Leader of the Pack (musical)
Leader of the Pack is a 1984 American jukebox musical based on the life and music of singer/songwriter Ellie Greenwich. The musical tells the story of Greenwich's career and personal life from the 1950s to the 1980s, using songs written or co-written by Greenwich, along with Jeff Barry, Phil Spector, George "Shadow" Morton, Jeff Kent, and Ellen Foley. The musical was based on an original concept by Melanie Mintz, and the book (referred to as the "liner notes") was written by Anne Beatts, with additional material by Jack Heifner.
Leader of the Pack | |
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Original Cast Album | |
Music | Ellie Greenwich |
Lyrics | Ellie Greenwich Jeff Barry Phil Spector Shadow Morton Jeff Kent Ellen Foley |
Book | Anne Beatts |
Basis | The life of Ellie Greenwich |
Productions | 1984 Off-Broadway 1985 Broadway |
The musical had a brief Off-Broadway run in 1984, followed by a 120-performance Broadway run in 1985. The Broadway production had a lengthy preview period, during which the musical was retooled and much of the spoken dialogue was cut, turning Leader of the Pack into more of a revue. In both productions, the young Ellie was played by Dinah Manoff, while Greenwich herself appeared as the older Ellie. Annie Golden and Darlene Love, both of them Greenwich's real-life friends and collaborators, also appeared as themselves; Love was the original 1960s recording artist of some of the songs heard in the musical.