Pasek and Paul | |
|---|---|
 Pasek (left) and Paul (right) in 2009 | |
| Background information | |
| Genres | Musical theatre |
| Members | Benj Pasek Justin Paul |
| Website | pasekandpaul |
Benj Pasek andJustin Paul, known together asPasek and Paul, are an American songwriting duo and composing team for musical theater, films and television.[1][2][3][4][5]
While Pasek usually writes lyrics and Paul usually writes music, they share credit for both elements.[6] Both are graduates of theUniversity of Michigan[7] and winners of theAmerican Theatre Wing's 2007Jonathan Larson Grant,[8] which honors achievement by composers, lyricists and librettists.
In September 2024, the duo became the 20th and 21stEGOT winners.
Pasek and Paul started working together as freshmen at theUniversity of Michigan.[9] Both got "background" roles in the school's musical theater production, which inspired them to writeEdges, a song cycle about the trials and tribulations of moving into adulthood and the search for meaning.Edges premiered inAnn Arbor, Michigan, on April 3, 2005.[7]
On May 14, 2006, the duo made their New York City premiere: abenefit concert of original songs titledBecome: The Music of Pasek & Paul. Presented byJamie McGonnigal,[10] performers includedGavin Creel,Cheyenne Jackson,Celia Keenan-Bolger,Jesse Tyler Ferguson, andSteven Pasquale.[11] They also contributed to the 2006 off-Broadway musicalWhite Noise: A Cautionary Musical, which won Talkin' Broadway's 2006 Summer Theatre Festival Citation for Outstanding Original Score.[12]
In December 2006, they completed theirBFA degrees in musical theatre.[citation needed]
Edges proved popular on social media[13] and within several years it had over 200 productions worldwide, with countries including Australia,[14] South Africa,[15]Denmark,[16][17] France,[18]South Korea, the United Kingdom,[19] Canada,[20] thePhilippines,[21] and the United States.[22]
Pasek and Paul wrote the score to the musical adaptation ofRoald Dahl'sJames and the Giant Peach, which premiered in 2010 throughGoodspeed Musicals.[23] Other early works includeIf You Give A Pig A Pancake (2010) andDuck For President for Theatreworks USA,[24] andDr. Williams, written for the Orchard Project's 24 Hour Musicals benefit. The show starredJesse Tyler Ferguson andCheyenne Jackson. Pasek and Paul were featured in the 2011 documentary filmOne Night Stand about the process.[25] They wrote the lyrics and music to the 2012 musicalDogfight,[26] also contributing toA Christmas Story, The Musical, which was nominated for aTony Award in 2013 for Best Original Score.[27]
Pasek and Paul wrote the music and lyrics to their musicalDear Evan Hansen. The musical, inspired by the death of a fellow student while Pasek was in high school, features book bySteven Levenson. Directed byMichael Greif and starringBen Platt in thetitle role, it premiered at theArena Stage in Washington, D.C. on July 30, 2015.[28][29][30] It made its Off-Broadway debut in March 2016 at theSecond Stage Theatre,[31] and on Broadway on November 14, 2016, opening three weeks later at theMusic Box Theatre. At the71st Tony Awards, it was nominated for nine awards includingBest Musical,Best Score,Best Book of a Musical, andBest Actor in a Musical for Platt. It won six awards including Best Musical and Best Original Score for the duo. At the2018 Grammy Awards,Dear Evan Hansen won Best Musical Theater Album.[32] The musical received the Edgerton Foundation New Play Award and a 2016Obie Award for Musical Theatre.[33] The show broke box office records at the Music Box Theatre and became the longest-running production to play the venue in Broadway’s history.[34]
The musical made itsWest End debut at theNoël Coward Theatre inLondon on November 19, 2019, following previews in October of the same year. The show was nominated for sevenLaurence Olivier Awards at the2020 ceremony and won three:Best New Musical,Best Actor in a Musical for starSam Tutty andBest Original Score or New Orchestrations for Pasek and Paul.[35]
The duo have written original music for several television shows. In 2007 and 2008 Pasek and Paul wrote music for theDisney Channel showJohnny and the Sprites,[12] with songs used in six episodes and for one story in the season's premiere.
Theiroriginal material was featured on season 2 ofNBC'sSmash in 2013,[36] and have risen to the Top 25 on the iTunes Pop Charts.
