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" I only like to write shows that I feel like no one has seen before. "

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" Every time I see a film or TV show, I think about how that composer made those choices and how that director envisioned music and how that could work onstage or in a film and how you could support that even further by putting lyrics to it. "

" The things that I have done that haven't been as successful have been things that have been largely out of the public view, which is great. It's terrible, when you're a theater writer, to have a big flop publicly. "

" In 'Winnie the Pooh,' a lot of the characters have serious flaws: Pooh is sort of a food addict. Rabbit is OCD, and Owl is a compulsive liar. "

" I'm not really a 'puppet' person in particular; I think they are very theatrical, and I've found different uses for them in shows, but my true interest is in writing Broadway musicals. "

" My first writing job was with a company called TheatreworksUSA. "

" On Broadway, there is no censoring, just self-censorship and doing what makes sense. "

" When a good idea sparks, it's usually because of some subversive angle that means the song we're writing will be fresh. "

" When we wrote 'Avenue Q,' we worked hard to create something that could be funny and satirical but also had some surprise moments of heart, moments when the music itself could become a central player and create something sweet and moving. "

" I don't know if I have good habits, but I'm very devoted to writing. I'm very compulsive about having a project, at least one, and trying to follow the business as much as I can. I keep on top of all the entertainment business news. "

" People try not to think about what's going on in sub-Saharan Africa. They edit it out of their daily lives. Especially Americans. We prefer a fantasy version of Africa. "

" If all you have is satire, your show will close. Even if all you have is comedy, your show will close. The hardest thing is not making people laugh: the hardest thing is building an emotional story. Any child can make a group of adults laugh. "

" It's so important, after a song is finished, to go to sleep and listen to the song with fresh ears the next day. It's sometimes a traumatic event. And playing it for someone else for the first time - that is the most nerve-wracking thing of all. But we learn so much. "

" With comedy, the jokes will come out, and people will see them coming. Changes in daily life or current events can change the consciousness of audiences and can make the show less funny or feel more stale. "

" If you're doing a musical, you should be out to give the audience something special, emotional, an uplifting feeling, something that stays with them. And you're not going to do that by bumming them out. "

" I thought it would be really cool to show the world the inner life of someone like me, who doesn't have a huge personality, who deals with some personal demons and is a little bit shy and a little awkward when you first get to know me. "

" You can never assume that something is going to do well. "

" I did a musical episode of 'Scrubs.' "

" When you're trying to do a traditional book musical like 'Book of Mormon,' it's always nice to have characters that could very naturally break into song, and its good to pick a subject matter that allows that to happen in a way that doesn't disarm the audience. "

" The temptation to quit and start over infects every creative process I've ever been in. Frustration and boredom always fuel this self-doubt. "

" Whenever someone wants to say something to a whole mass of people by breaking into song, there's probably something wrong with them. "

" There's been a lot of Catholic parody - 'Nunsense,' 'Sister Mary Ignatius' - I think they've almost been done to death, actually. "

" I basically never feel like writing. I am a happy-go-lucky, relaxed, fun-seeking kind of person. And working disturbs that, because it puts me in a state of anxiety. "

" People are born with the ability to make judgments. And they can't help but use the information they have to divine something about the world they're in. Making categorical judgments, in large, helps our society. "

" I'm sort of agnostic. I grew up Catholic and switched to Episcopalian in college because I sang in churches to have money to buy pizza and french fries. "

" I am never excited to play through a song all the way, because it can reveal more flaws that mean more work. For some reason, I always have an irrational fear that the song will never be finished. "

" I admire 'Urinetown.' "

" I think one of my favorite productions ever was Sondheim's 'Assassins' at the Roundabout in 2004. Beyond brilliant. "

" I always have to re-learn the important lesson that the work is always stronger when I listen and take input from others. "

" I don't know any Mormon that doesn't have warm memories of their family. "

" I don't think I met an actual Mormon until college, and by that time, I was wary of them. I knew about the church through school and, secondhand, through non-Mormon friends. "