b'The Full Scoreon aBroadway ComposerMaplewoods Russ Kaplan creates music and musiciansBY DONNY LEVITH es a quadruple threat: a Broad-way composer with several new projects in the works, a cabaret bandleader,anaccomplished jazz pianist, and a local piano teacher winning accolades from his many students. But dont expect Russ Kaplan to tell you that. Leave that up to his collaborators. I guess well start out with his nickname. He became the rock for us, says Kristen Anderson-Lopez, the songwriter who, along with her husband Robert Lopez, wrote the anthemic Let It Go from Frozen and Remember Me from Coco.In 2000, a quartet consisting of Kaplan, Ander-son-Lopez, James-Allen Ford and Sara Wordsworth would begin an almost 17-year journey to develop their show In Transit, which played on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre from 2016 through 2017.As is so often the case for an artist making a life in theater, Kaplan has not followed a linear path. AfterRuss Kaplan on the set of In Transit, the first a cappella show ever to play on Broadway. Photo by Joan Marcus.firmly establishing himself as an accomplished com-poser and jazz pianist, he is now also a teacher whoThe out-of-place part would soon change. Theirreceived his Bachelor of Fine Arts in drama with a shares his talents with a growing number of studentsdaughter, Emilia, is now a first grader at Clinton El- directing concentration from Carnegie Mellon Uni-of all ageswhile also feeding his creative appetiteementary School and has already gotten a head startversity. In addition, he completed a minor in jazz with a multitude of exciting projects. on her thespian careeras a theater camp student atpiano. After graduation, he promptly moved to New In2011,Kaplanandhiswife,ElisaSpencer- the YMCA last summer. And the 7-year-old has bigYork City.Kaplan, decided to move to Maplewood from Newplans to collaborate with her dad on a stage adapta- At first, I stayed with my uncle in Ozone Park York City. Spencer-Kaplan also makes her life in the- tion of the childrens book series called The Worldfor a few months and then finally found an apart-ater, as the executive director of The Acting Compa- According to Humphrey by Betty G. Birney. Well,ment in Bensonhurst that was cheap enough, Ka-ny. We felt a little out of place at first here withoutheres the thing, says Emilia when asked about theplan recalls. During his first two years living in the a kid, Kaplan recalls. But Im definitely glad I gotproject. Weve already come up with a few scenes. city, he hopscotched from borough to borough, liv-used to homeownership for a whole year before hav- Lets call the Kaplans a nuclear theater family. ing in five different apartments.ing to juggle all those things at once.Kaplan,whogrewupinPotomac,Maryland,While his living situation may have been a bit 14/ matters magazine / holiday 2019'