Pippin is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Roger O. Hirson. Bob Fosse, who directed the original Broadway production, also contributed to the libretto. The musical uses the premise of a mysterious acting troupe, led by a Leading Player, to tell the story of Pippin, a young prince on his search for meaning and significance.

The protagonist, Pippin, and his father, Charlemagne, derive their characters from two real-life individuals of the early Middle Ages, though the plot presents very little historical accuracy regarding either. The show was partially financed by Motown Records. As of July 2011, Pippin is the 31st longest-running Broadway show.Pippin was originally conceived by Stephen Schwartz as Pippin, Pippin, a student musical performed by Carnegie Mellon's Scotch'n'Soda theatre troupe.

According to musical theatre scholar Scott Miller in his 1996 book, From Assassins to West Side Story, "Pippin is a largely under-appreciated musical with a great deal more substance to it than many people realize…Because of its 1970s pop style score and a somewhat emasculated licensed version for amateur productions which is very different from the original Broadway production, the show now has a reputation for being merely cute and harmlessly naughty; but if done the way director Bob Fosse envisioned it, the show is surreal and disturbing."Ben Vereen won a Tony Award for his portrayal of the Leading Player in the original Broadway production.

Musical is the adjective form of music. It may also refer to:

David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American television host and comedian. He hosts the late night television talk show, Late Show with David Letterman, broadcast on CBS. Letterman has been a fixture on late night television since the 1982 debut of Late Night with David Letterman on NBC. Letterman recently surpassed friend and mentor Johnny Carson for having the longest late-night hosting career in the United States of America.

Letterman is also a television and film producer. His company Worldwide Pants produces his show as well as its network follow-up The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. Worldwide Pants has also produced several prime-time comedies, the most successful of which was Everybody Loves Raymond, currently in syndication.

In 1996, David Letterman was ranked #45 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time.

Letterman was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. His father, Harry Joseph Letterman (April 1915 – February 1973), was a florist of British descent; his mother Dorothy Letterman (née Hofert, now Dorothy Mengering), a Presbyterian church secretary of German descent, is an occasional figure on the show, usually at holidays and birthdays.

Patina Miller (born November 6, 1984) is an American actress and singer. Miller is best known for originating the role of disco diva wannabe Deloris Van Cartier in the 2009 West End and 2011 Broadway productions of Sister Act the Musical.

Born Patina Renea Miller in Pageland, South Carolina and raised in a single parent home, she was introduced to music at an early age and sang with the gospel choir at her local church. She attended South Carolina Governor's School for the Arts & Humanities and in 2006 graduated with a degree in musical theatre from Carnegie Mellon University, which she attended on a full scholarship. She has credited her time at Carnegie Mellon as a big part of her life, saying, "It was there that I studied and really realized that I could make my dream a reality. I'm so thankful to all my teachers who helped me to become the performer I am today. I'm so proud of my school and feel so blessed to have gotten such a wonderful education and made lifelong friends."

In 2005, Miller was one of three finalists for the role of Effie White in Dreamgirls, which ultimately won Jennifer Hudson the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. In 2007, she was cast in All My Children and appeared in 30 episodes of the daytime soap opera. She performed in a Central Park production of Hair in the summer of 2008 and was featured in the musical Romantic Poetry at the Manhattan Theatre Club that fall.

Matthew James Thomas (sometimes also credited as Matthew Thomas) is a British actor and singer, best known for his role in the UK drama/musical show Britannia High. He located to America in 2010 to star in Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark on Broadway.

Thomas trained at the Sylvia Young Theatre School in London along with his fellow Britannia High cast members Sapphire Elia and Georgina Hagen.^{[citation needed]} He then went on to training, and graduated from Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts.

Thomas' earlier TV work includes Wonderful You, Shane, The Blind Date Murders, Bad Girls, Doctors, The Bill and Desperados.

He has also appeared in the films Billy Elliot and About a Boy.

At the age of 14, he played Prince John (older) in Stephen Poliakoff's The Lost Prince.

Thomas' theatre work includes Fame at the Shaftesbury Theatre in which he played Schlomo, Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Whistle Down the Wind at the Aldwych Theatre London alongside Hollyoaks actress Hannah Tointon and former S Club Juniors member Jay Asforis in 1999-2000, in which he played Clarence. His other theatre credits include Oliver! at the London Palladium, Dick Whittington at Sadler's Wells Theatre, Wayne in Popcorn at the Landor Theatre and Romeo in Romeo & Juliet at the Avondale Theatre.