Daily Show Writer Javerbaum Crafts Satiric Political Musical Watt?!?

By: Jan. 02, 2006
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David Javerbaum, the five-time Emmy Award-winning writer for "The Daily Show" who is also an up-and-coming musical theatre talent, will pen a new musical about an unlikely subject-- James Watt, who served as U.S. Secretary of the Interior during Ronald Reagan's administration. The show will be called Watt?!?.

Javerbaum is collaborating with composers GrooveLily and Brendan Milburn (Striking 12) in writing the tongue-in-cheek show, which will be set to a rock score. No production dates have been announced for the musical.

Javerbaum stated that Watt?!?, while satiric, is also sympathetic towards the politician, who served from 1981-83. Watt was criticized by liberals for an anti-environmentalist attitude and was reported to have banned The Beach Boys from playing at the National Mall for a Fourth of July concert; he remarked that rock concerts attracted "an undesirable element." Watt resigned in 1983 after offensively joking that his staff comprised "a black, a woman, two Jews and a cripple." After the resignation, Watt was indicted by a federal grand jury on 18 counts of felony perjury and obstruction of justice. In 1996, he pleaded guilty to withholding documents from a federal grand jury as part of a plea bargain; the misdemeanor resulted in five years probation, a $5,000 fine and 500 hours of community service.

Javerbaum is the head writer of the wildly popular Comedy Central series "The Daily Show," which skewers political and cultural happenings with sharp-edged humor. He wrote the lyrics of the award-winning musical Suburb with composer Robert S. Cohen; a 2006 cast recording was announced for the show, which also recently obtained licensing rights. Cry-Baby, based on the John Waters film and featuring music by Adam Schlesinger (of the band Fountains of Wayne) and a libretto by Thomas Meehan and Mark O'Donnell (both of Hairspray), is another musical theatre project on which Javerbaum is working. Cry-Baby is tentatively slated for a 2007 Broadway run.

Visit www.suburbthemusical.com for more on Suburb.



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