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David Norman Yazbek (born 1961) is an American writer, musician, composer, and lyricist. He wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway musicals ''
The Full Monty ''The Full Monty'' is a 1997 comedy film directed by Peter Cattaneo, starring Robert Carlyle, Mark Addy, William Snape, Steve Huison, Tom Wilkinson, Paul Barber and Hugo Speer. The screenplay was written by Simon Beaufoy. The film is set ...
'' (2000), '' Dirty Rotten Scoundrels'' (2004), '' Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown'' (2010), ''
The Band's Visit ''The Band's Visit'' () is a 2007 comedy-drama film written and directed by Eran Kolirin, and starring Saleh Bakri, Ronit Elkabetz, Sasson Gabai and Uri Gavriel. It is an international co-production between Israel, France and the United Sta ...
'' (2017), ''
Tootsie ''Tootsie'' is a 1982 American satirical romantic comedy film directed by Sydney Pollack from a screenplay by Larry Gelbart and Murray Schisgal and a story by Gelbart and Don McGuire. It stars Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Teri Garr, D ...
'' (2019), and '' Dead Outlaw'' (2025). He won a
Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...
and a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
for ''The Band's Visit''. He also consulted on the musical '' Buena Vista Social Club''.


Early life

David Yazbek was born in New York City. His father is of Lebanese descent, and his mother was of half-Italian and half-Jewish ancestry. He began
cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...
lessons in elementary school and took up the piano as a teenager. He attended Riverdale Country School. While attending
Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...
as an undergraduate, he wrote an original musical with the production group Brownbrokers before graduating in 1982. He also directed a production of ''
Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and ...
'' with the student theatre group Production Workshop, for which he composed an original song to complement the classic score.


