Interview: Jennifer Ashley Tepper Is Bringing Jonathan Larson’s Unheard Songs to Life

For years, Jennifer Ashley Tepper has been at the forefront of celebrating Broadway history. As author of Women Writing Musicals and the Untold Stories of Broadway series, and as creative and programming director at 54 Below, Tepper has built a career on preserving the legacy of theater artists.

Her latest endeavor, The Jonathan Larson Project, is a labor of love that began with a visit to the Library of Congress, where she unearthed a treasure trove of unheard songs written by the late Rent and Tick, Tick…Boom! composer. Originally staged as a concert at 54 Below (after a short evening at New York City Center), the project has since evolved into a fully realized production, making its off-Broadway premiere at the Orpheum Theatre beginning February 14. With direction by John Simpkins and a deeper structural arc, this version aims to connect audiences even more intimately with Larson’s work.

In this interview, Tepper shares insights into the project’s evolution, the thrill of discovering lost songs, and what the future holds for this newly imagined Jonathan Larson musical.

This conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

The Jonathan Larson Project started as a cabaret show at 54 Below. How have you continued to develop and expand the vision over the years?
We’ve been developing this show for years since that happened. The version that was at 54 Below was very much a concert. John Simpkins has come on board as director, and we did a workshop last summer to develop the show further into a musical. It has a structure that’s very intentional and has different arcs that the characters go through. There are ways that the songs connect to each other, and we’re having a lot of conversations in rehearsals about developing the emotional through line in the evening.

Is there a plot, if you can call it that?
The show itself, as we’ve been developing it further, is about five individuals who come together in a community and have kind of discovered these songs for themselves. It’s not exactly a song cycle, but it’s not a book musical either. And I will say, because a lot of people have asked me this, all the songs that were in the concert are still in this version, but there’s also a lot of new stuff that we’ve been working on that you didn’t hear in the concert version or on the cast album.

This all started with a trip to his archives at the Library of Congress, right?
The actual origin story is that I was part of Jeanine Tesori’s artist board for Encores! Off-Center, and we were doing these lobby concerts [one of which was of Jonathan Larson’s unheard music, in conjunction with Tick, Tick…Boom!]. I thought I would go to D.C. and find some songs, but when I went, I realized just how much there was.

Because I did that, I had the opportunity to start the conversation with the Larson family about turning it into a full evening at 54 Below. I spent years going back and forth to the Library of Congress to listen to the hours of tapes. I didn’t know how much of an excavation it would be. This lyric matches this demo, which is giving me clues about this notebook that he wrote in. To do the work justice, I had to listen to every song on every tape Jonathan Larson left behind. It was magical.

Is there a Jonathan “character” like there seemed to be in the 54 Below show?
In the concert, it did seem like Nick Blaemire’s role was Jonathan, but one of the things we developed further is that nobody is playing Jonathan Larson. We’ve made changes to who sings what and how things are presented, to make it feel like there’s one person who identifies with Jonathan’s ideals about environmentalism, there’s one person who’s thinking more about romantic relationships and love. Everyone is coming to it knowing what part of the work they identify with, and that travels throughout the show.

What are you hoping for in terms of longevity for The Jonathan Larson Project? Will you push to have this version licensable?
When we had auditions for our standbys, it was surreal to see people singing “Hosing the Furniture.” So many of these songs were never heard before The Jonathan Larson Project. When I asked the family permission for certain songs, they were like “We don’t even know that one,” and now we were watching new actors auditioning with them. Every step of the process has felt like my dream coming true.

I was so obsessed with Rent and Tick, Tick…Boom! but was I there at the beginning of them? No. Now, people [like me] will get to be there at the beginning of a new Jonathan Larson musical in New York. Just getting to the stage feels like the goal, but nothing excites me more than the fact that, whether it be next year or in two years, other people will do it. I’ve gotten so many inquiries from high schools and community theaters and professional theaters for songs like “One of These Days.”

My dream of dreams is to see it performed at Florida Thespians. I love the idea of it getting licensed and touring. But the first step, well, the next step, is this big New York City off-Broadway premiere.