On a cold September morning in 1844 a young man from Bavaria stands on a New York dockside, dreaming of a new life in the new world. Sensing opportunity in the Deep South, he opens a textile shop in Alabama, and then he and his two brothers begin investing in anything and everything that will turn a profit, from cotton to coal to railroads to oil to airplanes.
163 years later, the Lehman Brothers firm spectacularly collapses into bankruptcy, and triggers the largest financial crisis in history.
Spanning three generations and 150 years, The Lehman Trilogy is a moving epic that tells the story of modern capitalism through the saga of the Lehman brothers and their descendants. Surprising and exciting, brilliant and inventive, Stefano Massini’s masterpiece – like Hamilton – is a story of immigration, ambition, and success. It is the story of America itself, from a daring and original perspective.
Stefano Massini is a novelist, essayist and playwright. He received a degree in Ancient Literature from the University of Florence before beginning his theatrical career in 2002. He is currently the Creative Consultant at Piccolo Teatro di Milano. He has directed and written numerous plays such as The Diary of Anne Frank and wrote the award-winning L'odore assordante del bianco. The Lehman Trilogy premiered on the West End in 2019 where it was nominated for five Oliver Awards. Massini lives in Milan, Italy.