Curtains up, Kid Harpoon rethinks the sound of Broadway production ‘Art’

Kid Harpoon is a multi-award-winning songwriter and producer who’s helped craft indelible hits for Harry Styles (he’s all over Harry’s House), Miley Cyrus (‘Flowers’), Florence and the Machine (‘Shake It Out’) – and, coming soon, Who Is the Sky?, the brilliant new album from David Byrne. With Styles' 2022 mega-hit 'As It Was’, followed by Cyrus’ ‘Flowers’ in 2023, the Kid genius had the consecutive best-selling singles of the year.

This autumn, the LA-residing Brit formerly known as Tom Hull – who released a brace of fine EPs and an LP in the early noughties – returns to the day job. Well, a version of it. The 43-year-old from Kent has composed the music for the new, all-star Broadway revival of Yasmina Reza’s play Art. Playing the parts of the three art-botherers analysing the worth of an eye-wateringly pricey painting are screen and stage heavyweights Bobby Cannavale, James Corden and Neil Patrick Harris.

While juggling the onrushing deadline to complete the music ahead of the opening of this first New York production since Art’s 1998 premiere on Broadway, Hull answered some questions about the commission. He admitted he hadn’t seen the play before, but did artfully duck my enquiries about whether he’s on Florence’s upcoming album.

Also not forthcoming: the tea on what he and Styles were up to when they were spotted in Berlin this spring. Hey ho, Hazza’s fourth album is another kind of super-valuable art whose provenance should probably be kept secret for a bit longer.

In conversation with Kid Harpoon (Tom Hull) on his score for Broadway

Wallpaper*: Curtains up, Tom… What form does your music for Art take? Short, individual pieces for specific scenes? More of an overall score? Something else?

Kid Harpoon: Yes, short pieces in between and underscoring scenes. We saw it as a real opportunity to set a tone for the play during those moments.

W*: How did you get this gig?

KH: James [Corden] is a good friend, and we’ve had previous conversations about how I’d been interested in composing for film or theatre. He called me and asked how I felt about creating music for this particular play. As soon as I read the script, it was a no-brainer. It’s a great play.

W*: What appealed, generally, about composing for a Broadway show?

KH: The context of music in this setting is so different to what I have been doing for most of my career. I’ve been used to making music that has to grab your attention and bring you into an experience. Whereas this music is designed to enhance an already existing experience and help the overall aesthetic of the show.

W*: What appealed, specifically, about composing for Art?

KH: Firstly, the play itself. It’s simply stunning. Secondly, [director] Scott Ellis was quite specific that there should be no vocals in the music, as it is meant to support or contrast the dialogue in the scenes. Coming from a place where vocals usually need to be front and centre, that was super exciting to me.

W*:What kind of music have previous productions of Art had?

KH: I don’t know honestly, and having read the script with no prior knowledge, I wanted to come up with something that represented how it felt to me. Also, there hasn’t been a Broadway production for a number of years, so I wanted to take advantage of this moment and bring it into the 21st century.

W*: What brief, if any, did you receive, and from whom?

KH: I had conversations with Scott and then came up with a bit of music that felt correct to me. That became the touchstone of the whole palette. It felt really organic. They released part of that music as a teaser on the Art Instagram.

W*: What kind of collaborator is Scott?

KH: He’s a fantastic person and the kind of collaborator that gives you freedom to follow your own visions while steering you towards what he’s also shooting for. I felt like I could really go for what I wanted, without being constrained whatsoever. I couldn’t have dreamt of a better person to work with on my first Broadway show.

W*: In terms of giving you a starting point, how useful was reading the script?

KH: It was so useful. It’s an incredible play, and very inspiring. It made me feel a lot of emotions and I instantly had a ton of ideas. One of which was developing moods for all three of the characters. It was really fun leaning into those. In rehearsals I felt I could somewhat relate to the actors in how hard the nuances of getting those characters correct was.

W*: Were any other pieces of music for theatre – or scores for film – an inspiration?

KH: Not specifically, but I’ve always loved very synthesised film scores and how they create this unique mood. Blade Runner, for example, creates an entire universe with its soundtrack. The Tron soundtrack that Daft Punk did was incredible. Very different projects, but I really wanted to give that aesthetic to it.

W*: After your initial talks with James, did speak to the actors as you composed?

KH: Yes. I had [those] conversations with James previously, and met Neil and Bobby in rehearsal. It gave me a chance to connect with them and discuss aspects of their characters I’d been exploring – and of course, play them music. They are all sensational actors, and I hope what I’ve done only enhances their craft. I am blown away by how talented they are.

W*: Did you talk to Yasmina Reza?

KH: I didn’t. I would absolutely love to meet her. This is an extraordinary play, and I’m so honoured to get to be a part of it. I hope she likes the music!

W*: We’ve only heard a snippet, so does the music overall sound like?

KH: With three strong personalities in the play, I tried to have a blend of three things: guitars, pianos and synthesisers, [with] each representing a personality. Then, the idea was to use interesting and creative effects processing, like delays and reverbs, to bring those more organic instruments into that more synthetic world. Hopefully that gives us some feeling that we are suspended in time watching these three people figure out their dynamics, and relating it to our own experiences.

W*: With apologies for the broad, baggy question, how was it working on Who Is the Sky? with David Byrne?

KH: It was incredible. David has been an inspiration to me my whole life, so to be a part of his world was a dream come true. I also think it opened my eyes to how much more I have yet to explore with music. He’s a master of putting his creativity to different uses. It set me up perfectly to work on Art.

Art begins previews this week at Broadway’s Music Box Theatre. Opening night is 16 September and the play runs until 21 December 2025. Tickets here