Bright Lights, Big City (musical)
Encyclopedia
Bright Lights, Big City is a musical
with music lyrics and book written by Paul Scott Goodman and is based on the novel by Jay McInerney
. It follows a week in the life of Jamie, an aspiring writer
in his mid 20s who loses himself in the chaos of 1980s New York City
.
-scene of New York where he meets characters like Tad, who brings Jamie into a world of cocaine
, sex
and all-night partying at the Odeon club. Jamie indulges but eventually finds himself spinning out of control. His wife Amanda, a model, leaves him to follow her dream in Paris
. He loses touch with his brother, Michael, who is left confused and alone since the death of their mother, and Jamie loses his job.
Drugs and partying get the better of Jamie, as he starts to be haunted by hallucinations, while Chuck Bean, the number one reporter in town, worms his way into Jamie's brain. Jamie spirals out of control as the hallucinations and reality start to crumble.
Tad introduces Jamie to his cousin, Vicky. It is meant to be nothing but a one-night engagement, but Jamie finds himself drawn to the rationality, innocence and philosophical tendencies of Vicky. He soon decides to turn his life around, forgetting about Amanda, deserting Tad, reconnecting with Michael, being with Vicky and finally re-starting the novel he once gave up on.
on 24 February 1999. It was directed and musically staged by Michael Greif
and orchestrated by Richard Barone
. It starred Patrick Wilson
as Jamie, Jerry Dixon as Tad, Napiera Daniele Groves as Amanda, Annmarie Milazzo as the Mother, John Link Graney as Michael and Natascia Diaz as Vicky. The show opened to mixed reviews, many of which poorly compared it to Rent
which not only spawned at the same theatre, but boasted almost entirely the same creative team, minus its creator, the late Jonathan Larson.
On the concept cast recording, the cast included Patrick Wilson
(Jamie), Christine Ebersole
(Clara), Sherie Rene Scott
(Vicky), Jesse L. Martin
(Tad), Eden Espinosa
, Celia Keenan-Bolger (Mary O'Brien Mchann), Sharon Leal
(Amanda), Anne Marie Milazzo (Mother), and Gavin Creel
(Michael).
The show made its AMATEUR UK Premiere in April 2009 at The Obie Theatre in Croydon
, South London
. It was performed by members of the graduating year of the BRIT School
. It was directed by Katy Sechiari, musically directed by Matt Elliot and choreographed by Odette Perdrisat.
The show will have its PROFESSIONAL UK Premiere this Nov 4th-25th 2010 at Hoxton Hall, London. Cast includes: Paul Ayres (Jamie), Matthew Gent (Michael), Lori Haley Fox (Mother), Rachael Wooding (Amanda), Jodie Jacobs (Vicky), George Maguire (Tad), Rietta Austin (Coma Baby/Clara), Stuart Armfield (Alex), Oliver Roll (Chuck Bean) and Mary Cormack (Mary O'Brien McCann). Produced by Sue Knox for This Stage Ltd, directed by Christopher Lane, musically directed by Elizabeth Nantais, choreographed by Fabian Aloise and cast by Ellie Collyer-
Bristow.
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
with music lyrics and book written by Paul Scott Goodman and is based on the novel by Jay McInerney
Jay McInerney
John Barrett McInerney Jr. is an American writer. His novels include Bright Lights, Big City; Ransom; Story of My Life; Brightness Falls; and The Last of the Savages...
. It follows a week in the life of Jamie, an aspiring writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
in his mid 20s who loses himself in the chaos of 1980s New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Plot
Jamie, a twenty-four-year-old who came to New York City to fulfill his dream of being a writer, now finds himself in a frightfully boring job in the "factual verification department" of Gotham Magazine under tight-lipped boss Clara. Jamie soon discovers the partyParty
A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, or recreation. A party will typically feature food and beverages, and often music and dancing as well....
