James Alexander Radomski (January 23, 1932 – June 21, 2022), known professionally as James Rado, was an American actor, playwright, director, and composer, best known as the co-author, along with
Gerome Ragni
Gerome Ragni (born Jerome Bernard Ragni; September 11, 1935 – July 10, 1991) was an American actor, singer, and songwriter, best known as one of the stars and co-writers of the 1967 musical ''Hair''. On June 18, 2009, he was inducted into the So ...
, of the 1967 musical ''
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 ...
''. He and Ragni won for Best Musical Theater Album at the
11th Annual Grammy Awards
The 11th Annual Grammy Awards were held on March 12, 1969. They recognized accomplishments of musicians for the year 1968.
Presenters
* Dan Rowan & Dick Martin - Introduced The Temptations
* Flip Wilson - Introduced Jeannie C. Riley
* The King ...
and were nominated for the 1969
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 ...
for Best Musical.
Early life
Rado was born to Alexander and Blanche (Bukowski) Radomski on January 23, 1932, in Los Angeles and was raised in
Irondequoit, New York
Irondequoit () is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town (and census-designated place) in Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, New York (state), New York, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the cotermi ...
, and
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
[Hair the Musical , The Show , Creatives: James Rado](_blank)
hairthemusical.co.uk. Retrieved August 8, 2010 In college, Rado majored in Speech and Drama and began writing songs. He co-authored two musical shows at the
University of Maryland
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...
, ''Interlude'' and ''Interlude II''. After graduation, followed by two years in the
U.S. Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...
, he returned to school in Washington, D.C., for graduate work at
The Catholic University of America
The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily ...
, where he co-authored a musical revue called ''Cross Your Fingers''. He wrote the lyrics and music for all of his early songs.
[Rado, James (February 14, 2003)]
"Hairstory – The Story Behind the Story"
''hairthemusical.com''. Retrieved April 11, 2008
He then moved to New York City, where he studied acting with
Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg (born Israel Strassberg; November 17, 1901 – February 17, 1982) was an American acting coach and actor. He co-founded, with theatre directors Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford, the Group Theatre in 1931, which was hailed ...
and also wrote pop songs which he recorded with his own band, ''James Alexander and the Argyles''.
[ Rado's first ]Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...
show was ''Marathon '33'' in 1963. In 1966, Rado played Richard Lionheart
Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199), known as Richard the Lionheart or Richard Cœur de Lion () because of his reputation as a great military leader and warrior, was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ru ...
in the original Broadway production of ''The Lion in Winter
''The Lion in Winter'' is a 1966 play by James Goldman, depicting the personal and political conflicts of Henry II of England, his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine, their children and their guests during Christmas 1183. It premiered on Broadway at the ...
'' by James Goldman
James Goldman (June 30, 1927 – October 28, 1998) was an American playwright and screenwriter. He won an Academy Award for his screenplay '' The Lion in Winter'' (1968). His younger brother was novelist and screenwriter William Goldman.
Biog ...
, starring Robert Preston and Rosemary Harris
Rosemary Ann Harris (born 19 September 1927) is an English actress. She is the recipient of an Primetime Emmy Award, Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Tony Award as well as nominations for an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and three Lauren ...
.
He met Gerome Ragni in 1964, when they acted together in the 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 ...
play ''Hang Down Your Head and Die''.["''Hang Down You Head and Die''"]
. ''Lortel Archives: The Internet Off-Broadway Database''. Retrieved January 9, 2009. Later, both Rado and Ragni were cast in the roles of Tom and Tolan in the 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 ...
company of Mike Nichols
Mike Nichols (born Igor Mikhail Peschkowsky; November 6, 1931 – November 19, 2014) was an American film and theatre director and comedian. He worked across a range of genres and had an aptitude for getting the best out of actors regardless of ...
' production of ''The Knack'', by Ann Jellicoe
Patricia Ann Jellicoe (15 July 1927 – 31 August 2017) was an English playwright, theatre director and actress. Although her work covered many areas of theatre and film, she is best known for "pushing the envelope" of the stage play, devisin ...
.
''Hair''
Rado and Ragni became friends and began writing ''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 ...
