SOPHIE BOYCE
Lyricist / Librettist
ABOUT ME
I am an NYC-based Lyricist and Librettist, born and raised in England. I spent my childhood forcing innocent bystanders to star in my movies... the obnoxiousness of which is best chronicled here.
I like to write gripping, breakneck-paced stories that surprise and thrill.
I like characters who are a little unhinged; livewires, obsessives, wildcards, provocateurs. I like chemistry born from a battle-of-wits and a bit of bite.
Recent honours include:
Fred Ebb Award Winner 2025
Richard Rodgers Award Winner 2025
Dramatist Guild Fellow 2025
Eric H. Weinberger Librettist Award Winner 2025
Kleban Prize Finalist (Lyric & Libretto categories) 2025
Eugene O'Neill NMTC Winner 2023
Some other things: I was a member of the Writers Room for the BAFTA-Award-Winning TV series 'Skins', I am the Founder/Director of Spirit YPC, which under my direction has attracted over 150 Million online viewers to our MT performances. I am alum of the BMI Bookwriting Workshop, Professor of Playwriting at the Norwalk Conservatory, and I have an MFA in Musical Theatre Writing from NYU Tisch.
And I still harbour dreams of playing Orphan Annie, ideally in a version that's exclusively lip-synced. I fancy myself an employable-level lip-syncer.
Read about my PROJECTS IN DEVELOPMENT, or LISTEN TO SONGS.
Projects in Development
THE DARK LADY
Music by Veronica Mansour
Book & Lyrics by Sophie Boyce
Winner of the 2025 Richard Rodgers Award.
The year is 1588 and Emilia Bassano is crafting the most remarkable stories that the world will ever see.
But women are not permitted to write plays. And so theatre's greatest characters stand to be lost in the abyss.
Until a deal is struck, with the stableboy William Shakespeare...
EVERYTHING'S GOING MY WAY
A play by Sophie Boyce
Colin is a psychotherapist assigned to work with the volatile 17-year-old Noah and his worn-down mother, Helen. But as power ping-pongs between them, an unnerving paternal instinct takes hold.
This is a play that examines masculine intimacy, the ferocity of motherhood, and the fine line between care and harm.
LITTLE RED
Music by Veronica Mansour
Book & Lyrics by Sophie Boyce
Flipping the script on the original fairytale, Little Red is the story of a relentless young woman training under the enigmatic “Granny” to become the ultimate Wolf-Killer.
This is a twist-filled thriller musical with a score that fuses folk, pop and opera.
The show explores fear, power and dangerous devotion.
THE FORTY ELEPHANTS
Music by Einar Adalsteinsson
Book & Lyrics Sophie Boyce
Inspired by true events, this is the story of London's notorious all-woman crime-ring: The Forty Elephants.
Set in Victorian-era Elephant and Castle, this is a show that celebrates women's rights... but even more so, women's wrongs.