First published 2018
Andrew Lloyd Webber opens his memoir by reflecting on his extraordinary luck in musical theatre, where he has dominated for nearly fifty years. The composer traces his journey from a bohemian London childhood, where he built the Harrington Pavilion as his private musical theatre world, to becoming the creator of Broadway's most celebrated shows. He reveals his artistic influences, from Rodgers and Hammerstein to Puccini to T.S. Eliot, and chronicles the development of his major works. Lloyd Webber details writing songs for a school production that became Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, assembling performers for the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar, and creating his first megahit Evita, which captured seven Tony Awards. He recounts staking everything on Cats and making history with The Phantom of the Opera, Broadway's longest running show. Through witty anecdotes and celebrity encounters with figures like Sarah Brightman, Barbra Streisand, and Michael Crawford, Lloyd Webber exposes the creative battles and artistic challenges behind each production, revealing the man behind the legendary composer.
Genres: 20th-century, autobiography, biography-memoir, music, 21st-century, musicals
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: memoir, personal-journey
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
528 pages · Hardcover · Harper