'' together in late 1964. Rado explained, "We were great friends. It was a passionate kind of relationship that we directed into creativity, into writing, into creating this piece. We put the drama between us on stage." He recalled, "There was so much excitement in the streets and the parks and the hippie areas, and we thought if we could transmit this excitement to the stage it would be wonderful.... We hung out with them and went to their Be-Ins ndlet our hair grow." ''Hair'' 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 ...
in October 1967 and opened on Broadway in April 1968. It became a sensation, running for 1,750 performances and spawning numerous productions around the world and a 1979 film adaptation. Some of the songs from its score became Top 10 hits, and numerous albums of the songs have been released. The 2009 Broadway revival earned the Tony Award for Best Revival and also opened in London's West End.
Although he did not play the part of Claude when the show premiered Off-Broadway, Rado originated the role of Claude on Broadway, performing opposite Ragni as Berger. He also played Claude in the later Los Angeles production. The main characters of Claude and Berger were autobiographical to a degree, with Rado's Claude being the pensive romantic. In a 2008 interview with ''The Advocate
An advocate is a professional in the field of law.
The Advocate, The Advocates or Advocate may also refer to:
Magazines
* The Advocate (magazine), ''The Advocate'' (magazine), an LGBT magazine based in the United States
* ''The Harvard Advocate' ...
'', Rado publicly described himself for the first time as omnisexual and spoke openly of being Ragni's lover.
After ''Hair''
After the success of ''Hair'', Rado and Ragni went their separate ways for a period of time in the early 1970s.
''Rainbow''
While Ragni and ''Hair'' composer Galt MacDermot
Arthur Terence Galt MacDermot (December 18, 1928 – December 17, 2018) was a Canadian-American composer, pianist and writer of musical theater. He won a Grammy Award for the song "African Waltz" in 1960. His most successful musicals were ''Hair ...
collaborated on ''Dude
''Dude'' is Regional vocabularies of American English, American slang for an individual, typically male. From the 1870s to the 1960s, dude primarily meant a male person who dressed in an extremely fashionable manner (a dandy) or a conspicuous ...
'', Rado wrote a musical entitled ''The Rainbow Rainbeam Radio Roadshow'', or ''Rainbow'' for short, collaborating on the book with his brother Ted Rado and contributing his own music and lyrics. ''Rainbow'' opened Off-Broadway at the Orpheum Theater in December 1972.[James Rado – complete guide to the Playwright](_blank)
, Doollee.com, The Playwrights Database The musical is a sequel of sorts to ''Hair'' with a character called Man who was killed in the Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
and who now lives in Rainbow land. Clive Barnes
Clive Alexander Barnes (13 May 1927 – 19 November 2008) was an English writer and critic. From 1965 to 1977, he was the dance and theater critic for ''The New York Times'', and, from 1978 until his death, the ''New York Post''. Barnes had sign ...
gave it a positive review in ''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 ...
'', writing "'' ainbow' is joyous and life-assertive. It is the first musical to derive from ''Hair'' that really seems to have the confidence of a new creation about it, largely derived from James Rado's sweet and fresh music and lyrics." Since then, ''Rainbow'' has been revised numerous times, in some developments becoming more explicitly a sequel to ''Hair'', as when it became ''Rainbow: The Ghost of Vietnam'' in the late 1990s, and in others becoming more abstract as in one version, titled ''Billy Earth: The New Rainbow'' and later as ''American Soldier: The White Haunted House''.
The latest version of the show, titled ''Supersoldier'', was presented in a staged reading on October 14, 2013, by actor Sam Underwood
Sam Lewis Underwood (born 4 August 1987) is an English actor who portrayed the twins Luke and Mark Gray in the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox thriller drama ''The Following'', Jake Otto in the AMC (TV channel), AMC series ''Fear the Walking Dead'' ...
's (who plays evil twins Mark and Luke on ''The Following
''The Following'' is an American crime thriller television series created by Kevin Williamson (screenwriter), Kevin Williamson, and jointly produced by Outerbanks Entertainment and Warner Bros. Television.
The The Following (season 1), first s ...