-scene of New York where he meets characters like Tad, who brings Jamie into a world of cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
, sex
Sex
In biology, sex is a process of combining and mixing genetic traits, often resulting in the specialization of organisms into a male or female variety . Sexual reproduction involves combining specialized cells to form offspring that inherit traits from both parents...
and all-night partying at the Odeon club. Jamie indulges but eventually finds himself spinning out of control. His wife Amanda, a model, leaves him to follow her dream in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. He loses touch with his brother, Michael, who is left confused and alone since the death of their mother, and Jamie loses his job.
Drugs and partying get the better of Jamie, as he starts to be haunted by hallucinations, while Chuck Bean, the number one reporter in town, worms his way into Jamie's brain. Jamie spirals out of control as the hallucinations and reality start to crumble.
Tad introduces Jamie to his cousin, Vicky. It is meant to be nothing but a one-night engagement, but Jamie finds himself drawn to the rationality, innocence and philosophical tendencies of Vicky. He soon decides to turn his life around, forgetting about Amanda, deserting Tad, reconnecting with Michael, being with Vicky and finally re-starting the novel he once gave up on.
Productions
The show first opened at the New York Theatre WorkshopNew York Theatre Workshop
__notoc__New York Theatre Workshop is an Off-Broadway theatre noted for its productions of new works. Located at 79 East 4th Street between Second Avenue and the Bowery in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, it houses a 198-seat theatre for its mainstage productions, and a...
on 24 February 1999. It was directed and musically staged by Michael Greif
Michael Greif
Michael Greif is a stage director and producer, born in Brooklyn, New York. He has received three Tony Award nominations and won the Obie Award....
and orchestrated by Richard Barone
Richard Barone
Richard Barone is a rock musician born in Tampa, Florida who gained attention as frontman for The Bongos. He works as a songwriter, arranger, author, director, and producer, releases albums as a solo artist, tours, and has created major concert events at Carnegie Hall, Hollywood Bowl and New York's...
. It starred Patrick Wilson
Patrick Wilson (actor)
Patrick Joseph Wilson is an American actor and singer. Wilson has spent years singing lead roles in major Broadway musicals, beginning in 1996. In 2003, he appeared in the HBO mini-series Angels in America...
as Jamie, Jerry Dixon as Tad, Napiera Daniele Groves as Amanda, Annmarie Milazzo as the Mother, John Link Graney as Michael and Natascia Diaz as Vicky. The show opened to mixed reviews, many of which poorly compared it to Rent
Rent (musical)
Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...
which not only spawned at the same theatre, but boasted almost entirely the same creative team, minus its creator, the late Jonathan Larson.
On the concept cast recording, the cast included Patrick Wilson
Patrick Wilson (actor)
Patrick Joseph Wilson is an American actor and singer. Wilson has spent years singing lead roles in major Broadway musicals, beginning in 1996. In 2003, he appeared in the HBO mini-series Angels in America...
(Jamie), Christine Ebersole
Christine Ebersole
Christine Ebersole is an American actress and singer.-Early life:Ebersole was born in Winnetka, Illinois, where she attended New Trier High School...
(Clara), Sherie Rene Scott
Sherie Rene Scott
Sherie Rene Scott is an American actress, singer and writer. She is a co-founder of Grammy winning Sh-K-Boom Records and Ghostlight Records and has appeared in numerous Off-Broadway and Broadway musicals and plays appears on numerous solo and original cast recordings.-Life and career:Scott was...
(Vicky), Jesse L. Martin
Jesse L. Martin
Jesse L. Martin is an American theatre, film, and television actor. He is known for originating the role of Tom Collins in the Broadway theatrical production of Rent, and for his portrayal of NYPD Detective Ed Green on the NBC drama television series Law & Order.-Early life:Martin, the third of...
(Tad), Eden Espinosa
Eden Espinosa
Eden Erica Espinosa is an American singer and stage actress, who is best known for her performances as Elphaba for the Broadway, Los Angeles and San Francisco productions of the musical Wicked....
