Tick, Tick... BOOM!, Umbrella Stage Company, Concord, through November 23. 978-371-0820 or theumbrellaarts.org

Before "Rent," there was "Tick, Tick...BOOM!". In the semi-autobiographical latter musical, composer—book author Jonathan Larson focuses on the struggles of a young composer to create a work that would bring him artistic fulfillment and a successful stage run in New York. In this Off-Broadway show (2001), Larson persona Jon actually gains the attention of Broadway legend Stephen Sondheim—referred to as "my idol." Thanks to a dynamite staging by director/choreographer Ilyse Robbins at the Umbrella Arts Center in Concord, Larson's own struggles with this earlier musical (begun in 1991) find exuberant expression in hero Jon's efforts to achieve his artistic goals.

Initially Larson himself actually performed "Tick, Tick...BOOM!" as a one person show. After the composer's untimely passing, (from an aortic dissection at the age of 35), noted playwright David Auburn (of "Proof" fame),serving as script consultant, expanded the cast to three characters. Jon, his girlfriend Susan and his best friend Michael. Right from the start, New York-based Jon experiences anxiety—here identified as the "Tick, Tick" of the title—as he approaches the age of 30 without yet attaining fulfillment. Sondheim buffs may recall the very different but equally insecure feeling of protagonist Bobby as he nears 35 in the latter's earlier Tony Award-winning musical "Company." Susan and Michael provide Jon with significant support just as Bobby's friends do in Sondheim's show. Larson very clearly pays homage to Sondheim as an influence by including a song entitled "Sunday", a clever parody calling to mind Sondheim's artist-centered winner "Sunday in the Park with George."

Jon's artistic and personal coming of age in Larson's musical is not unlike George (Seurat)'s challenges as a painter and Bobby's maturing as a man in Sondheim's respective shows. Reflecting the difficult evolving of Jon's artistic development, scenic designer Erik Diaz smartly gives the edge of SoHo (South of Houston Street) apartment that Jon shares with Michael the kind of metallic look that pre-figures its counterpart in "Rent." Robbin's varied choreography often finds Michael and Susan dancing around Jon in support. That support proves crucial as Jon despairs about waiting tables for four years and working on a futuristic musical called "Superbia", loosely based on "1984."

While Jon aspires to make a go of "Superbia" on stage (a musical within Larson's musical) and gain the attention of his "idol" (Sondheim, who is not actually identified by name), Michael and Susan have their own challenges. Eventually successful marketing executive Michael (whom Jon knows is gay) reveals a difficulty of his own to his roommate. For her part, dance teacher Susan is weighing the possibility of an important job on Cape Cod against her less satisfying position teaching "untalented children" and seeking personal commitment from Jon.

Under Robbin's sharp direction, Johnny Shea captures Jon's emotional vulnerability, particularly in the touching number "Come to Your Senses", and professional earnestness. Vanessa Calantropo has all of Susan's inner strength and deep feeling for Jon. Shea and Calantropo display strong chemistry throughout the musical. Anthony Pires, Jr. Smoothly moves from Michael's confidence as a businessman to his emotional complexity as a man and a friend. All three actors turn the anthem-like "Louder Than Words" finale into a high stepping showstopper. Alex Berg effectively modulates his sound design from the title emotional explosiveness to quieter moments during Jon's reflective stretches. Jordan Oczkowski properly fires up the upper stage left band.

Sondheim often wrote letters of recommendation for Larson to various producers to get developmental readings for his musicals. Eventually the theater world wholeheartedly embraced "Rent." As the joyous revival by Umbrella Stage demonstrates, "Tick, Tick...BOOM! deserves as much attention as Larson's celebrated mentor gave to the beautiful sound of his distinctive work.