The Playwrights Database
BILL RUSSELL
Nationality: USA
email: n/a Website: Click here
Literary Agent: Samuel French Inc
Bill Russell wrote the book and lyrics for the critically acclaimed Broadway musical Side Show, receiving a Tony nomination for book and sharing a nomination with composer Henry Krieger for score. He also directed that show at the Park Square Theatre in St. Paul and Morningside College in Sioux City, Iowa. Mr. Russell co-wrote the book and lyrics for Off-Broadway's long-running musical Pageant (with collaborators Frank Kelly, Albert Evans, and Robert Longbottom), and directed it at the King's Head Theatre in London. That production transferred to the West End, received two Olivier Award nominations and won that prestigious prize for Best Supporting Performance in a Musical for Miles Western's portrayal of Miss West Coast. Mr. Russell subsequently directed Pageant in Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Boston, and at the University of Kansas. He authored the book and lyrics for Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens (music by Janet Hood), directing it in New York and in London's Fringe and West End, among many others, including a celebrity benefit in New York which was recorded by Fynsworth Alley. Everything's Ducky (written with Henry Krieger and Jeffrey Hatcher) premiered with TheatreWorks of California and subsequently received several successful regional productions, garnering the Will Glickman Award for Best Play (S.F. Bay area) and the Backstage West Garland Award for Best Score. A revised version under the new title Lucky Duck was directed by John Rando (Urinetown) at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego and Mr. Russell directed a version at the Boston Conservatory. The Coterie Theatre in Kansas City, MO, commissioned a version for young audiences and their production played the New Victory Theatre in New York City in March, 2012. Mr. Russell's latest musical with Henry Krieger, Up in the Air, premiered at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. under the direction of Amon Miyamoto, who also conceived the project. The Last Smoker in America (music by Peter Melnick) was present at NYMF (New York Musical Theatre Festival) in 2009, had its world premiere in Columbus, Ohio, in 2010 and Off-Broadway premiere in 2012. Mr. Russell's other credits as Bookwriter/Lyricist include: Off-Broadway's Fourtune and The Texas Chainsaw Musical (co-author), Family Style (Minneapolis), and Kept (with Henry Krieger and Steven Chbosky), which premiered at TheatreWorks of California and was subsequently performed at the Edinburgh Festival. He adapted the book of Call Me Madam (starring Tyne Daly) for City Center Encores! His credits as Lyricist include the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular, the official theme for Gay Games and the women's duo Jade & Sarsaparilla. Mr. Russell's directing credits include John Augustine's Generation X, the comedy team of Monteith and Rand (on and off Broadway and at theaters around the nation) and Jeff Mandels' And Somewhere Men Are Laughing for the 2007 New York International Fringe Festival. He has been honored with two Gilman/Gonzalez-Falla Commendation Awards and honorary doctorates from his first alma mater, Morningside College and the Boston Conservatory.
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below is a list of Bill Russell's plays - click on a Play Title for more information
Elegies For Angels, Punks And Raging Queens Fourtune Kept Last Smoker in America, The Lucky Duck Pageant Side Show Up In The Air:The Story of Boonah, the Tree Climbing FrogElegies For Angels, Punks And Raging Queens
A celebration of lives lost to AIDS told in free verse monologues with a blues, jazz and rock score, this piece is designed to include the community in a theatrical response to the AIDS crisis. It is often performed as a benefit for fund raising and consciousness raising.
