John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
and
book
A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physi ...
by
Don Scardino
Donald Joseph Scardino (born February 17, 1949) is an American television director and producer and a former actor.
Career Acting
Scardino was born in New York City, to jazz musician parents, Dorothy Denny Scardino and Charles Scardino. His f ...
, who also directed its premiere. The musical is about the life of Lennon and is notable for Scardino's choice to be almost exclusively based on Lennon's own words and to focus on Lennon's solo career, with no songs from the
Lennon–McCartney
Lennon–McCartney was the songwriting partnership between English musicians John Lennon (1940–1980) and Paul McCartney (born 1942) of the Beatles. It is the best-known and most successful musical collaboration ever by records sold, with the ...
catalogue.
The "$7 million bio-musical" first opened in
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, in April 2005. After what ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...
'' described as "a troubled try-out in San Francisco, a cancelled run in Boston and a radical rewrite", it had 42 previews and 49 performances on
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 ...
at the
Broadhurst Theatre
The Broadhurst Theatre is a Broadway theater at 235 West 44th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1917, the theater was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and was built for the Shubert brothers. The Bro ...
from 14 August to 24 September 2005. The role of Lennon is played by performers of both sexes and different ages and skin colours, an approach Scardino said was inspired by "
I Am the Walrus
"I Am the Walrus" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1967 television film ''Magical Mystery Tour''. Written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney, it was released as the B-side to the single "Hello, Goodbye" a ...
" where Lennon writes, "I am he, as you are he, as you are me, and we are all together." This use of multiple actors was scaled back after the San Francisco production, with the final rewrite having a single actor narrating Lennon's story.
Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono ( ; ja, 小野 洋子, Ono Yōko, usually spelled in katakana ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking.
Ono grew up i ...
was actively involved in the production, retaining final script approval and requiring the show's Broadway producers to complete the script and present it to her live (albeit in workshop format). The show's credits included the phrase "With Special Thanks to Yoko Ono Lennon".
The limited use of Beatles songs, attributed to creative choices and not licensing issues, led critics to dismiss the work as "Ono-centric". Ono was unapologetic about the choice: "If we put ' Yesterday' in, it's not really fair to the Beatles because we're leaning on their power. We're talking about John now, thank you." She later said "It is definitely John's story – from
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
1940 to New York 1980. I am the B-side, and that's how it should be. I think he would have loved it." The musical also conspicuously omits any mention of
May Pang
May Fung Yee Pang (born October 24, 1950) is an American former music executive. She worked for John Lennon and Yoko Ono as a personal assistant and production coordinator, and when Lennon and Ono separated in 1973, Pang and Lennon began a re ...
, Lennon's lover for a period of 18 months in 1974–75 when the singer was separated from Ono.
Broadway opening
The Broadway production went into previews on 7 July 2005, opened 14 August 2005, in which it ran for forty-one days, and closed on 24 September of the same year.
The Broadway premiere was produced by Allan McKeown, Edgar Lansbury (who conceived the show and brought in Scardino),
Clear Channel Entertainment
Live Nation was a former American events promoter and venue operator based in Beverly Hills, California. Founded in 1996 by Robert F. X. Sillerman as SFX Entertainment, the company's business was built around consolidating concert promoters int ...
and Jeffrey Sine.
The opening night cast of ''Lennon'' included
Will Chase
Frank William Chase (born September 12, 1970) is a Tony Award-nominated American actor, director, and singer, best known for his work on Broadway and for his role as country superstar Luke Wheeler on ABC's '' Nashville''.
Early life and educat ...
Marcy Harriell
Marcy Harriell is an American actress, singer and writer. She is best known for her appearances on Broadway, starring in the Tony Award winning musicals ''In the Heights'' and '' Rent'', and as the host of the fashion series '' Re:Fashion'' on TN ...
,
Chad Kimball
Chad Kimball (born September 2, 1976) is an American stage actor known for roles in musical theatre, especially Huey Calhoun in the Broadway musical ''Memphis'' and Milky White in the 2002 Broadway revival of ''Into the Woods''.
Early life and ca ...
,
Terrence Mann
Terrence Vaughan Mann (born July 1, 1951) is an American theatre, film and television actor. He is best known for his appearances on the Broadway stage, which include Chester Lyman in '' Barnum'', Rum Tum Tugger in ''Cats'', Javert in '' Les ...