Pasek and Paul also wrote the original song "Runnin' Home to You" performed byGrant Gustin forThe Flash episode "Duet", a musical crossover betweenThe Flash andSupergirl.[37]Melissa Benoist sang it inSupergirl's "Crisis on Earth-X" crossover episode.[38]
They also wrote original songs for an episode of theHulu showOnly Murders in the Building, including "Look for the Light", a duet sung byMeryl Streep andAshley Park.[39] Another song, "Which of the Pickwick Triplets Did It?" was written by Pasek and Paul working for the first time in collaboration withMarc Shaiman andScott Wittman ofHairspray fame. Thetongue-twistingpatter song was performed primarily byOnly Murders actorSteve Martin, and also byMatthew Broderick for one episode, followed byMartin Short.[40][41] They won aPrimetime Emmy for "Which of the Pickwick Triplets Did It?" in 2024.[42] In 2025, they reunited with Shaiman and Wittman to pen "Sometimes All You Need Is a Song," forCynthia Erivo and the Broadway Inspirational Voices to perform as the opening number of the78th Tony Awards.[43]
Pasek and Paul wrote the 2016 song "Get Back Up Again" for the filmTrolls,[44] as well as five original songs for the 2016 animated direct-to-video featureTom and Jerry: Back to Oz.[45]
They wrote the lyrics for the musical romantic comedy-drama filmLa La Land, which had music written byJustin Hurwitz.[46] The film, in its world premiere, was the opening film at the 73rdVenice International Film Festival on August 31, 2016.[47] The film's track "City of Stars", with their lyrics and composition by Justin Hurwitz, won the 2017Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.[4] "City of Stars" and "Audition" received nominations forBest Original Song at the89th Academy Awards,[48] and they won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "City of Stars."[49] It was then announced in February 2023 that they would reunite with Hurwitz on a stage musical adaptation of the film currently in development, with a book byAyad Akhtar andMatthew Decker and direction byBartlett Sher.[50]
Pasek and Paul wrote the songs for the 2017 musical drama filmThe Greatest Showman. About theBarnum & Bailey Circus, the film premiered on December 8, 2017.[51] The duo's song "This Is Me" won aGolden Globe for Best Original Song[52] and was nominated forBest Original Song at the90th Academy Awards. Astage musical adaptation of the film is set to open at theBristol Hippodrome inBristol in the spring of 2026, with Pasek and Paul returning to write additional new songs for the show.[53][54]
In collaboration withAlan Menken, Pasek and Paul wrote the lyrics for two new songs for Disney's 2019 live action film adaptation ofAladdin. The film also includesoriginal 1992 song compositions written by Menken,Howard Ashman, andTim Rice.[55]
Pasek and Paul also adaptedDear Evan Hansen as afeature film forUniversal Pictures and directorStephen Chbosky. They wrote two new songs for the film, including "The Anonymous Ones," which was written in collaboration withAmandla Stenberg for the character of Alana Beck, whom Stenberg plays in the film. They also wrote "A Little Closer" for the character of Connor Murphy, played byColton Ryan, who reprises the role in which he understudied in the Broadway production.[56] Paul also composed the film's underscore withDan Romer.[57] It premiered at the2021 Toronto International Film Festival on September 9, 2021, followed by a release in theaters on September 24, 2021.[58][59][60]
The duo has also written original songs forSony Pictures Entertainment'slive-action/animated adaptation ofBernard Waber's children's bookLyle, Lyle, Crocodile (released on October 7, 2022)[61][62] andApple Original Films'Spirited (November 11).[63] Pasek and Paul have also written new songs for Disney's live-action remake ofSnow White, released in March of 2025.[64][65] They also collaborated withPharrell Williams on songs for thesemi-autobiographical musical dramaGolden, reuniting them with Steven Levenson for the first time sinceDear Evan Hansen. In February of 2025 it was announced thatGolden was shelved and would never see release in any capacity.[66]
It was also revealed in July of 2025 byDeadline that both Pasek and Paul would be writing new music for the upcomingWarner Bros. Pictures Animation CGI animated adaptation of the classicDr. Suess story, "Oh, the Places You'll Go" featuring the voices ofAriana Grande andJosh Gad with a 2028 expected release.[67]
Justin Noble Paul (born January 3, 1985)[68] was born in Missouri, but raised in Connecticut. He attended Music Theatre of Connecticut School of Performing Arts, Coleytown Middle School, andStaples High School, both inWestport, Connecticut. While in public school, Justin was an active member of bothColeytown Company andStaples Players (his middle and high school theatre programs). He graduated from theUniversity of Michigan in December 2006 with a BFA in Musical Theatre.[69] He is married to writer Asher Fogle Paul; he and his wife have four children.[6] They have a daughter, born in 2016, and a son, born in 2018.[70] In July 2020, they had their third child. The Pauls are practicingChristians.[70]
Benjamin Pasek (born June 9, 1985),[71] is the son ofTemple University professorKathy Hirsh-Pasek.[72] His alma mater is theUniversity of Michigan andFriends' Central School.[6] He is gay.[6] Pasek was born into a Jewish[73] family in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His mother is the renowned child psychologist, author, and Brookings scholarKathy Hirsh-Pasek, whose work focuses on the importance of childhood play.[74] As a child, he sang with thePhiladelphia Boys Choir & Chorale. He went on to earn a B.F.A. in musical theater from theUniversity of Michigan. It was there that he metJustin Paul. When Pasek and Paul were unsatisfied with the roles they were getting in the shows at the university, the two decided to begin writing their own shows. One of the first projects they worked on together,Edges, was developed at the school. He is close friends with comedianAlex Edelman.[citation needed]
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Edges |
|
| 2010 | James and the Giant Peach | Book by Timothy Allen McDonald |
| 2012 | Dogfight | Book byPeter Duchan |
| 2012 | A Christmas Story: The Musical | Book by Joseph Robinette |
| 2015 | Dear Evan Hansen | Book bySteven Levenson |
| 2026 | The Greatest Showman | Book byTim Federle |
| TBA | La La Land | Book byAyad Akhtar andMatthew Decker |
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Tom and Jerry: Back to Oz |
|
| Trolls | Writers of "Get Back Up Again" | |
| La La Land |
| |
| 2017 | The Greatest Showman |
|
| 2019 | Aladdin | Wrote the lyrics for two new songs in collaboration withAlan Menken, including "Speechless" |
| 2021 | Dear Evan Hansen[58] |
|
| 2022 | Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile[61] | Also executive producers |
| Spirited | ||
| 2023 | Only Murders in the Building | Composed songs forS3's "Death Rattle Dazzle" musical |
| 2025 | Snow White[64] |
|
| 2028 | Oh, the Places You'll Go! | Warner Bros. Pictures Animation adaptatingthe 1990 book byDr. Seuss |
| N/A | Golden |
|
