New York City
The story of A New Brain is drawn from the life of the playwright William Finn. Back in 1992, shortly after the successful opening of his Falsettos on Broadway — the culmination of years of work — Finn suffered a brain seizure and was hospitalized. During this painfully difficult time, his doctors could not immediately pinpoint the cause of the seizure and were not sure if he would survive. Finn also feared that, even if he lived, he still might lose his ability to write. From such dire source material came this surprisingly joyous and funny musical about songwriter Gordon Schwinn. Bolstered by the support of his mother, his boyfriend Roger, and many other good friends, Gordon finds the courage to confront his mortality and allow his doctors to perform the necessary surgery.