Ryan Scott Oliver (born August 27, 1984) is an American musical theatre composer and lyricist. He is a 2011 Lucille Lortel Award Nominee and the recipient of both the 2009 Jonathan Larson Grant and the 2008

Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theater The Richard Rodgers Award is an annual award presented by the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and was created and endowed by Richard Rodgers in 1978 for the development of new works in musical theatre. These awards provide financial support ...

. Oliver is an adjunct professor at Pace University in New York, and Artistic Director of the Pasadena Musical Theatre Program in California. He received his B.A. in Music Composition from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

and his M.F.A. in Musical Theatre Writing from the

Tisch School of the Arts The New York University Tisch School of the Arts (commonly referred to as Tisch) is the performing, cinematic and media arts school of New York University. Founded on August 17, 1965, Tisch is a training ground for artists, scholars of the a ...

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

. He is also creator of the blog ''Crazytown'' and member of A.S.C.A.P. Oliver's work has been heard at the Writers Guild Awards, Off-Broadway in TheatreWorksUSA's ''We the People'', and countless showcases. Ryan, along with actress

Lindsay Mendez Lindsay Michelle Mendez (born March 1, 1983) is an American actress and singer, best known for her work in American musical theatre. Mendez won the 2018 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance as Carrie Pipperidge i ...

, founded and currently runs Actor Therapy: a five-week training experience for young actors in NYC. He is openly

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

and is married to photographer Matthew Murphy.

Early life

Oliver was born in Pasadena, California and his interest in musicals began at 9 years old when he joined a local summer musical theater camp. In 2004, Oliver took over the program as Artistic Director and renamed it the Pasadena Musical Theatre Program. Oliver also attended the

Los Angeles County High School for the Arts Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (LACHSA, ) is a visual and performing arts high school located on the campus of California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) in Los Angeles, California, United States. History The school was ...

Works

''Mrs. Sharp''

''Mrs. Sharp'' (previously called ''Alive at Ten''), with music and lyrics by Oliver and book by Kirsten Guenther, is loosely based on the 1991 teacher-student sex scandal and murder trial surrounding

Pamela Smart Pamela Ann Smart (née Wojas; born August 16, 1967) is an American woman who was convicted of being an accomplice to first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and witness tampering. In 1990, at age 22, Smart conspired with her underaged ...

. ''Mrs. Sharp'' was given a staged reading at

Playwrights Horizons Playwrights Horizons is a not-for-profit Off-Broadway theater located in New York City dedicated to the support and development of contemporary American playwrights, composers, and lyricists, and to the production of their new work. Under the ...

in 2009 in a production directed by

Michael Greif Michael Greif (born ca. 1959 in Brooklyn, New YorkWelsh, Anne Marie, "New York and family call Michael Greif home", ''The San Diego Union-Tribune'', October 10, 1999, p.E-1) is an American stage director. He has won three Obie Awards and received ...

with

Jane Krakowski Jane Krakowski (; ; born October 11, 1968) is an American actress, comedienne, and singer. She is best known for her starring role as Jenna Maroney in the NBC satirical comedy series ''30 Rock'' (2006–2013, 2020), for which she received four ...

as the title character. Playwright Horizons described ''Mrs. Sharp'' as:

''Darling''

''Darling'', conceived by Brett Ryback and with the book, music and lyrics by Oliver, is a dark retelling of J.M. Barrie's

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythi ...

. It follows sixteen year-old Darling in 1920s New England, and her adventures with Peter, a rent-boy. With him, she explores the seedy underground world of drugs, sex, and a white powder called Dust. ''Darling'' was featured on the "Bound for Broadway" episode of

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

's ''

The Apprentice ''The Apprentice'' is a reality talent game show franchise originally aired in 2004 in the United States. Created by U.S.-based British producer Mark Burnett, the show depicts contestants from around the country with various professional backg ...

