Joe DiPietro American playwright, lyricist and novelist Date of Birth: 01.01.1961 Country: USA

1. Joe DiPietro: An Acclaimed Dramatist and Lyricist
2. Early Life and Education
3. Career
4. Broadway Success
5. "Memphis" and Critical Acclaim
6. Continued Success
7. Recent Works

Joe DiPietro: An Acclaimed Dramatist and Lyricist

Joe DiPietro is an American playwright, lyricist, and author, best known for his Tony Award-winning musical "Memphis," for which he received the Tony Awards for Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score. He is also renowned for writing the book and lyrics for the long-running off-Broadway show "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change."

Early Life and Education

DiPietro was born in Teaneck, New Jersey, and grew up in neighboring Oradell. He attended the Oradell Public School and River Dell Regional High School before graduating Phi Beta Kappa from Rutgers University in 1984 with a degree in English. DiPietro is openly gay.

Career

DiPietro's first produced work was "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change," written with composer Jimmy Roberts, which premiered in 1991 and ran for twelve years (5003 performances) off-Broadway. He followed with the 1998 comedy "Over the River and Through the Woods," which ran for 800 performances over two years at John Houseman's Theatre.

Broadway Success

DiPietro's Broadway debut came in 2005 with the Elvis Presley jukebox musical "All Shook Up." "The Toxic Avenger," co-written with David Bryan of Bon Jovi, premiered off-Broadway in 2009 and received the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical.

"Memphis" and Critical Acclaim

DiPietro's "Memphis" with Bryan earned the 2010 Tony Award for Best Musical. It ran for three years (1165 performances) at the Shubert Theatre and continues to tour nationally. DiPietro won Tony Awards for Best Book and Score, and the show also received Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Best Musical.

Continued Success

"Nice Work If You Can Get It," a reimagining of a Gershwin musical starring Matthew Broderick and Kelli O'Hara, opened on Broadway in 2012. The production and DiPietro's book were nominated for Tony Awards in 2012, and DiPietro received the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical.

Recent Works

"Clever Little Lies" played at George Street Playhouse in late 2013 and debuted at New York City's Westside Theatre in 2015 with Marlo Thomas and Greg Mullavey. "Chasing the Song," a musical with Bryan, premiered at La Jolla Playhouse in summer 2014. In 2014, DiPietro also adapted Garson Kanin's play "Peccadilloes" into "Living on Love," starring opera star Renée Fleming, which became a highlight of the 2014 Williamstown Theatre Festival.

Other recent plays include "Creating Claire," which debuted at George Street Playhouse in 2010, and "The Last Romance," which played at the Old Globe in 2010 after premiering at the Kansas City Repertory Theatre in 2008.

"Ernest Shackleton Loves Me" (music by Val Vigoda and Brendan Milburn of GrooveLily) was featured as part of PBS's "Broadway on HD" series on November 26, 2018. "Diana," a musical interpretation of the life of Diana, Princess of Wales, with lyrics and book by DiPietro, was set to open on Broadway in March 2020 but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The production was filmed for Netflix and subsequently opened on Broadway in November 2021.