Joe DiPietro: Writing His Own Tales

Joe DiPietro attended Rutgers University where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A in English. And he may be best known for writing the book & co-writing the lyrics to “MEMPHIS,” the Tony Award winner for Best New Musical in 2010.

But did you know that in grade 7 at what was previously known as l, DiPietro wrote his first award winning play? Encouraged and sponsored by his English teacher, Ms. Sharon Milch, Joe submitted “Dream Stealer,” to Scholastic Magazine and won a Scholastic Writing Award for Drama. He graduated from in 1980.

Joe also wrote “I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change,” the longest running musical revue in off-Broadway history -- twelve years. “I Love You …” has had hundreds of award-winning productions throughout the world. 

On Broadway, he wrote the book for “All Shook Up,” which recently completed a national tour and is about to become one of the most produced musicals across the country next season.

His “new” Gerswhin musical “Nice Work if You Can Get It” is scheduled to debut next season on Broadway starring Matthew Broderick.

Other musicals include “The Thing About Men,” which won the Outer Critics Circle award for Best Off-Broadway musical in 2004 and premiered in London in 2008. He has written ‘new’ books for classic musicals, most notably “Babes in Arms” (Goodspeed Musicals), “Damn Yankees (North Shore Music Theatre), and Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “Allegro,” which premiered in Washington’s Signature Theatre in 2003 and went on to win the Helen Hayes Award for Best New Musical – marking the first time “Allegro” has ever been turned into a success.

His plays include the off-Broadway smash “Over the River and Through the Woods,” which has had hundreds of productions throughout the world and his mystery, “Art of Murder,” won the 2001 Edgar Award for Best Mystery Play.

Joe is the recipient of the William Inge Theater Festival New Voices In American Theater Award and has won the O’Neill National Playwright’s Conference MacArthur Award for comic writing.