From rock stars to theatrical innovators, these creative forces weren't content to just write the shows - they had to perform in them too! Join us as we celebrate the talented writers who brought their own stories to life on stage, proving they could shine in the spotlight as well as behind the scenes.
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00:00Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks
00:11for the quadruple threats who wrote and starred in their own musicals.
00:16She'd say, Janet, you could tell a whole story with a taste.
00:21Yeah.
00:23Number 10. Billy Joe Armstrong, American Idiot.
00:27My name is Saint Jimmy, I'm a son of a gun, I'm the one that's from the wild side now.
00:33In 2004, Green Day released American Idiot, a rock opera album capturing the unrest of a
00:39generation coming of age in a post-9-11 world. In 2010, the album became a stage musical that
00:45expanded on its themes and featured a few additional songs. During its run, Green Day's
00:51frontman and the show's book co-writer, Billy Joe Armstrong, played Saint Jimmy,
00:56a reckless figment of protagonist Johnny's imagination.
01:05His presence sent ticket sales soaring, and he returned for the show's last three weeks
01:09on Broadway, too. Who better to bring the soundtrack's raw energy to life than the
01:13guy who poured his heart into the music to begin with?
01:16I was really, really nervous about whether I could do it at all.
01:20He didn't want the press to come, he didn't want people to talk about it.
01:26Number 9. Betty Comden and Adolph Green, On the Town.
01:31Well, I think we thought of ourselves more as performers than writers.
01:34Right, right.
01:35Because we wrote in order to have something to perform,
01:38since we couldn't afford to pay royalties to anybody else.
01:42You might not know their names, but you definitely know their work.
01:46Wonderful Town, Singing in the Rain, The Will Rogers Follies, and On the Town.
01:51Comden and Green didn't just write some of Broadway's most iconic musicals,
01:55they also put themselves in the original On the Town cast.
01:58Green played Ozzie, a sailor on the lookout for a date,
02:02while Comden played Claire, an anthropologist with a fiery streak.
02:06Their duet, Carried Away, is a standout,
02:08hilarious number about how their big personalities always seem to get, well, carried away.
02:16With their sharp wit and irresistible charm,
02:30Comden and Green left their mark both on stage and behind the scenes.
02:42Number 8. Tom Jones, The Fantastics.
02:45One of them strikes a pose and he says,
02:49Sir, the players have arrived.
02:52We know what you're thinking, but no, not that Tom Jones.
03:04This Tom Jones was an American librettist best known for The Fantastics.
03:08In the original off-Broadway run, he played the role of Henry, the old actor,
03:12under the pseudonym Thomas Bruce.
03:14He kept tweaking the show throughout its incredible 42-year run, between 1960 and 2002.
03:34He even stepped back on stage for various revivals,
03:37once even taking on directing duties too.
03:40He also wrote the screenplay when The Fantastics was adapted into a film in 1995.
03:57From writing to acting to directing,
04:00he certainly left his mark on the show from every angle imaginable.
04:04Number 7. Dave Malloy, Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812.
04:10What are you most afraid of?
04:11The singing, the dancing, the acting, the accordion, the piano.
04:16I swear, I am most concerned about, I am most concerned about that bottle and the book.
04:22Dave Malloy wasn't just the brains behind the music and lyrics for The Great Comet,
04:26he was also the musical director, orchestrator, and for a while, Pierre Vesucov himself.
04:32Pierre's music, you know, Pierre is going through this epic existential life crisis,
04:36so I was just thinking of a lot of like indie rock and kind of emo rock bands.
04:40In fact, he played Pierre during the final two weeks of the Broadway run.
04:44The show, inspired by War and Peace, started at the tiny Ars Nova Theatre in 2012,
04:50where Malloy also played Pierre.
04:52From there, it moved to a bigger space in the Meatpacking District,
04:55before finally hitting Broadway.
04:57With its unique style and immersive experience,
05:00the show offered theatergoers something truly special.
05:03Those lucky enough to see Malloy in the role must have had an unforgettable experience.
05:34You probably know Sting from his time in the police or his solo career,
05:40which has earned him 17 Grammys and a spot in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
05:44In 2014, he brought The Last Ship, a musical inspired by his youth in a northern England
05:50shipbuilding town, to Broadway.
05:51The show featured some of his familiar hits, but mostly new material.
06:04Sting showcased the title song at the Tony Awards and later joined the Broadway cast
06:12as Jackie White for a limited time during the final weeks of its run.
06:16He reprised the role in Toronto and continued with the show during its 2020 national tour.
06:21When we dance,
06:25Sting just wouldn't run and hide
06:29Number 5.
06:30Harvey Fierstein, La Cage aux Folles
06:33It's my world that I want to have a little pride in
06:40My world, and it's not a place I have to hide in
06:47We'd recognize that voice anywhere.
06:50Harvey Fierstein isn't just a performer, he's a creative force behind the scenes.
06:56He wrote and starred in shows like A Catered Affair and La Cage aux Folles,
07:00winning a Tony for Best Book of a Musical.
07:02He also played Albin slash Zaza in the 2010 Broadway revival.
07:07For Fierstein, this story has always mattered because of its message of being unapologetically
07:12yourself and living with pride.
07:14That message was even more vital in the 80s,
07:16when the AIDS crisis sadly claimed the lives of many original cast members.
07:21Though times have changed, Fierstein's powerful voice reminded audiences in 2010
07:25that embracing who you are never goes out of style.
07:29I don't want praise, I don't need pity
07:35I bang my own drum
07:38Number 4.
