The Public Theater Stages Benjamin Button Musical Adaptation

The Public Theater stages F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1922 short story vulture.com reported, transforming the tale of a man born old into a musical production scheduled to run through December 6. Jethro Compton directs the production on a rustic seaside promenade set, writing the book and co-writing lyrics with composer Darren Clark.

Instead of the original 1860s Baltimore setting, the stage version moves the birth year to 1918 and the birthplace to a Cornish coastal village. A troupe of nautical performers guides the narrative through songs and choreography vulture.com reported, leaning heavily into homespun folksiness and upbeat theatrical mechanics.

Staging the Cornish Adaptation

The stage property shares little besides its title and premise with the original 18-page Fitzgerald text. Fitzgerald wrote cool, semi-comical prose about a man born to privilege who wrecks Yale’s football team as a freshman vulture.com reported, whereas Compton’s production relies on broad accents, character quirks, and cheeseball humor.

Andrew Durand stars in the title role, committing fully to a pensioner with the soul of a boy. The ensemble cast performs triple and quadruple duty as both characters and the show’s backing band vulture.com reported, playing fiddles and whistles to conjure up traditional pub sessions under blue sidelights.

Navigating Narrative Contrivances

Kelsee Kimmel plays Elowen Keene, a barmaid at the local pub called the Pickled Crab who forms a romance with the protagonist.

The Public Theater Run

The production features constant references to exact units of time, noting precise hours, minutes, and seconds for major plot developments. Despite a script filled with heavy motifs and mechanical twee, the show delivers moments of genuine theatrical magic vulture.com reported, such as a hovering buoy that fills with light to become the moon.

All I want is to live a little life / Feel a little bit o’ freedom / See a little bit o’ sea

vulture.com