Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and (usually uncredited) director in musical theater for nearly 40 years. He won eight Tony Awards and two Academy Awards for Best Original Song. Many of his songs are standard repertoire for vocalists and jazz musicians. He co-wrote 850 songs.
He is best known for his collaborations with composer Richard Rodgers, as the duo Rodgers and Hammerstein, whose musicals include Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I, and The Sound of Music. Described by Stephen Sondheim as an "experimental playwright", Hammerstein helped bring the American musical to new ... read more
Broadway: Venus in Fur, Time Stands Still, A View from the Bridge, The Royal Family, The Color Purple, Doubt, Chicago, Dinner at Eight, Proof, Rabbit Hole, Last Night of Ballyhoo, A Delicate Balance, The Heiress, The Most Happy Fella, The Sisters Rosensweig, Burn This, Penn & Teller, Ain't Misbehavin', Talley's Folly, Crimes of the Heart, Morning's at Seven, among others.
Off-Broadway: Other Desert Cities, The Substance of Fire, A Life in the Theatre. Thirty-six seasons with MTC, Lincoln Center, Circle Rep, City Center Encores! Tony, Obie, DD, OCC awards; Theatre Hall of Fame.
Graduate of Brown and Yale School of ... read more
Robert Russell Bennett orchestrated more than 300 Broadway musical scores including Show Boat; No, No, Nanette; Of Thee I Sing; Face the Music; Oklahoma!; Carmen Jones; Finian's Rainbow; Kiss Me, Kate; South Pacific; The King and I; My Fair Lady; and Camelot. His arrangements for the 1955 film version of Oklahoma! earned him an Academy Award. He also orchestrated and arranged Richard Rodgers' TV documentary score for "Victory at Sea." A classically trained composer, Bennett's prolific output of original compositions includes symphonies, sonatas, a ballet, a concerto and an opera. ... read more
Broadway: All The Way, Driving Miss Daisy, Grey Gardens, They’re Playing Our Song, The Elephant Man, My One and Only, The Heidi Chronicles, The Will Rogers Follies, Having Our Say, Company, Racing Demon, Ragtime, John Leguizamo’s Freak, The Capeman, Putting It Together and The Who’s Tommy. Off Broadway: Sunday in the Park with George, Angels in America, Hapgood, Merrily We Roll Along (four times!) and Whistle Down the Wind. Opera: Werther at the MET, Julie Taymor’s The Magic Flute in Florence, Italy, A View from the Bridge at Chicago Lyric, Die Gezeichhneten at LA Opera, The Photographer at BAM, Transatlatic, ... read more
Broadway: Lysistrata Jones (associate producer as well as sound design); …Drood (Drama Desk Award); First Date (associate producer); Pal Joey; The Ritz; Laugh Whore; Man of La Mancha; Sweet Smell of Success; Copenhagen; Kiss Me, Kate; Footloose; The Lion King (Drama Desk Award); The Sound of Music; A Christmas Carol (MSG); Steel Pier; Forum; The King and I; Moon Over Buffalo; Smokey Joe’s Cafe; Guys and Dolls; Five Guys Named Moe; She Loves Me; The Red Shoes; Anything Goes. London: Kiss Me, Kate; The Lion King; Smokey Joe’s Cafe; and Anything Goes. National and international: The Lion King, Les Miserables, ... read more
