Packed with insider nods and insight ... Makes for a fascinating study in identifying, supporting and achieving greatness ... Seller’s recollection of how the Rent team simultaneously mourned Larson and cemented his legacy is a vital account of artistic perseverance ... Engaging ... An inspiring road map ...
Theater Kid will resonate with any reader who has tried to manifest their dream job via sheer pluck and commitment. Even if Seller proves oddly evasive about his post-Rent personal life, and quotes a few too many wooden conversations from memory, those quibbles don’t overwhelm the book’s merits.
Theater Kid: A Broadway Memoir needs to be available in every high school and college library to uplift, give courage and instill hope in each young person, encouraging them to strive for their dreams. At that vulnerable time of life, many struggle with doubt, fear and all too often bullying simply for being different. This powerful work of nonfiction is both life-affirming and utterly captivating. The reader is given an all-access backstage pass to the New York theater world ... Theater Kid: A Broadway Memoir is a must-read for anyone who has ever skipped class to attend a Wednesday matinee, sat in the nosebleed section unable to afford orchestra seats, auditioned or acted in a show, or simply loves live performances. There really is something magical about 'the smell of the greasepaint and the roar of the crowd.' Jeffrey Seller clearly defines the role of producer—with all its risks, uncertainty and rewards—in this most candid of memoirs, full of wit, insight and wildly entertaining anecdotes. From poverty and an uncertain beginning, Seller has impressively succeeded both on Broadway and in life.
Captivating ... Seller candidly describes his dysfunctional family, his teenage sexual awakening, and relationships with his best friend Andrew and other men in New York City during the AIDS crisis of the 1980s ... Seller is an engaging storyteller and as passionate about directing summer camp theater as he is about producing award-winning Broadway shows. Highly recommended.
Theater Kid is told in the present tense in three acts, and some of Seller's lean, rapid-fire recollected dialogues could pass for excerpts from a polished script. He has a light touch, whether he's contemplating being gay and adopted or engaging in Broadway-insider wheeler-dealing. A reader needs no prior familiarity with Rent, Avenue Q, In the Heights, or Hamilton, all of which Seller had a hand in, to enjoy chapters devoted to the origins of these against-the-odds hits. For each show, Seller has written a gripping underdog story, which is another way to describe his memoir.
In this candid and engaging memoir, [Seller] blends his personal and professional stories to deftly capture his childhood dreams and challenges and his eventual journey to a successful career on Broadway ... An entertaining and heartfelt look at what it takes to find your true self and not only survive but thrive amidst the neon lights on Broadway.
Candid and affectionate ... Seller provides colorful, behind-the-scenes peeks into the challenges and joys of producing a musical ... Unfortunately, the narrative wobbles in its final third, which speeds through more than 20 years of Seller’s prolific career. Still, theater buffs would do well to check this out.
