Stephen Schwartz

Stephen Schwartz first found acclaim following his work as composer for Godspell in 1971. He wrote the music and new lyrics for the show, for which he won several awards, including two Grammys. In the years that followed he continued his success with Bernstein’s MASS (’71), Pippin (’72) and The Magic Show (’74), which at one point were all running on Broadway simultaneously. This success ignited in Schwartz more than a decade of exemplary work in Broadway, Off-Broadway Revue and television productions.

In 1995, Schwartz began working in film, collaborating with composer Alan Menken on the scores for the Disney animated features Pocahontas, for which he received two Academy Awards and another Grammy, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. He also provided songs for DreamWorks’ first animated feature, The Prince of Egypt, for which he won another Academy Award for the song “When You Believe.” He most recently collaborated with Alan Menken on the songs for Disney’s Enchanted.

In 2003, Schwartz’s most recent musical, Wicked, opened. It is currently running on Broadway and in several other productions around the United States and the world. In 2008, Wicked reached its 1,900th performance on Broadway, making Schwartz the only songwriter in Broadway history ever to have three shows run more than 1,900 performances.

Schwartz was recently given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Applause Books recently released a book about his career, Defying Gravity.

Read about Stephen Schwartz & Friends' visit to Wright State in the Wright State Newsroom