There’s been a lot of buzz around Joseph J. Garry lately. In August, the longtime Cleveland arts staple was given the Robert P. Bergman lifetime award from the Cleveland Arts Prize, due in large part to Broadway Buzz, the preshow lectures he’s been hosting at Playhouse Square for more than 10 years focuses on how a show is produced by dovetailing into the music, lyrics, choreography and more.
“I just try to give them provocative ideas to think about so they can formulate their own reaction to the show,” says Garry.
He has a long history in Cleveland theater, as the 50-year theater veteran has contributed to numerous collegiate theater programs in the area, including Baldwin Wallace University and Cleveland State University, where he served as the head of the theater department. Garry and his partner, David Frazier, also created 30 original theater scripts that have been performed in and around Cleveland, most notably, Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris.
“When you look at the list of other recipients, these were the giants of the city and it touches me very much,” Garry says. Broadway Buzz fans can see Garry’s first post-COVID lecture on the musical, The Prom, running from Nov. 2 to Nov. 21
