Four (personal) favorite Sondheim shows:
With a catalogue of work like Sondheim’s, there are so many fantastic shows that did not make our list. These four are personal favourites of ours, and each one is special to a writer for a different reason.
Marama’s favorite: ‘Company’ (1970)
Some may call this an easy choice, but Company was the show that cemented my Sondheim love. It is a concept musical, and was one of the first to be critically and popularly successful. For a show that deals with fairly conservative subject matter, it was a musical theatre game changer.
Company includes some of my favourite Sondheim songs, particularly the title number, “The Little Things You Do Together”, and “Getting Married Today.” With his trademark humor and challenging music, Sondheim does not paint a highly positive image of marriage. However, it is entertaining, with bursts of honesty and disparity that (as intended by Sondheim) reminded the upper-middle-class audience of the very problems they attended the theatre to avoid.
Watch the opening number from the recent production of Company starring Neil Patrick Harris, which introduces the entire cast. The conversational style of the piece embodies the musical wonderfully, both simple and complication, but a focus on the interactions between all of the characters and Bobby – which is at the heart of this fantastic show.
Jimmy’s favorite: ‘Sweeney Todd’ (1979)
When it comes to the medium of storytelling, I’ve always held character and plot pretty high on the totem pole of Aristotle’s poetics. I love experiments like Company, visual-centric works of art like Sunday in the Park With George, as well as all-out just-comedies like A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, but this gripping story always grabs my attention by the throat with its dark blood-red themes and viscerally desperate characters.
The legend of the demon barber of Fleet Street was well established long before the musical, but much of what eventually became the musical came straight from the mind of Stephen Sondheim. The concept of killing people and baking them into pies just proves that there’s no such thing as a bad concept as long as the execution is good. Also, Sondheim’s trademark discordant harmonies fit perfectly into a song about people slowly allowing their inner demons flourish under their skin.
Take a listen to the song where Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett come to the decision to let those above serve those down below. Take note: Although the Tim Burton/Johnny Depp version is worth a watch, we highly recommend the George Hearn/Angela Lansbury version below for viewers that prefer a ghoulishly manic Sweeney as opposed to a quietly introspective demon barber.
Laura’s favorite: ‘A Little Night Music’ (1973)
Early on in Sondheim’s career, his mentor and next-door-neighbor, Oscar Hammerstein challenged him to write outside his comfort level, and to explore new things. He challenged the young Sondheim to write adaptations from plays, novels, and progress to original work. The idea was to constantly keep his work fresh, and not be known for just one style. Sondheim never forgot that advice, and one of his best adaptations is A Little Night Music, based on the 1955 Swedish film Smiles of a Summer Night, directed by the legendary Ingmar Bergman.
The story covers love and loss in the years spanning the late 1800’s and early 1900’s in the lives of those living an upper-middle class to privileged existence. It looks at the choices made by those living under the constrains of Victorian morals that permeated much of society life, not just in Britain. Some of those choices are looked back on fondly, others with regret of action or inaction. Think of it as a bit of Downton Abbey, only with a delightful score that is predominately done in 3/4 time.
Yes, you read that correctly. The entire musical is written in 3/4 also known as waltz time with few variations. It’s quite a challenge for the actors not to sound too sing-songy, and at the same time, Sondheim manages a beautiful and lyrical score.
The one song from the musical that transitioned into a pop hit for Judy Collins and others is Send In the Clowns. Below is the 2009 revival that had a multitude of OSCAR and Tony winners in the cast such as Angela Landsberry, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and later the incomparable Bernadette peters.
Danielle’s favorite: ‘Into the Woods’ (1987)
Out of all of the musicals and stage productions I’ve ever seen, Into the Woods has been one of the only ones that has really stuck with me. Like most fairy tales, he musical begins with “Once upon a time,” but things go awry from there. Sondheim’s musical intertwines the lives of well-known fairy tale characters. However, instead of ending at “Happily ever after,” Into the Woods explores the consequences of the characters actions. In a sense, it’s sort of like a darker, more gritty version of Once Upon a Time.
Each song in this Stephen Sondheim musical flows effortlessly in and out of the dialogue and really gives you more of an insight into the characters and their motives. One of my favorite musical styles of Sondheim’s is his use of “singing speech.” The characters join together in song, but end up speaking in singing voices rather than just singing. I wish I knew the professional term for what I’m talking about but, alas, I do not. But I do know that it is extremely entertaining to watch and listen to!
If you haven’t seen this musical, I highly recommend it. For those of you who can’t find a stage production of this Sondheim masterpiece nearby, you’re in luck. In case you haven’t heard, Into the Woods is currently being adapted for the silver screen. The movie will begin filming in September and will supposedly open nationwide Christmas 2014.
Below, you’ll find my favorite song of the entire musical. It embodies what I was trying to explain before about singing speech. It’s short and sweet, not to mention fun to listen to. I believe this particular performance was from the original Broadway run, as you can see Bernadette Peters’ Witch character lurking in the background. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
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