Working on a Song
The Lyrics of HADESTOWN
Penguin Publishing Group · Print & ebook · October 6, 2020
We earn from qualifying purchases.
- Who it’s for
- A close look at how lyrics and a decade of making became a musical.
- Themes
- Lyric writing, Musical creation
- Genres
- Broadway & Musical Revue, Musicals, Playwriting
Nearest books
Matched by what the books are about, then ordered by what their readers also loved.
Station ElevenEmily St. John Mandel44% match
My Broken LanguageQuiara Alegría Hudes55% match
The Song of AchillesMadeline Miller49% match
For younger readers: Soundtrack: a Novel, All Our Pretty Songs, Who Is Lin-manuel Miranda?
Start with three books, and this one can be the first.
Members get a new edition every morning: a route out from their books to essays, research and talks, with the reason for each.
Start with this bookAbout this book
"Working On A Song is one of the best books about lyric writing for the theater I've read."—Lin-Manuel Miranda Anaïs Mitchell named to TIME's List of the 100 Most Influential People in the World of 2020 An illuminating book of lyrics and stories from Hadestown—the winner of eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical—from its author, songwriter Anaïs Mitchell with a foreword by Steve Earle On Broadway, this fresh take on the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice has become a modern classic.
Continue reading
Heralded as “The best new musical of the season,” by The Wall Street Journal, and “Sumptuous. Gorgeous. As good as it gets,” by The New York Times, the show was a breakout hit, with its poignant social commentary, and spellbinding music and lyrics. In this book, Anaïs Mitchell takes readers inside her more than decade’s-long process of building the musical from the ground up—detailing her inspiration, breaking down the lyrics, and opening up the process of creation that gave birth to Hadestown. Fans and newcomers alike will love this deeply thoughtful, revealing look at how the songs from “the underground” evolved, and became the songs we sing again and again.
Songs Taking Shape
A close look at how lyrics and a decade of making became a musical.
Come here for
- The craft behind theater lyrics
- A songwriter’s account of creative evolution
Expect
- Lyrics unpacked alongside their stories
- A thoughtful look at the making of Hadestown
Where it sits
| Broadway & Musical Revue | 64% |
|---|---|
| Musicals | 39% |
| Playwriting | 34% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- American Plays
- Playwriting
- Broadway & Musical Revue
- Authors
- Anaïs Mitchell
- Publisher
- Penguin Publishing Group
- Published
- October 6, 2020
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Theme
- Lyric writing · Musical creation
- Reading lane
- American Plays