Career

After college Yazbek got a job writing for
David Letterman David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American television host, comedian, writer, producer, and auto racing team owner. He hosted late-night television talk shows for 33 years, beginning with the February 1, 1982, debut of ''Late N ...
's late-night television show ''
Late Night with David Letterman ''Late Night with David Letterman'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the first installment of the '' Late Night''. Hosted by David Letterman, it aired from February1, 1982 to June 25, 1993, and was replaced by ...
''. He won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series at the 36th Primetime Emmy Awards as part of Letterman's writing team in 1984, but quit to pursue his love of music. From 1987 to 1989 he was the co-owner of Manhattan Recording Company and wrote many commercial jingles. Yazbek co-wrote the title theme song to the 1991
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
winning
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
TV series '' Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?'' with songwriter Sean Altman, a high school friend who led the show's featured vocal group, Rockapella. Yazbek and Altman also composed and wrote the theme song to ''World'' `1996 successor, '' Where in Time Is Carmen Sandiego?'' He has written many other songs and background scores for children's television shows, especially those produced for the
Disney Channel Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...
. In 2000, director Jack O'Brien approached composer-lyricist Adam Guettel to write the music and lyrics for a
musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...
based on the hit movie ''
The Full Monty ''The Full Monty'' is a 1997 comedy film directed by Peter Cattaneo, starring Robert Carlyle, Mark Addy, William Snape, Steve Huison, Tom Wilkinson, Paul Barber and Hugo Speer. The screenplay was written by Simon Beaufoy. The film is set ...
''. Guettel declined, but recommended Yazbek, whom he had played with in a band. Yazbek took the job, collaborating with librettist
Terrence McNally Terrence McNally (November 3, 1938 – March 24, 2020) was an American playwright, librettist, and screenwriter. Described as "the bard of American theater" and "one of the greatest contemporary playwrights the theater world has yet produced," M ...
. The show was a success, although it was overshadowed that year by
Mel Brooks Melvin James Brooks (né Kaminsky; born June 28, 1926) is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker, and songwriter. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodie ...
' musical '' The Producers''. ''The Full Monty'' ran for two years before closing, and for his work Yazbek was nominated for the
Tony Award for Best Original Score The Tony Award for Best Original Score is the Tony Award given to the composers and lyricists of the best original score written for a musical or play in that year. The score consists of music and/or lyrics. To be eligible, a score must be written ...
at the
55th Tony Awards The 55th Annual Tony Awards was held at Radio City Music Hall on June 3, 2001 and broadcast by CBS. "The First Ten" awards ceremony was telecast on PBS television . The event was co-hosted by Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick. ''The Producers (m ...
and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics, and won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music. In 2002 he was a contributing lyricist for the musical '' Bombay Dreams''. Yazbek wrote the music and lyrics to the musical adaptation of '' Dirty Rotten Scoundrels'', which opened on Broadway in 2005, featuring
John Lithgow John Arthur Lithgow ( ; born , 1945) is an American actor. He studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before becoming known for his John Lithgow filmography, diverse work on stage and screen. He has rece ...
, Norbert Leo Butz,
Sherie Rene Scott Sherie Rene Scott (born February 8, 1967)Some sources give 1969, but Scott herself, at thOfficial Sherie Rene Scott Myspace Pageand at Lovece, Frank"Sherie Rene Scott is caught up in the 'Rapture'", ''Newsday'', May 6, 2010, gives 1967 is an Ame ...
,
Joanna Gleason Joanna Gleason (née Hall; born June 2, 1950) is a Canadian-American actress and singer, known for her performances in theatrical musicals and plays, and on film and television. In theatre, Gleason originated the role of the Baker's Wife in Ste ...
, and Gregory Jbara. Yazbek was again nominated for the Tony Award for Best Original Score at the 59th Tony Awards, and Drama Desk Awards for Outstanding Music and Outstanding Lyrics. Yazbek wrote the music for the musical adaptation of the 1988
Pedro Almodóvar Pedro Almodóvar Caballero (; born 25 September 1949) is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and author. His films are distinguished by Melodrama (film genre), melodrama, irreverent humour, bold colour, glossy décor, quotations from popular c ...
film '' Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown''. In October 2009, the musical had a closed reading directed by Bartlett Sher and featuring
Salma Hayek Salma Valgarma Hayek Pinault ( , ; ; born September 2, 1966) is a Mexican and American actress and film producer. She began her career in Mexico with starring roles in the telenovela ''Teresa (1989 TV series), Teresa'' (1989–1991) as well a ...
,
Jessica Biel Jessica Claire Timberlake (née Biel ; born March 3, 1982) is an American actress. Biel began her career as a vocalist appearing in musical productions until she was cast as Mary Camden in the family drama series '' 7th Heaven'' (1996–2007 ...
, Matthew Morrison, and Paulo Szot. The musical opened on Broadway at the Belasco Theatre on November 4, 2010, with previews starting October 8. The musical starred Patti LuPone, Brian Stokes Mitchell, and Sherie Rene Scott, with direction by Bartlett Sher. The production received mixed to negative reviews, despite praise for the actors and Yazbek's score, and closed on January 2, 2011, after 30 previews and 69 performances. Despite the early closing, the show was nominated for three
Tony Awards The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cere ...
, for the performances of Patti LuPone and Laura Benanti, and Yazbek's score, at the 65th Tony Awards. Yazbek wrote the music and lyrics for the musical adaptation of the film ''
The Band's Visit ''The Band's Visit'' () is a 2007 comedy-drama film written and directed by Eran Kolirin, and starring Saleh Bakri, Ronit Elkabetz, Sasson Gabai and Uri Gavriel. It is an international co-production between Israel, France and the United Sta ...
'', with a book by
Itamar Moses Itamar Moses (born 1977) is an American playwright, author, producer and television writer. He gained acclaim for writing the book for the Broadway musical '' The Band's Visit'' (2017) receiving the Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical. He w ...
. The musical premiered
Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...
at the Atlantic Theatre Company Linda Gross Theater on November 11, 2016, in previews. The cast featured John Cariani and
Tony Shalhoub Anthony Marc Shalhoub ( ; ; born October 9, 1953) is an American actor. He is known for a variety of roles ranging from comedic to dramatic on stage and screen. He has received several accolades including five Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, s ...
with direction by
David Cromer David Cromer (born October 17, 1964) is an American theatre director, and stage, film, and TV actor. He has received recognition for his work on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and in his native Chicago. Cromer has won or been nominated for numerous a ...
. This production won him the 2017
Obie Award The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given since 1956 by ''The Village Voice'' newspaper to theater artists and groups involved in off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway productions in New York City. Starting just after th ...
for Musical Theatre and later the production transferred to the
Ethel Barrymore Theatre The Ethel Barrymore Theatre is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater at 243 West 47th Street (Manhattan), 47th Street in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1928, it ...
on Broadway. Yazbek won the Tony Award for Best Original Score for his efforts on this show at the 72nd Tony Awards. Yazbek wrote the music and lyrics for the musical adaptation of the 1982 film ''
Tootsie ''Tootsie'' is a 1982 American satirical romantic comedy film directed by Sydney Pollack from a screenplay by Larry Gelbart and Murray Schisgal and a story by Gelbart and Don McGuire. It stars Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Teri Garr, D ...
'', with a book by Robert Horn. It opened in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
at the
Cadillac Palace Theatre The Cadillac Palace Theatre (originally the New Palace Theatre) is operated by Broadway In Chicago, a Nederlander company and seats 2,344. It is located at 151 West Randolph Street in the Chicago Loop area. Opened in 1926 and designed largely i ...
in September 2018 and opened on Broadway in March 2019. The show was nominated for eleven Tony Awards, including for Yazbek's score, at the 73rd Tony Awards. The show won two awards: Best Book of a Musical and Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical ( Santino Fontana). In 2022, Yazbek reunited with Itamar Moses for the book and collaborated with Erik Della Penna for the music and lyrics of the musical '' Dead Outlaw'', based on a true story, which had a premiere presentation at Feinstein's/54 Below. ''Dead Outlaw'' opened off-Broadway in March 2024 and on Broadway in April 2025. Yazbek has released five
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...
albums to date. He has produced tracks for the band
XTC XTC were an English rock band formed in Swindon in 1972. Fronted by songwriters Andy Partridge (vocals, guitars) and Colin Moulding (vocals, bass), the band gained popularity during the rise of punk and new wave in the 1970s, later playing ...
, and its lead singer
Andy Partridge Andrew John Partridge (born 11 November 1953) is an English guitarist, singer-songwriter and record producer best known for co-founding the band XTC. He and Colin Moulding each acted as a songwriter and frontman for XTC, with Partridge writing a ...
has collaborated on Yazbek's solo albums. He also has written for or produced recordings by Spacehog,
Tito Puente Ernest Anthony Puente Jr. (April 20, 1923 – May 31, 2000), commonly known as Tito Puente, was an American musician, songwriter, bandleader, timbalero, and record producer. He composed dance-oriented mambo and Latin jazz music. He was also k ...
, The Persuasions, and Queen Sarah Saturday. XTC also contributed a track, "Cherry in Your Tree" to the 1994 ''Carmen Sandiego'' soundtrack album '' Carmen Sandiego: Out of This World'', which Yazbek produced.


