William Finn obit

William Finn Dies: ‘Falsettos’, ‘The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’ Playwright Was 73

 

He was not on the list.

William “Bill” Finn, the acclaimed writer and composer of the 1992 musical Falsettos and 2005’s The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, died Monday, April 7, following a lengthy illness. He was 73.

His death was confirmed to Deadline by his literary agent Ron Gwiazda.

Born February 28, 1952, in Natick, Massachusetts, and raised in a conservative Jewish household, Finn was a two-time Tony Award winner – Best Book and Best Original Score for the AIDS-themed Falsettos. He began crafting what would become his signature work even before the plague years began. In the late 1970s he wrote the one-act Off Off Broadway musical In Trousers, focusing on a gay man named Marvin coming to terms with his homosexuality.

In 1981, Finn wrote a sequel, March of the Falsettos, in which Marvin continues his journey of self-discovery but now with an extended family that includes his ex-wife Trina, son Jason, lover Whizzer Brown and a psychiatrist Mendel who falls in love with Trina. Finally, in 1990’s Falsettoland, the AIDS crisis has hit the family, with Whizzer dying of the illness just as Jason is preparing for his bar mitzvah.

In 1992, March of the Falsettos and Falsettoland were joined as a full musical that opened to great acclaim and popularity on Broadway. Directed by James Lapine, who co-wrote its book, Falsettos opened at the John Golden Theater on April 29, 1992, becoming a groundbreaking work in the theater’s canon of plays and musicals addressing AIDS. Falsettos was nominated for seven Tony Awards, with Finn’s score and the book by Finn and Lapine winning their categories.

The original Broadway production starred Michael Rupert as Marvin, Stephen Bogardus as Whizzer, Barbara Walsh as Trina, Chip Zien as Mendel and Jonathan Kaplan as Jason. A well-received 2016 Broadway revival received five Tony nominations and starred Christian Borle, Stephanie J. Block, Andrew Rannells, Brandon Uranowitz and Anthony Rosenthal.

Finn and Lapine reunited in 1998 to develop the musical that would be called A New Brain, based on Finn’s near-death experience following brain surgery. The musical was revived in a 2015 City Center Encores! Off-Broadway production starring Jonathan Groff.

The composer and director would reteam again in 2005 for the immensely popular The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, a musical about elementary school students competing in the titular contest. The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee won two Tony Awards in 2005 (Best Book of a Musical and, for Dan Fogler, Best Featured Actor in a Musical). It was nominated for Best Musical, Best Direction for Lapine, Best Original Score for Finn and Best Featured Actress in a Musical for Celia Keenan-Bolger.

Finn and Lapine developed a fourth musical, Little Miss Sunshine, based on the 2006 film, that premiered at the La Jolla Playhouse in California in 2011. The musical made its Off Broadway debut in 2013.

Finn is survived by life partner Arthur Salvadore.