Geoffrey Block
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195167306
- eISBN:
- 9780199849840
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195167306.001.0001
- Subject:
- Music, Popular
What was the inspiration for Rodgers and Hart's Pal Joey, or Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel? Why is Marias impassioned final speech in West Side Story spoken, rather than sung? This book offers ...
More
What was the inspiration for Rodgers and Hart's Pal Joey, or Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel? Why is Marias impassioned final speech in West Side Story spoken, rather than sung? This book offers an illuminating behind-the-scenes tour of some of the best loved, most admired, and most enduring musicals of Broadways Golden Era. The book provides studies of such all-time favorites as Show Boat, Anything Goes, Porgy and Bess, Carousel, Kiss Me, Kate, Guys and Dolls, The Most Happy Fella, My Fair Lady, and West Side Story. This book provides a documentary history of fourteen musicals in all—plus an epilogue exploring the plays of Stephen Sondheim—showing how each work took shape and revealing, at the same time, production by production, how the American musical evolved from the 1920s to the early 1960s, and beyond. The book's particular focus is on the music, offering a wealth of detail about how librettist, lyricist, composer, and director work together to shape the piece. Drawing on manuscript material such as musical sketches, autograph manuscripts, pre-production librettos and lyric drafts, the book reveals the winding route the works took to get to their final form. The book blends this close attention to the nuances of musical composition and stagecraft with trenchant social commentary and lively backstage anecdotes. Jerome Kern, Cole Porter, the Gershwins, Rodgers and Hart, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Lerner and Loewe, Kurt Weill, Frank Loesser, Leonard Bernstein, Sondheim, and other luminaries emerge as hardworking craftsmen under enormous pressure to sell tickets without compromising their dramatic vision and integrity. Opening night reviews and accounts of critical and popular response to subsequent revivals show how particular musicals have adapted to changing times and changing audiences, shedding light on why many of these innovative shows are still performed in high schools, colleges, and community theaters across the world, while others, such as Weills One Touch of Venus or Marc Blitzsteins The Cradle Will Rock, languish in comparative obscurity.Less
What was the inspiration for Rodgers and Hart's Pal Joey, or Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel? Why is Marias impassioned final speech in West Side Story spoken, rather than sung? This book offers an illuminating behind-the-scenes tour of some of the best loved, most admired, and most enduring musicals of Broadways Golden Era. The book provides studies of such all-time favorites as Show Boat, Anything Goes, Porgy and Bess, Carousel, Kiss Me, Kate, Guys and Dolls, The Most Happy Fella, My Fair Lady, and West Side Story. This book provides a documentary history of fourteen musicals in all—plus an epilogue exploring the plays of Stephen Sondheim—showing how each work took shape and revealing, at the same time, production by production, how the American musical evolved from the 1920s to the early 1960s, and beyond. The book's particular focus is on the music, offering a wealth of detail about how librettist, lyricist, composer, and director work together to shape the piece. Drawing on manuscript material such as musical sketches, autograph manuscripts, pre-production librettos and lyric drafts, the book reveals the winding route the works took to get to their final form. The book blends this close attention to the nuances of musical composition and stagecraft with trenchant social commentary and lively backstage anecdotes. Jerome Kern, Cole Porter, the Gershwins, Rodgers and Hart, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Lerner and Loewe, Kurt Weill, Frank Loesser, Leonard Bernstein, Sondheim, and other luminaries emerge as hardworking craftsmen under enormous pressure to sell tickets without compromising their dramatic vision and integrity. Opening night reviews and accounts of critical and popular response to subsequent revivals show how particular musicals have adapted to changing times and changing audiences, shedding light on why many of these innovative shows are still performed in high schools, colleges, and community theaters across the world, while others, such as Weills One Touch of Venus or Marc Blitzsteins The Cradle Will Rock, languish in comparative obscurity.
Steve Swayne
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0002
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
The chapter provides a portrait of Williams College during Stephen Sondheim’s student years and details his activities, both in the theater and as a budding critic and comic writer in student ...
