A Theory of Justice: The Musical!
A Theory of Justice: The Musical is a musical comedy by Eylon Levy, Ramin Sabi, Tommy Peto and Toby Huelin. Billed as a "time-travelling romp through 2,500 years of political philosophy", the musical tells a fictionalised account of the writing of A Theory of Justice (1971), the classic philosophical treatise by the American political philosopher John Rawls.
| A Theory of Justice: The Musical | |
|---|---|
| Music | Ramin Sabi Toby Huelin Eylon Levy Tommy Peto |
| Lyrics | Eylon Levy Ramin Sabi Tommy Peto |
| Book | Eylon Levy Ramin Sabi Tommy Peto |
| Basis | A Theory of Justice by John Rawls |
| Productions | 2013 Oxford 2013 Edinburgh 2015 Cardiff (Amateur) 2018 London (Workshop) |
The musical premiered in Oxford's Keble O'Reilly Theatre in January 2013 and was revived for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August 2013, where it was nominated for four awards in the categories of Best Musical, Best Book, Best Music, and Best Lyrics. In 2018, a reworked version was presented for a rehearsed reading in London's West End. The official cast soundtrack was released in May 2019.
The musical follows John Rawls on a journey through time to gain inspiration for A Theory of Justice from a chorus of singing and dancing political philosophers, including Plato, Locke, Hobbes, Rousseau, Mill, Wollstonecraft, Marx and Kant. As he pursues his love interest, a beautiful student named Fairness, Rawls is menaced by villainous libertarian philosopher Robert Nozick and his lover Ayn Rand, who plot to stop Rawls writing his redistributionist theory of justice.
The real-life John Rawls' daughter Liz praised the musical as "perfect" and "amazing and witty" after watching the Edinburgh Fringe Festival production, saying it "far surpassed any expectations."