Road Show Libretti

Addison Mizner and Wilson Mizner were brothers who, although they played only a minor role in the cultural history of this country, might well be seen to represent two divergent aspects of American energy: the builder and the squanderer.Stephen Sondheim The score is full of delights, intelligence and tension . . . with a tight, funny book.New York Daily News Road Show, Stephen Sondheims first musical since his 1994 Tony Awardwinner Passion, is making its highly anticipated New York premiere this season at the Public Theater. The showwith the book by John Weidman, Sondheims collaborator from Pacific Overtures and Assassinshas been in development for several years with productions in Chicago and Washington, DC, and grew from an idea that germinated in Sondheims mind some fifty years ago. The show dramatizes the real-life Mizner brothers, following their fortunes from the 1890s Alaskan gold rush to the 1920s Florida land boom: Addison as an architect and Wilson as a con man, each brother seeking his own American dream. Stephen Sondheims career spans from his work as lyricist for West Side Story and Gypsy, to composer/lyricist on such masterpieces as Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, and Sunday in the Park with George. John Weidman wrote the books for Sondheims Pacific Overtures and Assassins, and he co-authored the books for Americas Sweetheart and the revival of Anything Goes. He also co-created, with Susan Stroman, the Tony Awardwinning Contact.