Alex Lacamoire
Encyclopedia
Alex Lacamoire is an American music director
and orchestrator, who has worked on many shows both on and off
Broadway
.
Lacamoire was born in Los Angeles, California
, and began to play piano at age three. He and his family moved to Miami, Florida when he was 9. He entered Southwood Middle School
, a school known for its fine arts program and went on to New World School of the Arts
where he graduated with top honors. He then attended Berklee College of Music
, graduating in 1995. At Berklee he studied Jazz Performance, Arranging, and Film Scoring.
His Broadway work includes music director of Wicked
in 2005, and Music Supervisor and assisting with the orchestrations for the musical High Fidelity
in 2006.
In 2007 he was music director for the Off Broadway production of In the Heights
, which earned him a Drama Desk Award
nomination for Outstanding Orchestrations. Following its successful Off Broadway run, In The Heights transferred to the Richard Rodgers Theatre
on Broadway. Lacamoire, along with Bill Sherman, won the 2008 Tony Award for Best Orchestrations
for their combined work on In The Heights.
Other credits for Lacamoire as music director, arranger, and/or Orchestrator include: Bat Boy: The Musical
, the 2001 National Tour of Godspell
, Stephen Schwartz's
Captain Louie
, and Legally Blonde
. He is also credited with helping with the recordings of Captain Louie (2005, Original cast) as Orchestrator; Bat Boy (2001 Original Cast) as Musical Director; and Godspell (2000 touring cast) as conductor
.
He currently serves as the conductor of In The Heights on Broadway.
Nominations
Music director
A music director may be the director of an orchestra, the director of music for a film, the director of music at a radio station, the head of the music department in a school, the co-ordinator of the musical ensembles in a university or college , the head bandmaster of a military band, the head...
and orchestrator, who has worked on many shows both on and off
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
.
Lacamoire was born in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, and began to play piano at age three. He and his family moved to Miami, Florida when he was 9. He entered Southwood Middle School
Southwood Middle School
Southwood Middle School Center for the Arts, more commonly known as Southwood Middle School, is a public secondary school located on 16301 Southwest 80th Avenue in Palmetto Bay, Florida. The principal is Ms. Deborah Leal...
, a school known for its fine arts program and went on to New World School of the Arts
New World School of the Arts
New World School of the Arts is a public magnet high school and college in Downtown Miami, Florida with dual-enrollment programs in visual arts, dance, theatre, musical theatre, instrumental music, and vocal music. Both the college and the high school are accredited by the Southern Association of...
where he graduated with top honors. He then attended Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
, graduating in 1995. At Berklee he studied Jazz Performance, Arranging, and Film Scoring.
His Broadway work includes music director of Wicked
Wicked (musical)
Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is based on the Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West , a parallel novel of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wonderful Wizard...
in 2005, and Music Supervisor and assisting with the orchestrations for the musical High Fidelity
High Fidelity (musical)
High Fidelity is a musical with a book by David Lindsay-Abaire, lyrics by Amanda Green, and music by Tom Kitt. Based primarily on the Nick Hornby novel rather than the subsequent film version it inspired, the plot focuses on Rob Gordon, a Brooklyn record shop owner in his thirties obsessed with...
in 2006.
In 2007 he was music director for the Off Broadway production of In the Heights
In the Heights
In the Heights is a musical with music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda and a book by Quiara Alegría Hudes. The story explores three days in the characters' lives in the New York City Dominican-American neighborhood of Washington Heights....
, which earned him a Drama Desk Award
Drama Desk Award
The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category...
nomination for Outstanding Orchestrations. Following its successful Off Broadway run, In The Heights transferred to the Richard Rodgers Theatre
Richard Rodgers Theatre
The Richard Rodgers Theatre, is a Broadway theater in New York City, built by Irwin Chanin in 1925. When it was first opened, it was called Chanin's 46th Street Theatre. Chanin almost immediately leased it to the Shuberts, who bought the building outright in 1931 and renamed it the 46th Street...
on Broadway. Lacamoire, along with Bill Sherman, won the 2008 Tony Award for Best Orchestrations
Tony Award for Best Orchestrations
-1990s:1997*Jonathan Tunick – Titanic**Michael Gibson - Steel Pier**Luther Henderson - Play On!**Don Sebesky and Harold Wheeler - The Life1998*William David Brohn – Ragtime**Robert Elhai, David Metzger and Bruce Fowler - The Lion King...
for their combined work on In The Heights.
Other credits for Lacamoire as music director, arranger, and/or Orchestrator include: Bat Boy: The Musical
Bat Boy: The Musical
Bat Boy: The Musical is a musical with a book by Keythe Farley and Brian Flemming and music and lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe, based on a June 23, 1992 Weekly World News story about a half-boy, half-bat, dubbed "Bat Boy", found living in a cave....
, the 2001 National Tour of Godspell
Godspell
Godspell is a musical by Stephen Schwartz and John-Michael Tebelak. It opened off Broadway on May 17, 1971, and has played in various touring companies and revivals many times since, including a 2011 revival now playing on Broadway...
, Stephen Schwartz's
Stephen Schwartz (composer)
Stephen Lawrence Schwartz is an American musical theatre lyricist and composer. In a career spanning over four decades, Schwartz has written such hit musicals as Godspell , Pippin and Wicked...
Captain Louie
Captain Louie
Captain Louie is a family musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Anthony Stein adapted from the children's book The Trip by Ezra Jack Keats. It is the story of a young boy from the inner city whose family moves to a new neighborhood, forcing him to leave his old friends...
, and Legally Blonde
Legally Blonde (musical)
Legally Blonde is a musical with music and lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin and book by Heather Hach. The story is based on the novel Legally Blonde by Amanda Brown and the 2001 film of the same name. It tells the story of Elle Woods, a sorority girl who enrolls at Harvard Law School to...
. He is also credited with helping with the recordings of Captain Louie (2005, Original cast) as Orchestrator; Bat Boy (2001 Original Cast) as Musical Director; and Godspell (2000 touring cast) as conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
.
He currently serves as the conductor of In The Heights on Broadway.
Awards and nominations
Awards- 2008 Tony Award Best Orchestrations, In the Heights
Nominations
- 2007 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Orchestrations, In The Heights