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Shy
Shy: The Alarmingly Outspoken Memoirs of Mary Rodgers | Mary Rodgers, Jesse Green
2 posts | 5 read | 3 to read
The memoirs of Mary Rodgers—writer, composer, Broadway royalty, and “a woman who tried everything.” “What am I, bologna?” Mary Rodgers (1931–2014) often said. She was referring to being stuck in the middle: the daughter of one composer and the mother of another. And not just any composers. Her father was Richard Rodgers, perhaps the greatest American melodist; her son Adam Guettel, a worthy successor. What that leaves out is Mary herself, also a composer, whose musical Once Upon a Mattress remains one of the rare revivable Broadway hits written by a woman. Shy is the story of how it all happened: how Mary grew from an angry child, constrained by privilege and a parent’s overwhelming talent, to become not just a theater star but also a renowned author of books for young people (including the classic Freaky Friday) and, in a final grand turn, a doyenne of philanthropy and the chairman of the Juilliard School. But in telling these stories—with copious annotations, contradictions, and interruptions from her coauthor, Jesse Green, the chief theater critic of The New York Times—Shy also tells another, about a woman liberating herself from disapproving parents and pervasive sexism to find art and romance on her own terms. Both an eyewitness report from the Golden Age of American musical theater and a tale of a woman striving for a meaningful life, Shy is, above all, a chance to sit at the feet of the kind of woman they don’t make anymore—and never did. They make themselves.
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Andrea313
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Twitter coming in hot with the commentary on Mary Rodgers' excellent memoir! Though she is often recognized in connection with her legendary composer father, Richard Rodgers, and her Tony award-winning son, Adam Guettel, Mary was an award-winning composer and author herself. Come for the scathing one-liners and take-downs (Arthur Laurents gets gloriously dragged); stay for the honesty of a woman who was outspoken, complicated, and gutsy as hell.

willaful Does it mention her children's books? 4mo
Andrea313 Yes, she discusses that writing later in the book, and touches very briefly on the various film adaptations, too. 4mo
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Ncostell
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I loved this memoir of Mary Rodgers, the daughter of Richard Rodgers of Rodgers and Hammerstein fame and a musical talent in her own right. She is best known for composing the music to Once Upon a Mattress and writing the children‘s classic book, Freaky Friday. Her sharp wit and personality shone through in this chatty memoir. She had a front row seat to the creation of many musical classics and I would recommend this to any big Broadway fan.

Ruthiella I loved Freaky Friday as a kid! And also the movie with Jodie Foster. 2y
Ncostell @Ruthiella I know, I loved both the book and the original movie too! I want to go back and revisit them both now. 2y
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