Erik Orton (born in 1974 in California) is a New York-based writer and theatre producer. His father was an Air Force officer and his mother a Finnish immigrant. He was raised primarily in West Germany and the suburbs of Washington D.C. He graduated from

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

in 1998 with a degree in Media Music. He and his wife, Emily Orton, have five children together. Orton's original musical, ''

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

'', was performed Off-Off-Broadway in 2003. In 2005, he produced the Off-Broadway musical, ''The Ark'' (written by BYU professor Kevin Kelly and LDS composer Michael McLean). He is currently producing

Children of Eden ''Children of Eden'' is a 1991 musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by John Caird. The musical is based on the Book of Genesis, with Act I telling the story of Adam and Eve, and Cain and Abel, while Act II deals with N ...

for Broadway (Music & Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, Book by John Caird). Orton also penned The Drummings (in collaboration with Joshua Williams) based on the life and times of Irish statesman

Daniel O'Connell Daniel(I) O’Connell (; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilisation of Catholic Irelan ...

. Orton has worked for a variety of Broadway general management and production offices including Wasser Associates, Richards/Climan Inc. and The Wolf Trap Center for the Performing Arts. Broadway shows and tours he has helped manage include ''

Wicked Wicked may refer to: Books * ''Wicked'' (Maguire novel), a 1995 novel by Gregory Maguire that inspired the musical of the same name * ''Wicked'', a 1997 novel series collaboration between Australian children's authors Paul Jennings and Morris ...

'', ''

The Phantom of the Opera The Phantom of the Opera may refer to: Novel * The Phantom of the Opera (novel), ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (novel), 1910 novel by Gaston Leroux Characters * Erik (The Phantom of the Opera), Erik (''The Phantom of the Opera''), the title char ...

'', ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' (, ) is a 19th-century French literature, French Epic (genre), epic historical fiction, historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published on 31 March 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. '' ...

'', and ''

Miss Saigon ''Miss Saigon'' is a sung-through musical theatre, stage musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby Jr. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's 1904 opera ''Madama Butterfly'', and similarly tells th ...

'', among others. Orton has been featured on the cover of Crain's Business New York as well as

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

and theatre industry news hub

Playbill ''Playbill'' is an American monthly magazine for Audience, theatergoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most copies of ''Playbill'' are printed for particular productions and distributed at the door as the ...

.com. In 2007, Orton's ''Berlin'' was performed at the Longwharf Theatre in New Haven and then again in 2008 at Brigham Young University's mainstage season. He is represented by Susan Gurman of the Gurman Agency. ''Berlin'' was made into a film by BYU and shown on BYU-TV in 2008. In 2009 ''Berlin'' was shown at the LDS Film Festival in

Orem, Utah Orem is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, in the northern part of the state. It is adjacent to Provo, Utah, Provo, Lindon, Utah, Lindon, and Vineyard, Utah, Vineyard and is approximately south of Salt Lake City. Orem is one of the pri ...

. ''Berlin'' won an Emmy Award in 2009. Orton is a

Latter-day Saint The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded b ...

. He co-wrote the book for '' Savior of the World'', one of a total of 7 artistic creators. He was the artistic director of ''Standard to the Nations'' the LDS Cultural production staged before the dedication of the Manhattan Temple. Orton co-wrote a book with his wife Emily called Seven at Sea. The book details the year he and his family of 5 children spent living on a sailboat.Seven at Sea: Why a New York City Family Cast Off Convention for a Life-changing Year on a Sailboat
Amazon

References

External links

Berlin the Musical Website

News Links

BYU Magazine: Staged in Perfect Harmony

* ttp://www.crainsnewyork.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060116/SUB/601160711 Crain's Business New York cover article
Variety - 'Ark' embarks at 37 Arts during Nov.

Broadway World

Jan. 22, 2010 ''Mormon Times'' article on Orton's ''Berlin''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orton, Erik Living people 1974 births American Latter Day Saints Brigham Young University alumni 21st-century American dramatists and playwrights American people of Finnish descent American theatre managers and producers American expatriates in Germany