07:39John Cameron Mitchell, Hedwig and the Angry Inch
07:42But I could swear by your expression
07:44That the pain down in your soul was the same
07:48As the one down in mine
07:50Yeah, that's the pain
07:52This musical created a lot of buzz when it debuted,
07:55because it dealt with themes like gender identity,
07:57body dysphoria, and sexuality in a pretty honest and direct way
08:01that was still seen as taboo in the late 90s.
08:03And all the changes you've been through
08:08It seems so strange you never do
08:12Its blend of punk rock, queer themes, and raw narrative
08:15made it both groundbreaking and polarizing.
08:19Its creator played the role of Hedwig not just once, but three times.
08:23He first performed as Hedwig off-Broadway in 1998,
08:27then joined a star-studded lineup for the 2014 Broadway revival,
08:31and reprised the role in the 2001 film, which he also directed.
08:35What a thrill of control
08:39Like the rush of a riding roll
08:43It's the sweetest taste I've known
08:48No doubt he brought a ton of depth and emotion,
08:51helping the show gain a cult following.
08:54Number 3.
08:55Sara Bareilles, Waitress
08:57She's lonely
09:00Most of the time she is all of this
09:05Mixed up and baked in a beautiful pie
09:10Sara Bareilles took on the role of songwriter for Waitress
09:12after a little push from the show's director, Diane Paulus.
09:15Despite the daunting challenge,
09:17Bareilles took the job as part of her effort to step out of her comfort zone.
09:22It only takes a taste
09:25When you know it's good
09:27Sometimes one bite is more than enough
09:36While she'd always dreamed of being on stage as a child,
09:39writing a musical score wasn't something she'd imagined.
09:43Yet in 2017, she did both when she took on the role of Jenna Hunterson
09:47in Waitress on Broadway.
09:48She reprised the role in 2019 and 2021, with a West End stint in between.
09:54As the composer, she got really attached to the characters,
09:58and audiences could definitely feel her personal connection to the music.
10:02I am on the path of exploring who my Jenna is.
10:07I mean, I think that I got to meet her as I was writing this show.
10:12She's a little scrappy.
10:14Number 2.
10:15Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hamilton
10:25Lin-Manuel Miranda's talent is something else.
10:30It's almost unfair for one person to have so much.
10:33We saw it when he played Usnavi in In the Heights,
10:36and again when he took on the title role in Hamilton.
10:39Interestingly for Miranda,
10:41it wasn't a question of if he'd play a character in his show,
10:44but which one.
10:45Hamilton's like, let me be the treasury secretary.
10:47Let me do all this cool stuff.
10:48George Washington says yes.
10:49Aaron Burr's like, I'm being very left behind.
10:51I want to be in the room where it happens, room where it happens.
10:53He considered playing Aaron Burr.
10:55He does have some epic songs,
10:57but ultimately chose to play Hamilton.
10:59The role resonated with him,
11:01but it also gave him the chance to play a part
11:03that other casting directors might not have considered him for.
11:06And as the show's writer,
11:07he definitely wasn't throwing away his shot.
11:11Legacy.
11:12What is a legacy?
11:14It's planting seeds in a garden you never get to see.
11:18I wrote some notes at the beginning of a song someone will sing for me.
11:21Before we unveil our top pick,
11:23here are a few honorable mentions.
11:25Stu, passing strange.
11:28He originated the role of the narrator in his semi-autobiographical play.
11:32You don't know me and I don't know you.
11:36So let's cut to the chase, the name is Stu.
11:40And I'll be narrating this gig, so just sit tight.
11:44We might play all night.
11:49Jeff Bowen and Hunter Bell.
11:51Title of show.
11:52A show about two guys writing a show?
11:54Why not add an extra layer of meta-ness by starring in it too?
11:58Hey, that's not a bad idea.
11:59Perhaps you could use it.
12:00Music in a musical.
12:01How can we go wrong?
12:03We could ask significant questions.
12:08We could get important points across.
12:13Bob Martin, the drowsy chaperone.
12:15The book's co-writer took his turn playing the musical theater loving narrator.
12:19Oh, I love this part.
12:20It can bore you till you've nothing left to give.
12:25Seven overrated wonders.
12:27Seven underwhelming seas.
12:30Six excruciating continents.
12:33Antarctica.
12:35Oh, please.
12:38Antarctica, please.
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12:55Number 1.
12:56Richard O'Brien, The Rocky Horror Show
13:05It's been over 50 years since Rocky Horror first opened, and fans are still showing up
13:10in costume, with diehards becoming an integral part of the show with their witty call-outs.
13:16When to say it, and you'll know when to say,
13:19Damn it, Janet.
13:20Not Meatloaf again tonight.
13:22Riffraff, show us your mother.
13:24Oh, yeah, mother.
13:25Even words we can't say on television.
13:27The show's creator, who really related to its themes of gender and sexual liberation,
13:31played Riffraff in the original run.
13:33I'm not a good musician, but I think that might be a strength,
13:37because it stops you being clever.
13:39Plus, his quirkiness was a perfect match for Riffraff's dark, eccentric character.
13:46Night comes through me into my life.
13:54He played the role again in the movie adaptation,
13:57and came back as the narrator for the 40th anniversary in London,
14:00and the 50th in Australia.
14:02Audiences continue to shiver with anticipation for Rocky Horror's next visit to their town,
14:08so we won't be surprised if we see O'Brien do the time warp again.
14:11Just a job to do.
14:21Have you ever watched a musical starring the person who wrote it?
14:24If so, how were they?
14:25Let us know in the comments.
14:27When you were writing, did you think you were writing for yourselves?
14:29You were definitely going to be a part of it.
14:30We picked those two parts, and we were determined to get those parts.
14:34Do you agree with our picks?
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