Female Musical Theater Writers - Part I

Regretting Almost Everything is a two-person musical comedy with book and lyrics by an older woman who sees the world through the lens of motherhood. Though an incredibly common perspective, and a far richer, more complex and nuance perspective than that of someone who has not experienced being human from this side of the mother-child relationship, it is a perspective that continues to be virtually non-existent in world of musical theater.

 Earlier this week, I went to Playbill and looked at the list of currently running and upcoming Broadway musicals and checked to see who wrote book, music and lyrics. (I did not count the songwriters of the jukebox musicals, nor the Melissa Ethridge musical).

 With respect to the shows currently running, of the 41 writers of book, music and/or lyrics, 8 were women. Of those 8, I was able to confirm that 4 are moms. Of the announced upcoming musicals, three of 20 are women, and to the best of my knowledge, only one has kids. This may be better than it’s been in the past, but that’s not saying much.

 It’s particularly appalling and infuriating because such a huge percentage of the MT ticket buyers are older women, many of whom are presumably moms. And yes, we go to the theatre to be see stories about people and experiences that are different than ours. But we also go to the theatre to see our experiences validated — to discover we’re not alone. Unfortunately, if you’re a mature woman who’s also a mom, you’re not going to find validation at a Broadway musical.

 I have lots more to say on the subject, and theories about why this is the case. Maybe I’ll write about them later. In the meantime, here’s a list of musicals currently running on Broadway with a woman writer:

Hadestown                  Anais Mitchell: Book, Music and Lyrics

Kimberly Akimbo        Jeanine Tesori: Music

The Lion King              Irene Mecchi: Book (Co-writer)

MJ                               Lynn Nottage: Book

Shucked                       Brandy Clark: Music and Lyrics (Co-writer)

SIX                               Lucy Moss: Book, Music and Lyrics (Co-writer)

Some Like It Hot         Amber Ruffin: Book (Co-writer)

Wicked                        Winnie Holzman: Book

Coming up: List of women writers on musicals scheduled to open on Broadway this season, and a playlist of musical theater songs with lyrics written by women who are moms.