Tick, Tick... BOOM!
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Tick, Tick... BOOM! is a musical written by Jonathan Larson concerning a starving artist, Jon, in New York City, who is worried he has made the wrong career choice to be part of the performing arts. His friend Michael, who has abandoned his dreams of the theater, is now becoming a successful businessman, and his work is beginning to interfere with his relationship with his girlfriend, Susan. The story is considered to be autobiographical, as stated by Larson's father in the liner notes of the cast recording. It was originally produced Off-Off-Broadway as a rock monologue, a new form of theatre for the time. Though it has not been as successful as Larson's later work, Rent, Tick, Tick... Boom! stands up as a musical with its own merits. The musical was produced off-Broadway in 2001 with a number of changes. First, it was changed from a one-character play to a three-character play; the actor playing Jon plays that role throughout the show, but the actors playing Michael and Susan are responsible for all the other roles in the show. Also, the script and score were streamlined and edited. This version, which starred Raul Esparza as Jon, Jerry Dixon as Michael, and Amy Spanger as Susan, had a cast recording produced and is licensed for production by Music Theatre International. It was produced in London in June 2005 at the Menier Chocolate Factory.
Songs include "30/90", the pop opening to the musical, "Green Green Dress", a rollicking piano boogie, and "Sunday", originally a Stephen Sondheim song with modified lyrics for the musical. On the cast recording, one of the few recordings of Larson's voice is found in "Boho Days", extracted from a demo tape recorded by Larson during the development of Tick, Tick... BOOM!