Bob Martin's Big Night: The Boop and Smash Writer Juggles Two First Previews and a Family Visit

Tuesday, March 11, was an unprecedented evening for writer Bob Martin, who found himself having to choose between two of his theatrical children, while spending time with his actual child. That evening, Broadway welcomed the first previews of Boop! The Musical at the Broadhurst Theatre and Smash a block away at the Imperial, and Martin serves as book writer for both (the latter penned with Rick Elice). And then there was the family element: joining him for the ride were his teenage son Harrison, Harrison’s girlfriend Mary, and Mary’s parents, whom he had never met.

Balancing the responsibilities of writing, managing his time in rehearsals, and handling the kind of unexpected challenges that only theater could bring, Martin reflected, the morning after, on the whirlwind of emotions he experienced that evening—standing at the back of the theater during Boop! while receiving updates from Smash, dealing with last-minute changes, and feeling the joy of seeing both shows come to life.

This conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

So, which first preview did you choose to attend?
I was at Boop! It was a difficult choice, but my son and his girlfriend and his girlfriend’s parents, who I’d never met, were in town, and I thought that Boop! would possibly be a more appropriate match for them.

Going back a couple months… Both Boop! and Smash rehearsed at New 42^nd Street Studios?
On the seventh floor and sixth floor, so I was running back and forth between them. And now we’re at the Broadhurst [Boop!] and the Imperial [Smash], which are a block apart. All my friends are telling me to savor this experience, and I’ve been so in work mode that I really haven’t been able to. It wasn’t until curtain last night that I really kind of let go and disappeared into the whole fantasy of Broadway.

How did you manage the rehearsal process like that?
I coordinated with the directors [Jerry Mitchell on Boop!, Susan Stroman on Smash]. When we’d do particular sections of the show, I made myself available. I had two assistants working on both shows, so they covered for me when I was not at the rehearsal. It’s been wild. I’ve been working on both shows for many years, but Boop! even before Smash. Boop! is really dear to my heart, because I’m working with Susan Birkenhead again [after Minskys in 2009], and she’s getting along and has had some health issues. She’s written beautiful, beautiful lyrics for Boop! and I just want the world to hear them.

Now take me through your night on Tuesday, March 11.
It was a crazy, crazy night. I went from the Smash rehearsal to a working dinner with Rick Elice, my writing partner on Smash, to Boop! I never imagined that the two shows would be coinciding like this.

Once Boop! started, I couldn’t sit down. I was standing at the back the whole time. Then I was receiving texts from Rick Elice, who was at Smash, so I was hearing about how that was going. We had a real drama earlier in the day when one of our cast members [in Smash] took ill. We had a swing [Chelle Denton] go on for a major role with very little prep, making her Broadway debut. Chelle apparently killed it. I mean, she was fantastic in rehearsal. I can’t imagine what she was going through.

With Smash, there are so many rabid fans of the TV series, and they all came to that first preview. There were three standing ovations. It was an incredible night, which I didn’t get to see. But it was reported to me throughout.

And Boop! went beautifully. Jasmine [Amy Rogers] was off the charts. Full disclosure, I was crying during Boop! It’s a family show, but it really digs into the reality of human connection and love and relationships. It’s surprisingly moving for a show that’s designed for children and families. It doesn’t talk down to anybody. I’m moved every time I see it, but last night was particularly moving.

Does having Rick Elice working in tandem on Smash make it easier for you to be at Boop!?
Absolutely. Rick is a genius and he’s a wonderful guy. We’ve really written this hand in hand, so he’s got a part of my brain when I’m not there. I don’t know if I could have gone through this without partners. Jerry and I have worked very closely on Boop!, so in a sense, he’s my rep there. And then Stro [on Smash], there’s nobody like her. So everything was very protected.

What are your plans for tonight?
I’m going to be at Smash tonight. We’re making a couple of changes, with one fairly substantial change in the second act. We’re making a few changes in Boop! tonight too, so I won’t actually see them executed, but they’re more subtle. With Boop!, we had the benefit of an out-of-town, where we learned so much. Smash was a much heavier lift coming into Broadway. But yeah, I’ll be at that tonight and I’m really looking forward to it. I’ve never seen it in front of an audience in this form.

What did your son’s girlfriend and her family think of the whole experience?
They loved it. They’re from Bowmanville, Ontario, and they’ve had very little experience in New York. We had to leave the theater through the stage door and there were hundreds of people waiting. They’d never experienced anything like that. So that was great.

And the whole evening ended with my son saying he was proud of me in the car. [Tears up] It was very moving to have him there.