Claude-Michel Schönberg

Claude-Michel Schönberg (born 6 July 1944, in Vannes) is a French record producer, actor, singer, songwriter, and musical theatre composer, best known for his collaborations with lyricist Alain Boublil.

Major works include La Révolution Française (1973), Les Misérables (1980), Miss Saigon (1989), Martin Guerre (1996), The Pirate Queen (2006), and Marguerite (2008).

In 1974 he wrote the music and the lyrics of the song "Le Premier Pas", which became the number one hit in France that year, selling over one million copies.

The Pirate Queen completed its eight-week pre-Broadway tryout at Chicago's Cadillac Palace Theatre on 26 November 2006, and underwent further development in preparation for Broadway at the Hilton Theater in March 2007.

Following a critical savaging and poor ticket sales, The Pirate Queen closed on 17 June 2007 after 85 performances and 32 previews, resulting in a loss of almost $18 million, ranking it among the largest commercial flops in Broadway history.

Schönberg oversaw the production of Les Misérables that returned to Broadway for an intended six-month engagement at the Broadhurst Theatre on 9 November 2006, although it later extended its run.

Set during World War II in occupied Paris, and inspired by the romantic novel La Dame aux camélias by Alexandre Dumas, fils, Marguerite is about the mistress of a high-ranking German officer who attracts the love of a musician half her age.