Jonathan Brielle

Jonathan Brielle (Playwright, Composer, Lyricist) Torn between theater and music, Jonathan started out as a teenage at the Jersey shore, playing folk/rock with a theatrical bent. Moving to New York City at 17, he quickly became ensconced the music scene. After growing tired of dragging gear from club to club, he began producing, running the first Songwriter’s Room at Uncle Lulu’s on 56th Street. There legendary writers such as Sammy Cahn, George Weiss, Doc Pomus as well as up and coming writers would audition their new songs for audiences of writers. This lead to a stint as National Projects Director of The Songwriters Guild of America while completing the songs for the Broadway show, Foxfire, staring Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy.

After Foxfire, Jonathan returned to performing, recording and music production, opening his first studio on Manhattan’s lower East Side. Honing his skills with great session players and singers, Jonathan began writing and producing shows for Corporate America. He moved his studios to TriBeCa and began creating shows for Las Vegas, circus as well as providing studios for rap artists such as JayZee and Busta’ Ryhmes. Theater remained a passion. He became a a composer in residence at Circle Rep in New York, and developed his next musical, Himself And Nora, which had it’s world premiere at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego in 2005 followed by a Dublin showcase in 2008 at the James Joyce Center. The show will make its New York debut July 9th at the NYMF Festival.
From 2008-2010, Jonathan worked closely with the late Gil Cates, legendary Artistic Director of The Geffen Playhouse where Nightmare Alley had its world premiere April 2010. Jonathan has dedicated future productions of Nightmare Alley to the memory of Gil Cates. 40 Naked Women, A Monkey & Me has been selected as the only musical at the Eugene O’Neill Cabaret Festival where it will debut August 2012. In addition to his plays, Jonathan serves as the Vice-President of The Johnny Mercer Foundation, which supports, celebrates and nurtures songwriting.