Les Spindle – Frontiers L.A. Known as the world’s longest-running musical (Off-Broadway from 1960-2002), this fanciful fable by composer Harvey Schmidt and librettist Tom Jones is largely consider a gem. Now running through June 5 is widely considered a gem. Alternating whimsy, Shakespearean-flavored romance, slapstick and slightly darker elements, the simple love story has a classical feel. Read … Read more
Neal Weaver – ArtsInLA When this modest little musical, with book and lyrics by Tom Jones and music by Harvey Schmidt, first opened Off-Broadway in 1960, no one could have predicted the astonishing success it would achieve. It ran for a grand 42 years, racking up an astronomical 17,162 performances, and has since been performed … Read more
Neal Weaver – Stage Raw It was probably historically inevitable that N. Richard Nash’s Broadway comedy The Rainmaker would have been turned into a musical by Nash, working with the creators of The Fantasticks, Harvey Schmidt (music) and Tom Jones (lyrics). Read more… Now running through June 15.
THE FANTASTICKS – Book and lyrics by Tom Jones, music by Harvey Schmidt. David C. Nichols — L.A. Times The delicate theatricality of “The Fantasticks” has weathered countless editions worldwide since its off-Broadway premiere in 1960. But Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt’s adaptation of Edmond Rostand’s “Les Romanesques” has perhaps never before enjoyed the elevated insight of … Read more