Will Aronson

Born William Landry Aronson in 1981 in Guilford, Connecticut, Will Aronson discovered his passion for music early, starting piano lessons at age eight and later playing trombone in his high school jazz band, experiences that infused his later works with improvisational flair. A graduate of Guilford High School in 2000, he earned a B.A. in music from Harvard University, where he composed for Hasty Pudding Theatricals' productions like Snow Place Like Home (154th show) and co-authored It's a Wonderful Afterlife (155th). Post-Harvard, Aronson studied music theory as a Fulbright Scholar at Berlin's Universität der Künste, then obtained an M.F.A. from NYU Tisch's Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program, receiving the ASCAP Frederick Loewe Scholarship and a 2006 Baryshnikov Fellowship. Named one of the Dramatists Guild's "50 to Watch" in 2007, he began building a portfolio that included over 200 tracks for the ESL series English Egg and arrangements for William Finn's projects like Little Miss Sunshine at La Jolla Playhouse in 2011.

Aronson's breakthrough came through his 2008 partnership with Hue Park, yielding hits like My Scary Girl (Best Original Musical at 2009 Korea Musical Awards) and Bungee Jump (Best Score at 2012 Korea Musical Awards). Their magnum opus, Maybe Happy Ending, premiered in Korea in 2016 to acclaim, winning multiple Korean awards before its 2017 Richard Rodgers honor and 2020 Atlanta run. The 2024 Broadway opening propelled it to 2025 glory, securing six Tonys—including Best Musical, Book, and Score—plus Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, and New York Drama Critics' Circle honors. With additional credits like Pete the Cat (Lucille Lortel Theatre) and upcoming Hansel & Gretl & Heidi & Günter, Aronson's oeuvre spans playful family tales to poignant sci-fi, earning him a Tony nomination for Best Orchestrations and recognition as a versatile force in global musical theater.