Robert Lopez

“When you're trying to do a traditional book musical like 'Book of Mormon,' it's always nice to have characters that could very naturally break into song, and its good to pick a subject matter that allows that to happen in a way that doesn't disarm the audience.”

“Our kids come first, and we really put them at the top of our priority list.”

“The things that I have done that haven't been as successful have been things that have been largely out of the public view, which is great. It's terrible, when you're a theater writer, to have a big flop publicly.”

“I'm not really a 'puppet' person in particular; I think they are very theatrical, and I've found different uses for them in shows, but my true interest is in writing Broadway musicals.”

“I admire 'Urinetown.'”

“The temptation to quit and start over infects every creative process I've ever been in. Frustration and boredom always fuel this self-doubt.”

“I don't know if I have good habits, but I'm very devoted to writing. I'm very compulsive about having a project, at least one, and trying to follow the business as much as I can. I keep on top of all the entertainment business news.”

“I try to turn off the TV and play with my kids as much as I can, and I always hope they're having as good a time as Mormon kids.”

“I am never excited to play through a song all the way, because it can reveal more flaws that mean more work. For some reason, I always have an irrational fear that the song will never be finished.”

“I'm not an advocate of true rhymes, I don't think. I think that everyone who writes musical theater needs to know how to do true rhymes, because that's the tradition of it, but I do think that in order for the art form to grow, it's important to not let tradition get in the way of innovation.”

“People are born with the ability to make judgments. And they can't help but use the information they have to divine something about the world they're in. Making categorical judgments, in large, helps our society.”

“I basically never feel like writing. I am a happy-go-lucky, relaxed, fun-seeking kind of person. And working disturbs that, because it puts me in a state of anxiety.”

“With comedy, the jokes will come out, and people will see them coming. Changes in daily life or current events can change the consciousness of audiences and can make the show less funny or feel more stale.”

“My first writing job was with a company called TheatreworksUSA.”

“You can never assume that something is going to do well.”

“People try not to think about what's going on in sub-Saharan Africa. They edit it out of their daily lives. Especially Americans. We prefer a fantasy version of Africa.”

“It's wonderful to be able to have such wildly different projects in your body of work. They don't feel different to me as I'm working on them. It feels like they all share this element of subversiveness and finding the joy in subversiveness.”

“I thought it would be really cool to show the world the inner life of someone like me, who doesn't have a huge personality, who deals with some personal demons and is a little bit shy and a little awkward when you first get to know me.”

“I'm sort of agnostic. I grew up Catholic and switched to Episcopalian in college because I sang in churches to have money to buy pizza and french fries.”

“Every time I see a film or TV show, I think about how that composer made those choices and how that director envisioned music and how that could work onstage or in a film and how you could support that even further by putting lyrics to it.”