Rock, energy take the stage in ‘Tick, Tick … BOOM!’

Before he wrote the musical “Rent,” a Broadway hit that won the Tony Award for Best Musical in 1996, composer and playwright Jonathan Larson produced and acted in his own one-man show, “Tick, Tick ... BOOM!”

Audience members will get to see the edited and updated version of Larson’s lesser-known musical, produced by student-run organization Hoosier Musical Productions. The show will start at 7:30 p.m. today at the John Waldron Arts Center.

“This show is more intriguing,” siad director and IU senior John Lerner. “It’s Larson’s life before ‘Rent’. It’s the grind, the struggle. It’s about his life, the crappy job he had.”

Larson wrote the contemporary rock musical to address his fear of never becoming a successful playwright. In the show, Larson’s 30th birthday approaches, which he fears will also be the death of his dreams. This impending expiration is marked by the “Tick,Tick ...” of a bomb.

Lerner, who also serves as the organization’s executive director, said Larson was offered a job to work at a marketing firm, but chose to work in a diner for four and a half years so he could write and perform musical theater.

“It’s so inspiring,” Lerner said. “He had no money, wasn’t getting produced, but he kept not giving up. Ultimately, I like the message. This show is a tribute to him. He’s an icon for never letting yourself be steered off course.”

The production, which began rehearsing in September has a three-person cast. The main character, Jon himself, is played by freshman Bradley Strohmeyer.

“Playing Jon gives me a positive outlook on what I want to do,” Strohmeyer said. “Thing’s get stressful, but you don’t give up. You have to do what you like.”

The remaining two main characters include Jon’s girlfriend, Susan, played by sophomore Stephanie Cohen, and his best friend Michael, played by junior Nathan Mittleman. 

“With only three of us in the cast, we had a lot of time to explore different things,” Cohen said. “It’s been a lot of fun to get to know them.”

While the show has three main characters, both Cohen and Mittleman also take on secondary roles throughout the performance, ranging from Jon’s parents to his agent. Both actors, Lerner said, portray 10 to 12 roles in total.

“It’s been tough, I play five to six other characters,” Cohen said. “It’s really fun but different. In one scene alone, I play three characters. It’s great practice.”

Lerner said when Hoosier Musical Productions auditioned for the part of Susan and Michael, diversity was key.

“At call backs I had a few people read from excerpts from random plays,” Lerner said. “I wanted to see what they could do with it.”

Lerner said that while he hopes audiences will appreciate the show as a tribute to Larson’s life and work, it is also a fun show that is relevant to everyone.

“Honestly, it’s a great show. It’s really funny,” Lerner said. “It’s fun. It’s got a lot of really high energy numbers. It’s about feeling energized and alive, and it’s a show that’s really fun to watch.”