'' in 2010, and was presented by Pace New Musicals Program in 2009, and in 2012, was given a private workshop and developmental production as a collaboration between Retrop Production and RareWorks Theatre Company, in association with

Sh-K-Boom Records Sh-K-Boom Records is an independent record label and producer of recorded and live entertainment, which was founded in 2000 by Kurt Deutsch with the mission of bridging the gap between pop music and theater. In 2004 Sh-K-Boom created their secon ...

, at Emerson College. In 2013, ''Darling'' received

The Weston Playhouse Theatre Company ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

New Musical Award. In 2019, a staged reading of "Darling" was performed at NYU's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development.

''35MM''

''35MM'', a multimedia "musical exhibition" in which photographic images, by Oliver in collaboration with photographer Matthew Murphy inspire music and lyrics, and inversely music and lyrics inspire photographs, is preserved as an original cast recording by the Ghostlight label. A full developmental production was presented at Urban Stages in December 2010, directed by Daisy Prince. ''35MM ''made its Off-Broadway World Premiere at the Galapagos Art Space in New York City on March 7, 2012. Due to popular demand, the show was extended and sold out its run. ''35MM'' is currently being licensed and has received productions in Baltimore, MD, Dayton, OH, London and Canada in 2013. In June 2015, it made its Australian premiere in the inaugural season of Harvest Rain's Incubator Series in Brisbane, Queensland.

''Jasper in Deadland''

Jasper in Deadland Jasper, an aggregate of microgranular quartz and/or cryptocrystalline chalcedony and other mineral phases,Kostov, R. I. 2010. Review on the mineralogical systematics of jasper and related rocks. – Archaeometry Workshop, 7, 3, 209-213PDF/ref> ...

'' is a pop-rock musical based on the myth of

Orpheus and Eurydice The ancient legend of Orpheus and Eurydice (, ''Orpheus, Eurydikē'') concerns the fateful love of Orpheus of Thrace for the beautiful Eurydice. Orpheus was the son of Apollo and the muse Calliope. It may be a late addition to the Orpheus myths ...

. It follows 16-year-old Jasper Jarvis as he travels through the Afterlife on a mission to save his best friend, Agnes.'' Jasper in Deadland'' was commissioned in 2011 for the

Pasadena Musical Theatre Program Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. Its ...

, and premiered as part of the Los Angeles Festival of New Musicals. In 2014 it was produced by Prospect Theater Company at the West End Theatre in New York City starring Matt Doyle, Ben Crawford, Allison Scagliotti, and

Bonnie Milligan Bonnie Milligan is a musical theater performer and television actor, known for her "Belting (music), belting" style of singing and wide vocal range. In 2012, Milligan was described as "scene-stealing" in the the Flea Theater, Flea Theater's produ ...

and directed by Brandon Ivie. In 2015, it had a tryout at the

5th Avenue Theatre The 5th Avenue Theatre is a landmark theatre located in Seattle's Skinner Building, in the U.S. state of Washington. It has hosted a variety of theatre productions and motion pictures since it opened in 1926. The building and land are owned b ...

in Seattle, Washington, with Matt Doyle, Sydney Shepherd, and

Louis Hobson Louis Hobson is a musical theater actor and was the artistic director of Balagan Theatre in Seattle, Washington. His Broadway credits include ''Next to Normal'' and ''Bonnie & Clyde''. Education and personal life Hobson grew up in Puyallup, Washi ...

and directed by Brandon Ivie. In February 2016 at Studio 54 a CD release concert was held starring Matt Doyle and Sydney Shepard. The CD was released in May 2016.

''We Foxes''

''We Foxes'', a Southern Gothic Thriller set in Missouri, 1945, is a new project started commissioned by

Broadway Across America Broadway Across America (BAA) is a presenter and producer of live theatrical events in the United States and Canada since 1982. It is currently owned by the John Gore Organization (formerly Key Brand Entertainment), which purchased it from Live ...