Notes:
music by Janet Hood
1st Produced:
Ohio Theatre, New York
1989
Organisations:
-
1st Published:
Samuel French, London, 1991
Music:
Original cast recording: First Night Cast (35) 1993
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Genre:
Verbal Snippets. - - Gay/Lesbian, musical
Parts:
Male: 20 Female: 11 Other: -
Further Reference:
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Top of PageFourtune
Synopsis:
A bisexual couple seduce a hetrosexual couple
Notes:
Music by Sue Zernel; lyrics And book by Bill Russell
1st Produced:
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Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
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To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies
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Genre:
Musical. - - Gay/Lesbian musical
Parts:
Male: - Female: - Other: -
Further Reference:
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Top of PageKept
Synopsis:
Caleigh is a kept woman - she is the mistress of a billionaire. they both frequent the same exclusive disco. Young jaded gay man about town Slade introduces a med-school friend Ian to the disco. Ian meets Caleigh and they fall in love. they runaway together - Caleigh giving up her rich life style. Ian's mother tracks them down and begs Caleigh to give up Ian so that he can continue his studies
Notes:
Music by Henry Kreiger; lyrics by Bill Russell; book by Stephen Chbotsky; Bill Russell
1st Produced:
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Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
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To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies
Booksellers:
Genre:
Musical
Parts:
Male: - Female: - Other: -
Further Reference:
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Top of PageLast Smoker in America, The
he Last Smoker in America is a raucous, irreverent and unfiltered new musical comedy, with book and lyrics by Tony Award nominee Bill Russell (Side Show) and music by Drama Desk nominee Peter Melnick (Adrift in Macao). Enter an America where the government is in your kitchen, sniffing for outlawed cigarettes! The extreme anti-smoking laws test the sanity of one suburban family. Pam is having an impossible time trying to quit. Her husband Ernie retreats to the basement to relive the rock star dreams of his youth, while their teenage son Jimmy only turns away from his videogames to explore his gangster rapper persona. Adding to the dysfunctional dynamic is anti-smoking fanatic Phyllis, the neighbor who can't keep her nose out of everyone else's business. This original and hilarious new musical will leave you craving for more!
Notes:
book and lyrics by Bill Russell; music by Peter Melnick
1st Produced:
45th Street Theatre, NY
12 Oct 2009
Organisations:
2009 New York Musical Theatre Festival
1st Published:
Music:
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Genre:
Musical Comedy 90 min
Parts:
Male: 2 Female: 2 Other: -
Further Reference:
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Top of PageLucky Duck
Synopsis:
Ugly duckling Serena runs away to New Duck City. She meets Galinda the cities most fashionable Goose and Prince Drake. Wolf a talent scout takes her on as a fashion model. He claims he no longer eats meat
Notes:
Music by Henry Krieger; lyrics by Bill Russell; book by Bill Russell And Jeffrey Hatcher
1st Produced:
New Victory theater
229 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036 16 Mar 2012
229 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036 16 Mar 2012
Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
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To Buy This Play:
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Genre:
Musical
Parts:
Male: 5 Female: 5 Other: -
Further Reference:
apply for a license: www.theatricalrights.com/contact-us/
Top of PagePageant
Each night a club puts on a beauty contest. Always the same contenders but each night the audience gets to choose who should be crowned Miss Glamouresse. (All the contestants are played by men)
Notes:
Music by Albert Evans; lyrics And book by Frank Kelly; Bill Russell
1st Produced:
Blue Angel, New York
02 May 1991
Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
Australian cast recording: Polydor (537156) 1997
To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies
Booksellers:
Genre:
Musical
Parts:
Male: - Female: - Other: -
Further Reference:
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Top of PageSide Show
Side Show was inspired by the lives of Daisy and Violet Hilton, conjoined twins born in Brighton, England, in 1908. While children, they moved to America and became known as "San Antonio's Siamese Twins." In the 1920s, the Hilton sisters made a change from side show attraction to star performers on the vaudeville circuit, earning $3,000 a week during the Great Depression. In 1936, Violet was married on the fifty-yard-line of the Cotton Bowl, in front of a paying audience as the finale of the Texas Centennial celebration. On film they appeared in Tod Browning's Freaks and the '50s B-film Chained for Life. Daisy and Violet died penniless and alone of influenza within hours of each other in North Carolina in 1969. A unique musical that explores what makes us all different and how beauty is truly only skin deep, Side Show tells the amazing story of how these talented and extraordinary women navigate their feelings, dream of life and love beyond the freak show and long to be like everyone else. Learn about their lives as side show attractions, beloved vaudeville stars, and two sisters attached for life.
Notes:
Book And lyrics by Bill Russell; Music by Henry Krieger.
1st Produced:
Richard Rogers Theatre, New York
16 Oct 1997
Organisations:
gallery players
1st Published:
Music:
Original cast recording: Sony (60258) 1997
To Buy This Play:
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Genre:
Musical
Parts:
Male: 14 Female: 7 Other: -
Further Reference:
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Top of PageUp In The Air:The Story of Boonah, the Tree Climbing Frog
Synopsis:
Boonah the Tree Frog discovers the nest of a hawk and bits of creatures it has eaten
Notes:
Written by Henry Krieger and Bill Russell
1st Produced:
Kennedy Center For The Performing Arts, Washington D C
07 Feb 2008
Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
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To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies
Booksellers:
Genre:
Musical
Parts:
Male: - Female: - Other: -
Further Reference:
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