Sheldon Harnick and Regretting Almost Everything

People often wonder whether there are particular musical theatre writers who have influenced my work. For me, the lyricist who has most influenced my work is Sheldon Harnick.  Harnick’s lyrics are conversational, playful, simultaneously humorous and deeply serious, and relatable — all the things I aspire to be.

 Like Regretting, Harnick’s musicals (let’s keep Fiorello out of this) — She Loves Me, Fiddler on the Roof, The Apple Tree, The Rothschilds — are primarily focused on the personal. They are stories about lovers, children, and family.

 The song We Made Kids from Regretting is similar to It’s a Fish from The Apple Tree. Elle, and Go to Sleep, Whoever You Are, are also a pair. Like Fiddler’s Sunrise, Sunset, Fatherhood in Regretting is a contemplation on parenthood. A final example: Anymore from Regretting, like numerous songs in She Loves Me, is about the uncertainty and excitement of new love.