Tick, Tick... Boom!

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]

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]

• Jonathan (also called: Jon, Johnny) Voice Type: Tenor
• Michael (also plays: Jon's Dad, Executive, Temp, Market research guy, Counter guy, Rosa Stevens) Voice Type: Tenor
• Susan (also plays: Rosa Stevens, Jon's Mom, Secretary, Judy Wright, Karessa Johnson) Voice Type: Mezzo-soprano

• "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" and “Too Cold to Care”, which also come from Superbia.

• 2001 Off-Broadway premiere

The revamped musical premiered off-Broadway at the Jane Street Theater on May 23, 2001, and closed on January 6, 2002. Directed by Scott Schwartz, with choreography by Christopher Gattelli, the cast was Raúl Esparza as Jon, Jerry Dixon as Michael, and Amy Spanger as Susan. Molly Ringwald and Natascia Diaz later replaced Spanger as Susan, and Joey McIntyre replaced Esparza as Jon. The production received seven Drama Desk Award nominations, including Outstanding Musical,[8] and won the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical; Esparza won an Obie Award for his performance.[1] The original cast recording was released in 2001 by RCA Victor Broadway.[9]

The off-Broadway production was imported to Seoul, South Korea briefly, with McIntyre, Dixon, and Diaz making up the cast.

• 2003 American national tour

A touring production of the show was directed by Schwartz, with Christian Campbell as Jon, Nikki Snelson as Susan, and Wilson Cruz as Michael. The tour performed in Dallas, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, East Lansing, Michigan, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Minneapolis, Hershey, Pennsylvania, Nashville, Washington, D.C., Pittsburgh, Chicago, and Boston.[10]

• 2005 London premiere

Tick, Tick... Boom! opened in London at the Menier Chocolate Factory on May 31, 2005, running until August 28, 2005. Again directed by Scott Schwartz, the cast featured Neil Patrick Harris as Jon – later replaced by Christian Campbell – Tee Jaye as Michael, and Cassidy Janson as Susan.[11]

• 2005–06 California production

A California production ran at the Rubicon Theatre Company in Ventura, California, from November 19, 2005, through December 18, 2005. Scott Schwartz directed, with a cast including Andrew Samonsky as Jon, Wilson Cruz as Michael, and Natascia Diaz as Susan. The production moved to the Coronet Theatre, West Hollywood, California, through July 16, 2006, with Tami Tappan Damiano as Susan.[12]

• 2005 Canadian premiere

A Toronto production was mounted by Acting Up Stage Theatre Company at the Poor Alex Theatre in 2005. The director was Mario D'Alimonte, and the cast consisted of Dean Armstrong as Jon, Michael Dufays as Michael, and Daphne Moens as Susan.

• 2009 London West End premiere

Tick, Tick... Boom! had its West End premiere in a limited engagement at the Duchess Theatre from May 13–17, 2009, forming part of the 2009 Notes from New York season. Directed by Hannah Chissick, the cast comprised Paul Keating as Jon, Julie Atherton as Susan, and Leon Lopez as Michael.[13]

• 2014 Encores! Off-Center revival

New York City Center's Encores! Off-Center series produced a revival of Tick, Tick... Boom! starring Lin-Manuel Miranda as Jon, Karen Olivo as Susan, and Leslie Odom Jr. as Michael. Performances were June 25 through 28, 2014. Oliver Butler directed.[14]

• 2016 Off-Broadway revival

Tick, Tick... Boom! was revived in October 2016 at the Acorn Theater at Theatre Row, starring Ciara Renée, Nick Blaemire, and George Salazar.[15] Previews began on October 4, the show opened on October 20, and it closed on December 18, 2016. It was directed by Jonathan Silverstein, the Artistic Director of Keen Company.[1] Lilli Cooper took over the role of Susan on November 22, 2016.[16]

A film adaptation of Tick, Tick... Boom!, directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda, was produced by Ron Howard, Brian Grazer and Julie Oh.[19] The screenplay is written by Steven Levenson. The film was Miranda's feature-length directorial debut.[20][21] 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.[22] The film stars Andrew Garfield as Larson.[23]

Wikiquote has quotations related to Tick, Tick... Boom!.

• ​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