These musicals seriously tackle issues such as multiculturalism, addiction, sexual orientation and HIV. Rent was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and won four Tony Awards. The scores of his shows reveal that he was an apt composer and lyricist.
One tick, tick...BOOM! song called "Sunday" is an homage to Stephen Sondheim, who supported Larson. It stays close to the melody and lyrics of Sondheim's own song of the same title but turning it from a manifesto about art into a waiter's lament.
Among the many awards he received during and after his lifetime were: the Pulitzer Prize for Drama (for Rent), the Richard Rodgers Production Award, the Richard Rodgers Development Grant, the Stephen Sondheim Award, the Gilman and Gonzalez-Falla Theatre Foundation's Commendation Award, the Tonys for Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, and Best Score of a Musical for Rent, the Drama Desks for Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, Best Book, and Best Lyrics (also for Rent), the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical (again for Rent), the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical in the Off-Broadway category (another for Rent), and three Obie Awards for Outstanding Book, Outstanding Lyrics and Outstanding Music (yet again for Rent).
Among his many creative works are Rent, tick, tick...BOOM!, Sacrimoralimmorality (1981)with David Armstrong (retitled Saved for the one-week run on 42nd Street), Superbia, the music for J.P. Morgan Saves the Nation, numerous individual numbers, music for Sesame Street, music for the children's book cassettes of An American Tail and Land Before Time, music for Rolling Stone magazine publisher Jann Wenner, and four songs for the children's video Away We Go! (which he also conceived and directed).
Larson died unexpectedly of an undiagnosed aortic dissection (aortic aneurysm), believed to have been caused by Marfan syndrome, on January 25th, 1996. It was ten days before his 36th birthday, and the night before Rent's first preview off-Broadway.
After his death, Larson's family and friends started the Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation.
In 2005, a film version of his most popular production Rent was released, directed by Christopher Columbus.
In September of 2008, Rent closed after 12 successful years on broadway. One of the final shows and the finale were filmed for a limited engagement film, "Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway." The DVD and Blu-Ray disc were released was in February 2009.
Currently original cast members Anthony Rapp, Adam Pascal, and Gwen Stewart are performing on the farewell broadway tour of the show.
Seasons of Love B
Jonathan Larson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In spoke wheels, in speeding tickets
In contracts, dollars
In funerals, in births
In five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes
How do you figure our last year on earth?
Figure in love
Figure in love
Measure in love
Seasons of love
Seasons of love
The above lyrics are from Jonathan Larson's iconic song "Seasons of Love" from the musical Rent. The song is an ode to the passing of time and how to measure a year in a life. The first verse speaks to the various aspects of life that one can measure in minutes - from the mundane moments of everyday life like diapers and report cards to the more dramatic and significant moments like funerals and births. The second verse then poses an important question - how does one measure the last year of their life?
The answer that the song provides is to measure in love. The phrase "Figure in love" is repeated three times, emphasizing the importance of love in our lives. The final line of the song "Seasons of love" reinforces this idea - that love is what gives our lives meaning and purpose. Overall, the song is a poignant reminder to cherish the moments we have and to measure our lives not by our accomplishments or failures but by the love we give and receive.
Line by Line Meaning
In diapers, report cards
From our earliest days, marked by the milestones of our educational progress and bodily functions
In spoke wheels, in speeding tickets
Through our various modes of transportation and the consequences of our actions
In contracts, dollars
Through the various ways we enter into agreements and the currency by which we measure value
In funerals, in births
From the sorrow of death to the joy of new life
In five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes
The total number of minutes in a year, a finite and precious amount of time
How do you figure our last year on earth?
How should we measure the value of our lives when we know our time is limited?
Figure in love
Let our calculations be guided by the power of love
Figure in love
Let love be the constant factor in our lives
Figure in love
Let love be the guiding principle in our decisions and interactions
Measure in love
Our lives should be measured by the amount of love we give and receive
Seasons of love
A reminder that love is not a static emotion, but something that can evolve and change over time
Seasons of love
The passing of time is a reminder to cherish the moments we have with the people we love
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Jonathan D. Larson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind