ''Fright Night'' (1985), Prince Humperdinck in ''The Princess Bride'' (1987), Detective Mik ...

replaced Harelik as Signor Naccarelli on September 13, 2005 *

replaced O'Hara as Clara Johnson on December 15, 2005

Critical response

''CurtainUp'' called the musical a "gorgeously staged and musically sophisticated adaptation... the Guettel sound is nevertheless plush and enjoyable with a genuine musical theater sensibility.... Lucas has made room for the young lovers' voices and retained enough of the psychological complexities to prevent this from being the dated soap opera it could easily have been."

Michael Feingold Michael E. Feingold (May 5, 1945 – November 21, 2022) was an American critic, translator, lyricist, playwright and dramaturg. He was the lead theater critic of ''The Village Voice'' from 1982 to 2013, for which he was twice named a Pulitzer Pri ...

, in his review for the ''

Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the creat ...

'', commented: "It has some considerable shortcomings...but its main distinction is that its humanity separates it from the bulk of current musical theater." Critic John Simon, in ''New York'' magazine, wrote: "Anyone who cares about the rather uncertain future of this truly American genre should – must – see the show, think and worry about it, and reach his or her own conclusions ... Craig Lucas's book seems perfectly adequate to me, but the emphasis must be on Adam Guettel's music and lyrics ... the music, though fluctuating between the Sondheimesque and offbeat but still Broadwayish and the art-songlike and even operatic, is steadily absorbing, even if only intermittently melodious. One duet, "Let's Walk", is an unqualified hit, but the rest, without fully cohering, is also arresting. Ted Sperling and Guettel's jaunty orchestrations add to the slightly disorienting but wholly fascinating harmonies and instrumentation."

Ben Brantley Benjamin D. Brantley (born October 26, 1954) is an American theater critic, journalist, editor, publisher and writer. He served as the chief theater critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1996 to 2017, and as co-chief theater critic from 2017 to ...

, in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', deemed the show "encouragingly ambitious and discouragingly unfulfilled... the production comes into its own only in the sweetly bitter maternal regrets and dreams of Margaret Johnson." He further made special mention of the "gorgeous autumn-leaf-strewn set", the "lush golden lighting" and "the delectable period costumes". In reviewing the revival starring Renee Fleming in 2019, Chris Jones said the show employed, "the most soul-satisfying score written for Broadway so far this century." He concluded, "'Piazza' is still very much alive and, in this staging, as vital as ever."

Awards and nominations

Original Broadway production

References

External links

*
Official homepage
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