Jack Eric Williams
Encyclopedia
Jack Eric Williams was an American actor, composer and lyricist for stage and film. He is most remembered for originating the role of Beadle Bamford in Stephen Sondheim
's Sweeney Todd. In 2003 his life and death were the subject of one of William Finn
's Elegies: A Song Cycle
, The Ballad of Jack Eric Williams (and other 3-named composers). Williams died in New York City on January 28, 1994 from cardiac arrest due to complications of diabetes.
's The Homecoming
at the Wonderhorse Theater. He made his Broadway debut in 1976 in the Lincoln Center revival of Kurt Weil's Threepenny Opera, singing in the ensemble and understudying the role of the Ballad Singer. He next appeared in Stephen Sondheim's 1979 masterpiece Sweeney Todd, originating the role of the villainous Beadle Bamford. Sondheim wrote the exceptionally-difficult vocal lines with Williams' voice in mind. His performances in both shows are preserved on their original cast albums. In 1981 he appeared in the controversial film Strong Medicine. A noted tenor, he once gave a command performance for the King and Queen of Sweden. Williams regularly performed his work in cabaret venues around New York. His one-man show, Songs and Other Devices: A Cabaret Recital (volumes 1-4) was performed at The Ballroom, Lone Star Cafe
, Reno Sweeney, S.N.A.F.U., The Other End, and The Westbank Cafe.
In 1980 Williams wrote the music to original lyrics by Bertold Brecht for the play Galileo, originally written for and with Charles Laughton
. In 1981 he composed the score for the thriller Nightmare -a film which was originally banned in the UK for its excessive violence and gore. He followed that with a dance score for choreographer Johanna Boyce's Waterbodies for the American Dance Festival
. The work was performed in and around a swimming pool, rather than in a traditional theater.
His 1983 musical biography of Frances Farmer
, Mrs. Farmer's Daughter, was produced at the American Music Festival in Philadelphia in 1984. Lisa Vroman
recorded one of the show's songs, Full Moon, on her 2000 album Broadway Classic.
Sheldon Larry directed Williams' 1984 musical, Romance Language, at Playwrights Horizons in New York City.
Williams' most successful show was 1990's Swamp Gas and Shallow Feelings: A Brand New Nashville Musical Fable, which was workshopped in 1988 and 1990 at the National Music Theater Conference of the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center, and again in 1991 at the National Music Theater Network as part of its Broadway Dozen Series. The work earned him the Richard Rodgers Award from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters in 1990, and continues to be performed by theaters around the United States.
The Public Theater commissioned Jack Eric Williams and Richard Isen to write an original ten-minute musical. The resulting show, Dear Someone, was performed at the theater.
, actress Angela Lansbury
, and composer William Finn
. In "The Ballad of Jack Eric Williams (and other 3-named composers)" William Finn suggested that Williams, a diabetic, deliberately failed to take his insulin because he wanted to die. Williams did, in fact, go into a diabetic coma prior to his death.
Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Joshua Sondheim is an American composer and lyricist for stage and film. He is the winner of an Academy Award, multiple Tony Awards including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize and the Laurence Olivier Award...
's Sweeney Todd. In 2003 his life and death were the subject of one of William Finn
William Finn
William Alan Finn is an American composer and lyricist of musicals. His musical Falsettos received the 1992 Tony Awards for Best Music and Lyrics and for Best Book.-Biography:...
's Elegies: A Song Cycle
Elegies (William Finn)
Elegies is a song cycle by William Finn about the loss of friends and family and is a response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Most of the songs were composed in memory of Finn's friends, several of whom died of AIDS. Three songs deal specifically with the passing of his mother,...
, The Ballad of Jack Eric Williams (and other 3-named composers). Williams died in New York City on January 28, 1994 from cardiac arrest due to complications of diabetes.
Performer
Jack Eric Williams appeared off-Broadway as Max in a 1975 production of Harold PinterHarold Pinter
Harold Pinter, CH, CBE was a Nobel Prize–winning English playwright and screenwriter. One of the most influential modern British dramatists, his writing career spanned more than 50 years. His best-known plays include The Birthday Party , The Homecoming , and Betrayal , each of which he adapted to...
