Evan Goldman is a popular kid living in fabulous New York City and appears to have the perfect life. But when his parents get divorced, he's uprooted from his comfort zone and forced to move with his mom to Indiana. It’s while making friends and trying to join the “in-crowd” at his new high school that Evan learns about life and, more importantly, himself. Tony Award-winning composer Jason Robert Brown wrote the music and lyrics for 13, the new musical comedy that opened on Broadway earlier this month. He recently spoke to Spotlights & Sightlines about developing this grown-up story about growing up.

Brown has spent much of his adult life teaching teenagers and decided to create 13 to open a new, age-appropriate artistic avenue for them to showcase their talents. “I’ve always been keenly aware of how extraordinarily talented teenagers can be and it was always sort of a bummer when you have them doing FIDDLER ON THE ROOF or GREASE or stuff that really isn’t who they are or isn’t necessarily appropriate to them,” he explains. “I wanted to create something that these kids can do that just fit on them and they could really embody in an honest way.” He also wanted to write a comedy and decided a musical based on teenagers would be the best way. “I really wanted to write something that was going to be fun and something that had a lot of buoyancy and a lot of life to it without it having to feel superficial.”

The show has a clever twist in that the entire cast and musicians are comprised of teenagers. “I’ve been working on the show for five years now and I’ve probably seen upwards of 10,000 kids,” Brown says. “Of those 10,000 kids, the 13 who are on stage every night are absolutely the most talented of those that have come through in terms of this show.” When casting adults, Brown acknowledges you can look at their resumes or see them perform in other shows. “You can’t do that with kids because they change so much and even if they do have credits, it’s sort of irrelevant,” he says. So seeing the teens audition in front of him is the only way he can determine which talented teenagers are right for the show. “What (director) Jeremy (Sams) and I always say is we can tell the minute the kids open their mouths; we can tell if they belong in this show. It’s one of those mysterious alchemies that’s impossible to explain.” He thinks that the teenagers who make up the orchestra are incredibly gifted and he has not “dumbed down” the sophisticated music because of their age. “As a musician,” he explains, “it’s very gratifying to be at a show that’s still very commercial and a very big Broadway-style thing where the music is still at such a high level.”

Even though the show’s theme revolves around teenagers, Brown wants people to know that 13 isn’t just for young people – it’s a family comedy and something that can be enjoyed by everyone. “I think 13 is a show that teenagers really love to see because it’s them up on stage and they get to sort of have their own experience,” he says. “I think for an adult audience, I was very conscious of wanting to write a show that I, at 38-years-old, would enjoy, as opposed to just writing something that a 14-year-old would enjoy.” While he understands there’s an inherent challenge in drawing adults, he believes that 13 is a show for the entire family to have a great time with many laughs. “It’s for the people who want to spend an evening out with their teenagers, for the people who really want to make sure that when they put down that $100 per ticket, (that) they’re going to have an evening where every single member of the family is going to be able to take something wonderful away.”

For more information, cast videos and a free download of the title track, visit: www.13themusical.com.

By: Beth Cox