With music and book by Steve Martin and music and lyrics by Edie Brickell, BRIGHT STAR is based on an original story by Martin and Brickell and features direction by Walter Bobbie.
Inspired by an astonishing true event, the wholly original new musical BRIGHT STAR tells a sweeping tale of love and redemption set against the rich backdrop of the American South in the 1920s and 40s. When successful literary editor Alice Murphy meets an ambitious young soldier just home from World War II, their connection inspires Alice to confront a shocking incident from her past. Together they discover a long-buried secret with the power to transform their lives.
There's much to admire in the final product: The musical is twangy and tightly performed, with a sweeping score. My enjoyment was muted only by the mostly modest character development...Cusack, who reminded me a bit of Donna Murphy, does proud justice to a tough role. Paul Alexander Nolan...has an easygoing confidence as another character we get to know at different stages of life...Martin and Brickell's music is rootsy and most often joyful...Of Martin's book, I felt that too often I was being told what to feel, without being given opportunity to feel it. Connective tissue between the storylines, probably intended to sneak up on us at the end, seemed obvious halfway through the first act...It's not a perfect musical; this 'Star' doesn't always guide the way, but at times it beams brightly enough.
Arriving on Broadway after several out-of-town tryouts, Bright Star is still suffering some issues of scale. The story it tells is a small and tender one and the staging and the music, playful and lovely, sometimes struggle to fill the house. The most emblematic aspect: a toy train that trundles on a trestle above the stage to suggest the journeys that characters take, an effect both charming and chintzy.
2016Â Â | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
2017Â Â | US Tour |
First National Tour US Tour |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2016 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Musical | Carmen Cusack |
2016 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Costume Design for a Musical | Jane Greenwood |
2016 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical | A.J. Shively |
2016 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical | Paul Alexander Nolan |
2016 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Music | Edie Brickell |
2016 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Music | Steve Martin |
2016 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Orchestrations | August Eriksmoen |
2016 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Sound Design in a Musical | Nevin Steinberg |
2016 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Carmen Cusack |
2016 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Musical | Bright Star |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Musical | Carmen Cusack |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Book of a Musical (Broadway or off-Broadway) | Steve Martin |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Choreography | Josh Rhodes |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Costume Design (Play or Musical) | Jane Greenwood |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Director of a Musical | Walter Bobbie |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding New Broadway Musical | Bright Star |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding New Score (Broadway or off-Broadway) | Edie Brickell |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding New Score (Broadway or off-Broadway) | Steve Martin |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Book of a Musical | Steve Martin |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Bright Star |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Orchestrations | August Eriksmoen |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre | Steve Martin |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre | Edie Brickell |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical | Carmen Cusack |
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