'') Fundamental Theater Project
Fundamental may refer to:
* Foundation of reality
* Fundamental frequency, as in music or phonetics, often referred to as simply a "fundamental"
* Fundamentalism, the belief in, and usually the strict adherence to, the simple or "fundamental" idea ...
in collaboration with the New York Theatre Barn at the Manhattan Movement and Arts Center. The reading was directed by Joe Barros and featured Tyson Jennette, Debbie Andrews, and Luis Villabon. Rado previously collaborated with the Fundamental Theater Project in 2010, playing the role of Hamlet's Ghost in the company's benefit reading of ''Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...
'' in which Alec Baldwin
Alexander Rae Baldwin III (born April 3, 1958) is an American actor and film producer. He is known for his leading and supporting roles in a variety of genres, from comedy to drama. He has received List of awards and nominations received by A ...
, Kate Mulgrew
Katherine Kiernan Maria Mulgrew (born April 29, 1955) is an American actress and author. She is best known for her roles as Captain Kathryn Janeway in '' Star Trek: Voyager'' and Red in ''Orange Is the New Black''. She first came to attention ...
, and Fundamental Theater Project Co-Artistic Director Sam Underwood also starred.
''Sun''
In 1974, Rado reunited with Ragni to co-write ''Sun (Audio Movie)'', a show with music by Steve Margoshes based on a play by New York writer Joyce Greller with themes about pollution and the environment. The musical (then titled ''YMCA'') was initially staged for backers in 1976, in a workshop directed by John Vaccaro
Theatre of the Ridiculous is a theatrical genre that began in New York City in the 1960s.Bottoms, Stephen J. Chapter 11: "The Play-House of the Ridiculous: Beyond Absurdity". ''Playing Underground: A Critical History of the 1960s Off-Off-Broadway M ...
, with appearances by Ruby Lynn Reyner
Ruby Lynn Reyner (January 27, 1948 – March 10, 2024) was an American singer, songwriter, musical playwright and actress known as the star of the Playhouse of the Ridiculous and associated as the leader of the glam rock band Ruby and the Redne ...
and Annie-Joe Edwards. ''Sun'' was presented at the Howl! Arts Project in 2011. Another version of ''Sun'', written with a score by ''Hair'' collaborator Galt MacDermot
Arthur Terence Galt MacDermot (December 18, 1928 – December 17, 2018) was a Canadian-American composer, pianist and writer of musical theater. He won a Grammy Award for the song "African Waltz" in 1960. His most successful musicals were ''Hair ...
, was presented in concert form in 1998.
Other shows
Rado and Ragni would later write another musical together, again with Margoshes, entitled ''Jack Sound and His Dog Star Blowing His Final Trumpet on the Day of Doom''. The show ran at La MaMa
La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club (sometimes abbreviated as La MaMa E.T.C.) is an Off-Off-Broadway theater founded in 1961 by African-American theatre director, producer, and fashion designer Ellen Stewart. Located in the East Village neighborho ...
in the summer of 1978.
Later years
Following Ragni's death in 1991, Rado was active in developing new productions of ''Hair'', including the 11 city 1994 national tour which he directed, and the 2006 CanStage
Canadian Stage is a Canadian Nonprofit organization, non-profit contemporary theatre company, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
History
The company was founded in 1988 with the merger of Centre Stage and Toronto Free Theatre. Canadian Stage ...
production in Toronto.
Since 2011, Rado was creative consultant for the futuristic rock musical ''Barcode'', written and workshopped at a downtown Manhattan rock club in 2012 by the members of New York indie band Gladshot, and premiered in August 2013 at the New York International Fringe Festival
The New York International Fringe Festival, or FringeNYC, was a fringe theater festival and one of the largest multi-arts events in North America. It took place over the course of a few weeks in October, spread on more than 20 stages across se ...
. On December 3, 2011, Rado performed songs from ''Barcode'' at Occupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street (OWS) was a left-wing populist movement against economic inequality, capitalism, corporate greed, big finance, and the influence of money in politics that began in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Financial ...
's Occupy Broadway.60's "Occupy Wall Street: Police Evict Protesters From New York's Zuccotti Park: '60s Link to Occupy Wall Street"
''HuffPost'', December 3, 2011
Rado died on June 21, 2022, at a hospital in Manhattan from cardiorespiratory arrest at the age of 90.
References
External links
The official Hair the musical website by James Rado
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Rado, James
1932 births
2022 deaths
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