, Celia Keenan-Bolger (Mary O'Brien Mchann), Sharon Leal
Sharon Leal
Sharon Leal is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her roles in movies such as Dreamgirls, Why Did I Get Married?, Why Did I Get Married Too? and the televisions series Hellcats.-Personal life:...
(Amanda), Anne Marie Milazzo (Mother), and Gavin Creel
Gavin Creel
Gavin James Creel is an American actor, singer and song writer.Born in Findlay, Ohio, Creel received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in musical theatre at the University of Michigan in 1998. Creel, who is openly gay, is a regular on the LGBT RFamilyVacations cruise with Rosie O'Donnell...
(Michael).
The show made its AMATEUR UK Premiere in April 2009 at The Obie Theatre in Croydon
Croydon
Croydon is a town in South London, England, located within the London Borough of Croydon to which it gives its name. It is situated south of Charing Cross...
, South London
South London
South London is the southern part of London, England, United Kingdom.According to the 2011 official Boundary Commission for England definition, South London includes the London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Southwark, Sutton and...
. It was performed by members of the graduating year of the BRIT School
BRIT School
The London School for Performing Arts & Technology is a British school located in Selhurst, Croydon, in London, England, with a mandate to provide education and vocational training for the performing arts, media, art and design and the technologies that make performance possible...
. It was directed by Katy Sechiari, musically directed by Matt Elliot and choreographed by Odette Perdrisat.
The show will have its PROFESSIONAL UK Premiere this Nov 4th-25th 2010 at Hoxton Hall, London. Cast includes: Paul Ayres (Jamie), Matthew Gent (Michael), Lori Haley Fox (Mother), Rachael Wooding (Amanda), Jodie Jacobs (Vicky), George Maguire (Tad), Rietta Austin (Coma Baby/Clara), Stuart Armfield (Alex), Oliver Roll (Chuck Bean) and Mary Cormack (Mary O'Brien McCann). Produced by Sue Knox for This Stage Ltd, directed by Christopher Lane, musically directed by Elizabeth Nantais, choreographed by Fabian Aloise and cast by Ellie Collyer-
Bristow.
Musical numbers
- 'Bright Lights, Big City' - Chuck Bean, Jamie, Drug Girl & Ensemble
- 'Back In The City' - Tad, Jamie & Ensemble
- 'Sunday Morning 6AM' - Jamie, Chuck Bean, Mary, Mother Amanda & Ensemble.
- 'Coma Baby' - Coma Baby, Chuck Bean, Jamie & Ensmble
- 'Fact & Fiction' - Clara, Jamie & Ensemble
- 'I Hate The French' - Jamie & Employee
- 'Brother' - Michael, Amanda & Jamie
- 'I Hate The French (Reprise)' - Jamie
- 'Odeon' - Jamie, Tad & Ensmble
- 'Happy Birthday Darling' - Mother
- 'Missing' - Coma Baby, Mary & Jamie
- 'To Model' - Amanda & Jamie
- 'So Many Little Things' - Jamie, Mother, Michael & Ensemble
- 'Back In The City 2' - Tad
- 'Kindness' - Vicky
- 'Perfect Feeling' - Jamie, Vicky & Ensemble
- 'Bright Lights, Big City 2' - Jamie
- 'You Couldn't Handle It Jamie' - Clara & Jamie
- 'My Son' - Clara & Jamie
- 'Wednesday' - Chuck, Tad & Jamie
- 'Camera Wall' - Amanda, Chuck Bean, Jamie, Mother, Michael, Mary, Coma Baby & Ensemble
- 'Heart And Soul' - Michael, Vicky & Mother
- 'Brother 2' - Michael & Jamie
- 'Mummies At The Met' - Mother, Jamie, Coma Baby, Mary & Ensemble
- 'Are You Still Holding My Hand?' - Mother
- 'Brother 3' Jamie & Michael
- 'Back In The City 3' - Tad & Ensemble
- 'Stay In My Life' - Jamie, Amanda, Vicky & Ensemble
- 'Bright Lights Big City 3 / Wordfall' - Jamie & Ensemble