's The Homecoming
The Homecoming
The Homecoming is a two-act play written in 1964 by Nobel laureate Harold Pinter and first published in 1965. The original Broadway production won the 1967 Tony Award for Best Play and its 40th-anniversary Broadway production at the Cort Theatre was nominated for a 2008 Tony Award for "Best Revival...
at the Wonderhorse Theater. He made his Broadway debut in 1976 in the Lincoln Center revival of Kurt Weil's Threepenny Opera, singing in the ensemble and understudying the role of the Ballad Singer. He next appeared in Stephen Sondheim's 1979 masterpiece Sweeney Todd, originating the role of the villainous Beadle Bamford. Sondheim wrote the exceptionally-difficult vocal lines with Williams' voice in mind. His performances in both shows are preserved on their original cast albums. In 1981 he appeared in the controversial film Strong Medicine. A noted tenor, he once gave a command performance for the King and Queen of Sweden. Williams regularly performed his work in cabaret venues around New York. His one-man show, Songs and Other Devices: A Cabaret Recital (volumes 1-4) was performed at The Ballroom, Lone Star Cafe
Lone Star Cafe
The Lone Star Cafe was a cafe and club in New York City at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 13th Street, from 1976 to 1989. The Texas-themed cafe opened in February 1976 and became the premier country music venue in New York and booked big names and especially acts from Texas, like Asleep at the...
, Reno Sweeney, S.N.A.F.U., The Other End, and The Westbank Cafe.
Composer
In spite of his high-profile Broadway appearances, Williams considered himself primarily a composer.In 1980 Williams wrote the music to original lyrics by Bertold Brecht for the play Galileo, originally written for and with Charles Laughton
Charles Laughton
Charles Laughton was an English-American stage and film actor, screenwriter, producer and director.-Early life and career:...
. In 1981 he composed the score for the thriller Nightmare -a film which was originally banned in the UK for its excessive violence and gore. He followed that with a dance score for choreographer Johanna Boyce's Waterbodies for the American Dance Festival
American Dance Festival
The American Dance Festival is a six and four-week school for dance and a six-week summer festival of modern dance performances, currently held at Duke University and the Durham Performing Arts Center in Durham, North Carolina....
. The work was performed in and around a swimming pool, rather than in a traditional theater.
His 1983 musical biography of Frances Farmer
Frances Farmer
Frances Elena Farmer was an American actress of stage and screen. She is perhaps better known for sensationalized and fictional accounts of her life, and especially her involuntary commitment to a mental hospital...
, Mrs. Farmer's Daughter, was produced at the American Music Festival in Philadelphia in 1984. Lisa Vroman
Lisa Vroman
Lisa Vroman is an American lyric soprano and stage actress. She graduated from South Jefferson Central School in New York State in 1975, the Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam in 1979, and she did her graduate work at Carnegie Mellon University....
recorded one of the show's songs, Full Moon, on her 2000 album Broadway Classic.
Sheldon Larry directed Williams' 1984 musical, Romance Language, at Playwrights Horizons in New York City.
Williams' most successful show was 1990's Swamp Gas and Shallow Feelings: A Brand New Nashville Musical Fable, which was workshopped in 1988 and 1990 at the National Music Theater Conference of the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center, and again in 1991 at the National Music Theater Network as part of its Broadway Dozen Series. The work earned him the Richard Rodgers Award from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters in 1990, and continues to be performed by theaters around the United States.
The Public Theater commissioned Jack Eric Williams and Richard Isen to write an original ten-minute musical. The resulting show, Dear Someone, was performed at the theater.
Personal
Jack Eric Williams was married to Martha Elizabeth Lyne until her death in 1993. He was survived by his son, Eden Payne Williams, and many notable friends including author Quentin CrispQuentin Crisp
Quentin Crisp , was an English writer and raconteur. He became a gay icon in the 1970s after publication of his memoir, The Naked Civil Servant.- Early life :...
, actress Angela Lansbury
Angela Lansbury
Angela Brigid Lansbury CBE is an English actress and singer in theatre, television and motion pictures, whose career has spanned eight decades and earned her more performance Tony Awards than any other individual , with five wins...
, and composer William Finn
William Finn
William Alan Finn is an American composer and lyricist of musicals. His musical Falsettos received the 1992 Tony Awards for Best Music and Lyrics and for Best Book.-Biography:...
. In "The Ballad of Jack Eric Williams (and other 3-named composers)" William Finn suggested that Williams, a diabetic, deliberately failed to take his insulin because he wanted to die. Williams did, in fact, go into a diabetic coma prior to his death.