Darin Murphy Darin may refer to
Places
* Darin, Anbarabad, a village in Kerman Province, Iran
* Darin, Jebalbarez-e Jonubi, a village in Kerman Province, Iran
* Darin, Sistan and Baluchestan, a village in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran
* Darin, Yazd, a v ...
.
The show opened to awful reviews, with
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 ...
of ''
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 d ...
'' stating:
In the immortal words of Yoko Ono, "Aieeeee!" A fierce primal scream – of the kind Ms. Ono is famous for as a performance and recording artist – is surely the healthiest response to the agony of "Lennon," the jerry-built musical shrine that opened last night at the Broadhurst Theater.
Paul Shaffer
Paul Allen Wood Shaffer (born November 28, 1949) is a Canadian singer, composer, actor, author, comedian, and multi-instrumentalist who served as David Letterman's musical director, band leader, and sidekick on the entire run of both ''Late Ni ...
in its coverage of the musical's opening night:
I just thought it was phenomenal. It reminded me of what an influence John was — how strong an influence he was not only in popular music but in culture, and how much we miss him. He was a remarkable writer. He'd do catchy so you loved the song right away, then the second time you would hear more of it. Let's face it: the more you listen to his music, the more you hear. I'm still learning things when I hear his songs.
Songs
The musical includes two previously unpublished songs by Lennon: "India, India" and "I Don't Want to Lose You". A December 2004 '' Playbill'' article mentioned that the rarely heard Lennon song "Cookin' (in the Kitchen of Love)" (heard on the ''
Ringo's Rotogravure
''Ringo's Rotogravure'' is the fifth studio album by Ringo Starr, released in 1976. It was the last project to feature active involvement from all four former Beatles before John Lennon's murder in 1980, and the second of two projects following th ...
'' album by Ringo Starr) would also be included, though the song was cut before the musical's Broadway opening.
;Act I
* "New York City"
* "
Mother
]
A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of ges ...
Money (That's What I Want)
"Money (That's What I Want)" is a rhythm and blues song written by Tamla founder Berry Gordy and Janie Bradford, which was the first hit record for Gordy's Motown enterprise. Barrett Strong recorded it in 1959 as a single for the Tamla label, ...
"
* "
Twist and Shout
"Twist and Shout" is a 1961 song written by Phil Medley and Bert Berns (later credited as "Bert Russell"). It was originally recorded by the Top Notes, but it did not become a hit in the record charts until it was reworked by the Isley Brothers ...
"
* "
Instant Karma!
"Instant Karma!" (also titled "Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)") is a song by English rock musician John Lennon, released as a single on Apple Records in February 1970. The lyrics focus on a concept in which the consequences of one's actions ...
Oh My Love
"Oh My Love" is a song written by John Lennon and Yoko Ono that appeared on Lennon's '' Imagine'' album in 1971.
Information
The song was originally written with different lyrics and demoed in 1968 after sessions for the album ''The Beatles''. Th ...
"
* "
Mind Games
Playing mind games (also power games or head games) is the largely conscious struggle for psychological one-upmanship, often employing passive–aggressive behavior to specifically demoralize or dis-empower the thinking subject, making the a ...
"
* "
The Ballad of John and Yoko
"The Ballad of John and Yoko" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a non-album single in May 1969. It was written by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership, and chronicles the events surrou ...
God
In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...
"
* "
Give Peace a Chance
"Give Peace a Chance" is an anti-war song written by John Lennon (originally credited to Lennon–McCartney), and recorded with the participation of a small group of friends in a performance with Yoko Ono in a hotel room in Montreal, Quebec, C ...
Woman Is the Nigger of the World
"Woman Is the Nigger of the World" is a song by John Lennon and Yoko Ono with Elephant's Memory from their 1972 album ''Some Time in New York City''. Released as the only single from the album in the United States, the song sparked controversy ...
Gimme Some Truth
"Gimme Some Truth" (originally spelled "Give Me Some Truth") is a protest song written and performed by John Lennon. It was first released on his 1971 album '' Imagine''. "Gimme Some Truth" contains various political references emerging from t ...
Woman
A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...
(Just Like) Starting Over
"(Just Like) Starting Over" is a song written and performed by John Lennon from the 1980 album, ''Double Fantasy''. It was released as a single on 24 October 1980 in the United Kingdom, with Yoko Ono's " Kiss Kiss Kiss" as the B-side. It reach ...
American Theatre Wing
The American Theatre Wing (the Wing for short) is a New York City–based non-profit organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre", according to its mission statement. Originally known as the Stage Women's War Relief ...
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 ...