Unrealized projects

In 2007, Yazbek began developing the music and lyrics for ''Bruce Lee: Journey to the West'', a stage musical based on the life of martial artist
Bruce Lee Bruce Lee (born Lee Jun-fan; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was an American-born Hong Kong martial artist, actor, filmmaker, and philosopher. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy which was formed from ...
. ''Bruce Lee'' would feature a book by
David Henry Hwang David Henry Hwang (born August 11, 1957) is an American playwright, librettist, screenwriter, and theater professor at Columbia University in New York City. He has won three Obie Awards for his plays '' FOB'', '' Golden Child'', and '' Yellow ...
and be directed by Bartlett Sher. '' Variety'' reported that the musical was aiming to open at the Rialto Square Theatre during the 2010–2011 season, but these plans have been put on indefinite hold. On June 12, 2013, it was announced that Yazbek would be replacing the
Barenaked Ladies Barenaked Ladies (BNL) is a Canadian Rock music, rock band which was formed in 1988 in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, Ontario. The band developed a following in Canada, with their Barenaked Ladies (EP), self-titled 1991 cassette becoming th ...
to write the score to the musical adaptation of '' National Lampoon's Animal House'', with a book by Michael Mitnick.


Discography


As solo artist


As musical composer


Other contributions


Awards and nominations


References


External links


Official siteProduction: The Full Monty
– ''Working in the Theatre Seminar'' video at
American Theatre Wing The American Theatre Wing (the Wing for short) is a New York City–based non-profit organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre", according to its mission statement. Originally known as the Stage Women's War Relief ...
, September 2000
Production: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
– ''Working in the Theatre Seminar'' video at American Theatre Wing, April 2005
Pop Music and the New Musical
– ''Working in the Theatre Seminar'' video at American Theatre Wing, September 2005
Interview and career timeline
in the ''
San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...
'' * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yazbek, David American musical theatre composers American male musical theatre composers American musical theatre lyricists Broadway composers and lyricists Jewish American songwriters 1960 births Living people American beatboxers American people of Italian descent American people of Lebanese descent American male television writers American television writers Grammy Award winners Primetime Emmy Award winners Songwriters from New York (state) Tony Award winners Drama Desk Award winners Brown University alumni 21st-century American Jews