Smash star Leslie Odom Jr. joins tick, tick... BOOM!

'Smash' star Leslie Odom Jr. will join Lin-Manuel Miranda and Karen Olivo in the New York City Center Encores! Off-Center production of Jonathan Larson's tick, tick... BOOM!, directed by Oliver Butler and running for five performances from 25 to 29 Jun 2014.

Synopsis: 'tick, tick... BOOM! is an autobiographical musical by Jonathan Larson, the Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning composer of Rent. First performed as a solo rock monologue by Larson in 1990, it is the story of an aspiring composer who questions his life choices on the eve of his thirtieth birthday.'

Bios:

Leslie Odom Jr. (Michael) made his Broadway debut at 17, playing "Paul" in Rent. He was nominated for a Drama League Award for his work on Broadway in 'Leap of Faith'. Leslie is perhaps best known for his regular TV role of Sam Strickland on NBC's 'Smash' and has been recurring on the CBS series 'Person of Interest' and the NBC series 'Special Victim's Unit'. He recently finished a series regular role on a new NBC pilot called 'State Of Affairs' and is working with Lin-Manuel Miranda on the new musical 'Hamilton' to premiere at The Public Theater in 2015.

Lin-Manuel Miranda (Jon) is perhaps best known as the composer-lyricist of Broadway's 'In the Heights', which received four 2008 Tony Awards, with Lin-Manuel receiving a Tony Award for Best Score, as well as a nomination for Best Leading Actor in a Musical. He also earned a 2009 Grammy Award for 'In the Heights' for Original Broadway Cast Album. Lin-Manuel contributed new songs to the revival of Stephen Schwartz's 'Working', collaborated with Arthur Laurents and Stephen Sondheim on Spanish translations for the 2009 Broadway Revival of 'West Side Story', and most recently, partnered with Jeff Whitty, Tom Kitt and Amanda Green for 'Bring It On: The Musical'. He also starred in the Encores! production of 'Merrily We Roll Along'. His next musical 'Hamilton' will have its world premiere at The Public Theater in 2015.

Karen Olivo (Susan) is a Tony Award winner for her role of Anita in the Broadway revival of 'West Side Story'. She originated the role of Vanessa in both the Off-Broadway and Broadway productions of 'In the Heights'. Her other Broadway credits include 'Rent' and 'Brooklyn'. Karen's Off-Broadway credits include 'Miracle Brothers', 'Murder Ballad' and 'By The Way, Meet Vera Stark'.

- by Tom Millward