. ''We Foxes'' tells about Willa, a tough and unmannered orphan girl adopted by the Sheriff’s Wife, a calculating socialite, and the bloody domestic war that ensues between them when the girl uncovers the terrible secrets lurking beneath the floorboards. Oliver attended the TheatreWorks Silicon Valley Writer's Retreat in April 2013 for ''We Foxes''. This show was also featured at CAP 21 and the Weston Playhouse.

Other works

*''Music+Lyrics by Ryan Scott Oliver: Vol. I'': Oliver's first songbook, published by Hal Leonard. * ''The Frog Prince Continued'', commissioned by Chicago's Emerald City Theatre * ''Rated RSO'': A collection of Oliver's work which has been performed at the

Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

New York Musical Theatre Festival The New York Musical Festival (NYMF) was an annual three-week summer festival that operated from 2004 to 2019. It presented more than 30 new musicals a year in New York City's midtown theater district. More than half were chosen by leading theate ...

Joe's Pub Joe's Pub, one of the six performance spaces within The Public Theater, is a music venue and restaurant that hosts live performances across genres and arts, ranging from cabaret to modern dance to world music. It is located at 425 Lafayette St ...

Pace University Pace University is a private university with its main campus in New York City and secondary campuses in Westchester County, New York. It was established in 1906 by the brothers Homer St. Clair Pace and Charles A. Pace as a business school. Pace ...

, and Boston Court Performing Arts Center *''Circle 9: a One-Act Musical'': Music by Brian Valencia, book and lyrics by Oliver *''Angus Oblong's The Debbies, A Ten Minute Musical'': Music by Oliver and book and lyrics by Gordon Leary, inspired by characters from

Angus Oblong Angus Oblong (born David Adam Walker; August 28, 1976) is an American writer and illustrator best known for his work '' Creepy Susie and 13 Other Tragic Tales for Troubled Children'' (1999) and the 2001 animated television series ''The Oblongs''. ...

's '' Creepy Susie and 13 Other Tragic Tales for Troubled Children'' and ''

The Oblongs ''The Oblongs'' is an American adult animated sitcom created by Angus Oblong and Jace Richdale. It was Mohawk Productions' first venture into animation. The series premiered on April 1, 2001 on The WB, and was removed on May 20th, leaving the la ...

'' *''Out of my Head, A Musical Revue'': Music and lyrics by Oliver, book by Kirsten Guenther *''Quit India'': Book, music, and lyrics by B.T. Ryback and Oliver, is a musical retelling of the opera ''

Lakmé ''Lakmé'' is an opera in three acts by Léo Delibes to a French libretto by Edmond Gondinet and Philippe Gille. The score, written from 1881 to 1882, was first performed on 14 April 1883 by the Opéra-Comique at the (second) Salle Favart in ...

Awards

*2013

New Musical Award (for ''Darling'') * 2009 Jonathan Larson Grant Recipient *2008 Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theater Winner (for ''Mrs. Sharp'') *2007 ASCAP Foundation

Harold Adamson Harold Campbell Adamson (December 10, 1906 – August 17, 1980) was an American lyricist during the 1930s and 1940s. Early life Adamson, the son of building contractor Harold Adamson and Marion "Minnie" Campbell Adamson, was born and raised in ...

Lyric Award Recipient *2007

Margo Lion Margo Allison Lion (October 13, 1944 – January 24, 2020) was a producer for plays and musicals both on Broadway and off-Broadway, known for her role in producing the stage and screen hit '' Hairspray''. Combined, the works Lion produced won 20 ...

Award for Excellence in Adaptation for ''Alive at Ten'' with Kristen Guenther *2007 Dramatist Guild Fellowship

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oliver, Ryan Scott Living people 1984 births American musical theatre composers Songwriters from California Tisch School of the Arts alumni University of California, Los Angeles alumni Musicians from Pasadena, California Los Angeles County High School for the Arts alumni