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Jonathan Larson

ジョナサン・ラーソン

Jonasan Rāson

Aliases: Jonathan David Larson / Jon Larson

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1960-02-04 （Mount Vernon, New York）
Died
1996-01-25 （New York City） age 35
Nationality
American
Languages
English
Religion
Judaism
Residence History
Mount Vernon, New York → Garden City, New York → Lower Manhattan, New York City

Career

Occupations
Composer, Lyricist, Playwright
Active Years
1982-1996
Affiliations
ASCAP, Actors' Equity Association
Memberships
Actors' Equity Association
Influenced By
Stephen Sondheim, Elton John, Billy Joel
Influenced
Lin-Manuel Miranda
Nominations
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical, Tick, Tick... Boom!, 2002, Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music, Tick, Tick... Boom!, 2002, Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics, Tick, Tick... Boom!, 2002

Education

White Plains High School
Drama
Period: -1978
Year of Graduation: 1978
Country: United States
Performed lead roles in school productions
Adelphi University
Acting
Degree: BFA
Period: 1978-1982
Year of Graduation: 1982
Country: United States
Four-year scholarship as acting major; began composing music

Awards

Pulitzer Prize for Drama
1996
Work: Rent
Category: Drama
Organization: Pulitzer Prize Board
Result: Won
Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical
1996
Work: Rent
Organization: Tony Awards
Result: Won
Tony Award for Best Musical
1996
Work: Rent
Organization: Tony Awards
Result: Won
Tony Award for Best Original Score
1996
Work: Rent
Organization: Tony Awards
Result: Won
Richard Rodgers Production Award
Work: Superbia
Organization: American Academy of Arts and Letters
Result: Won

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Rent

1996 Rock Musical

A rock musical depicting the lives of young bohemians in New York's East Village during the AIDS epidemic, loosely based on Puccini's La Bohème.

multiculturalismsubstance use disorderhomophobiaAIDS
Adaptations
  • [Film] Rent / Chris Columbus (2005)

Tick, Tick... Boom!

1991 Rock Monologue

Autobiographical rock monologue about Larson's struggles, including disappointment from Superbia. Produced off-Broadway posthumously.

Artist's strugglesPressure of time
Adaptations
  • [Off-Broadway] Tick, Tick... Boom! / :null (2001)
  • [Film] Tick, Tick... Boom! / Lin-Manuel Miranda (2021)

Superbia

1983 Musical

Futuristic musical adaptation inspired by George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four. Never fully produced.

DystopiaSurveillance society

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Rock musical styleAutobiographical narrativeSocial realism
Recurring Motifs
AIDS crisisBohemian lifeStruggle for creativity

Health

  • Aortic dissection
    1996年1月
    Cause of death the day before Rent's first preview. Misdiagnosed at hospitals.
  • Marfan syndrome (undiagnosed)
    生涯？
    Possible contributing factor to aortic dissection.

Legacy

Rent ran for 5,123 performances on Broadway, becoming a cultural phenomenon. Posthumously awarded Pulitzer and three Tonys. Jonathan Larson Grants support emerging musical theater artists. Works adapted into films.

Archives

  • Library of Congress

In Popular Culture

  • Portrayed by Andrew Garfield in the 2021 film Tick, Tick... Boom!, earning critical acclaim.

Trivia

  • From a Jewish family; grandfather born in Russia changed surname to Larson.
  • Worked as a waiter at Moondance Diner, training future Rent cast member Jesse L. Martin.
  • Died of an aortic dissection the day before Rent's first off-Broadway preview.