Toni Tucci

BWW Review: MASS a Towering Achievement That Soars, Lifts and Inspires

MASS: A Theatre Piece for Singers, Players, and Dancers, is a musical theatre piece composed by Leonard Bernstein with additional lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and Paul Simon. Commissioned by Jacqueline Kennedy, it premiered on September 8, 1971. Bernstein originally intended to compose a traditional Mass, but eventually settled on this more innovative form. It uses the Tridentine Mass of the Roman Catholic Church as its basis. While the liturgical passages are sung in Latin, MASS also includes added passages in English written by Bernstein, composer Stephen Schwartz, and Paul Simon (who wrote the first quatrain of 'Half of the People'). Intended to be staged theatrically, it has also been performed in concert format. This production has the added bonus of subtitling above the stage, although it really isn't necessar y.