Neil Berg

He studied piano/musical composition with Walter Ponce, Robert Printz, and Sue Peters, and is a product of the BMI Workshop, mentored by Maury Yeston and Skip Kennon. His theater songs are featured in various Hal Leonard musical anthologies.

Berg is currently the composer/co-lyricist, along with Pulitzer/Tony-winning playwright Robert Schenkkan, of the award-winning rock musical The 12. It opened at the Denver Center in the spring of 2015 to rave reviews, and won the 2015 Henry Award for best new play or musical. In 2018, Tony-award-winning director John Doyle came aboard and directed a successful reading in the fall of 2019 and workshop in the fall of 2019. A national tour was planned for 2021, with a Broadway production to follow, produced by Jersey Boys producer Joseph Grano, Jr. (Sneaky Pete Productions), Jim Orphanidies, Edward Negley, and Leftfield Productions. In preparation, there was a workshop at the Signature Theater in NYC in June 2013; a showcase at the China Club in NYC, featuring Dan Spitz of Anthrax on lead guitar; a concert world premiere at the Broward Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in April 2010; and a feature at the legendary B.B. King Blues Club in August 2011.

Berg is also the composer/lyricist of the hit off-Broadway musical The Prince and the Pauper, which ran for two years at the Lamb's Theater in New York City. The New York Times said that The Prince and the Pauper "[soars] on wings of theatrical fun," and AOL Reviews wrote, "A remarkable score [is] sure to delight the young and young at heart!" The original cast CD was released internationally on Jay Records, with sheet music published by Hal Leonard and licensing by Samuel French Inc. Songs from this show are also featured with many other classic songs in the official Off-Broadway Songbook, published by Hal Leonard. The musical opened at The Lamb's Theater, New York on June 16, 2002. A CD was recorded at Clinton Recording Studios, New York on October 15, 2002. [Dates sourced from the CD's booklet.]

Berg is the composer of Grumpy Old Men: The Musical, based on the Warner Brothers movie starring Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau, which had its US premiere in the summer of 2018 at the Ogunquit Playhouse in Maine to rave reviews. The LA premiere was held in September 2019 at La Mirada Theater, featuring Hal Linden, Cathy Rigby, Ken Page, and Mark Jacoby. GOM had its original out-of-town tryout at the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre in Winnipeg in October 2011, starring John Rubenstein and John Conrad Schuck. The developmental readings featured Academy Award-winning actor F. Murray Abraham, Tony Award winner George Hearn, Marilu Henner, Carole Kane, Ken Page, and Vicki Lewis. In May 2017 a new reading was done, featuring Lee Wilkof, John Hilner, Luba Mason, Didi Cohn, Liz Larsen, David Josephsberg, and Rita Harvey. TRW (Theater Rights Worldwide) licenses Grumpy Old Men for professional, stock and amateur productions.

Neil's holiday musical Tim and Scrooge, with book and lyrics by Nick Meglin (former editor of Mad Magazine), will be opening December 2015 at the Westchester Broadway Theater in NY. Tim and Scrooge explores what happens ten years after A Christmas Carol, and was voted "one of the best musicals" of the inaugural NYMF festival in NYC, and garnered a glowing review in the NY Times after it opened at The Queens Theater in the Park, starring TONY nominee Bobby Steggert. It was also presented as a special reading at the Criterion Theater in the London's West End. It has been performed regionally across the USA for the past five years.

Neil's musical, The Man Who Would Be King, written with DJ Salisbury, was produced at the NYMF Festival in NYC, and at the University of Buffalo in the fall of 2014. It had a developmental reading/workshop at The Village Theater in Issaquah, WA, directed by Tony Award winner Brian Yorkey (Next To Normal, If/Then). This followed a staged reading at the Rubicon Theater in CA. This show has been developed with dramaturgical guidance by Moises Kaufman of the Tectonic Theater Project. The fully orchestrated CD recording, featuring Brian d'Arcy James, Marc Kudisch and Mandy Gonzalez can be purchased at www.neilberg.com.

As a Producer, Neil is the creator and co-producer, along with his producing partner, Adam Friedson, of Neil Berg's 100 Years of Broadway, which is now the number one Broadway touring concert in the United States, playing in over 120 cities a year for the past decade. You can find a current schedule at www.neilberg.com.

Neil's latest concert sensations include Neil Berg’s 50 YEARS OF ROCK & ROLL (currently on National tour in 2019/2020), and Neil Berg’s PIANO MEN (the songs of Elton John and Billy Joel).

Neil also toured the U.S. with the rock band Joe D'Urso & Stone Caravan and played on their past seven CDs as well as performed with them on the recent 100 Year Anniversary Tour for Harley Davidson. Neil was also heard on radio around the country with his jingle for Shock Coffee. Neil was the co-owner for many years of the SJR Theater Workshop, a theater camp for students in Montvale, NJ, which instructs over 200 young actors/singers a year. Many actors from his program became notable performers, including Millie Shapiro (TONY Award Winning star of Matilda, and star of film HEREDITARY). Neil is a member of the Dramatists Guild.

Neil was born in the Bronx, but grew up in Rockland County, NY. He attended Tappan Zee High School and SUNY Binghamton, where he was a two-time all SUNYAC baseball player (centerfield). His.416 batting average, from the 1986/87 season, is 5th highest single season batting average in school history. Neil still lives in Rockland County, where he was on the Board of his son’s Little League. Neil recently came out of Baseball “retirement”, and currently plays in an Over 38 Men’s baseball league, and a Sunday morning Softball league. Neil is married to actress and singer Rita Harvey. They have one son, Lucas David Berg.