More
The chapter provides a portrait of Williams College during Stephen Sondheim’s student years and details his activities, both in the theater and as a budding critic and comic writer in student publications. It details the racial and ethnic composition of the Williams student body at mid-century and notes reforms in the student admission process at the college. The chapter considers the extent to which Sondheim as a college student was perceived as, and considered himself to be, Jewish. It also reports on the reception of Sondheim’s earliest theatrical efforts, focusing on reviews of Phinney’s Rainbow (1948) and All That Glitters (1949) in the Williams Record, as well as on the student-run theater company Cap and Bells.Less
The chapter provides a portrait of Williams College during Stephen Sondheim’s student years and details his activities, both in the theater and as a budding critic and comic writer in student publications. It details the racial and ethnic composition of the Williams student body at mid-century and notes reforms in the student admission process at the college. The chapter considers the extent to which Sondheim as a college student was perceived as, and considered himself to be, Jewish. It also reports on the reception of Sondheim’s earliest theatrical efforts, focusing on reviews of Phinney’s Rainbow (1948) and All That Glitters (1949) in the Williams Record, as well as on the student-run theater company Cap and Bells.
Todd Decker
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0006
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
Inviting readers to consider race in musical theater from a new critical perspective, this chapter thoroughly unpacks the construction of “whiteness” throughout Sondheim’s oeuvre, taking into account ...
More
Inviting readers to consider race in musical theater from a new critical perspective, this chapter thoroughly unpacks the construction of “whiteness” throughout Sondheim’s oeuvre, taking into account aspects of musical style, setting, physical descriptions of characters, and “disposition of mind” as reflected in the lyrics. It notes the near total absence of characters of color and of Jewish representation in these musicals and argues that the representation of whiteness has been taken so much for granted in critical studies as to be invisible. The chapter has a particular focus on Sunday in the Park with George, A Little Night Music, Pacific Overtures, and West Side Story.Less
Inviting readers to consider race in musical theater from a new critical perspective, this chapter thoroughly unpacks the construction of “whiteness” throughout Sondheim’s oeuvre, taking into account aspects of musical style, setting, physical descriptions of characters, and “disposition of mind” as reflected in the lyrics. It notes the near total absence of characters of color and of Jewish representation in these musicals and argues that the representation of whiteness has been taken so much for granted in critical studies as to be invisible. The chapter has a particular focus on Sunday in the Park with George, A Little Night Music, Pacific Overtures, and West Side Story.
Steven Suskin
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195314076
- eISBN:
- 9780199852734
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195314076.003.0023
- Subject:
- Music, Popular
This chapter examines the work of Stephen Sondheim. It begins with an extended commentary of his career, followed by details on productions, with data and song information. Sondheim moved at the age ...
More
This chapter examines the work of Stephen Sondheim. It begins with an extended commentary of his career, followed by details on productions, with data and song information. Sondheim moved at the age of eleven from Manhattan to Doylestown, Pennsylvania—Doylestown, the country home of Oscar Hammerstein 2nd. A friendship with young James Hammerstein led to a close teacher/student relationship with James’s father, the man who helped create the modern musical in his work with Jerome Kern and who over the next few years would write Oklahoma! (Rodgers: March 31, 1943) and Carousel (Rodgers: April 19, 1945).Less
This chapter examines the work of Stephen Sondheim. It begins with an extended commentary of his career, followed by details on productions, with data and song information. Sondheim moved at the age of eleven from Manhattan to Doylestown, Pennsylvania—Doylestown, the country home of Oscar Hammerstein 2nd. A friendship with young James Hammerstein led to a close teacher/student relationship with James’s father, the man who helped create the modern musical in his work with Jerome Kern and who over the next few years would write Oklahoma! (Rodgers: March 31, 1943) and Carousel (Rodgers: April 19, 1945).
Jeffrey Magee
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0004
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
The chapter establishes the significant impact of Sondheim’s encounter with the Actors Studio in the mid-1950s and the role of Arthur Laurents in the development of Sondheim’s dramatic sensibility. ...
More
The chapter establishes the significant impact of Sondheim’s encounter with the Actors Studio in the mid-1950s and the role of Arthur Laurents in the development of Sondheim’s dramatic sensibility. It uncovers, through archival work and musical analysis, the ways in which the Studio concept of acting with “subtext” shaped Sondheim’s composition, pointing to multiple examples in which musical details suggest meanings not inherent in the lyrics. These include details in the orchestrations of Jonathan Tunick. The chapter focuses on examples from Gypsy, Follies, A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, and Merrily We Roll Along. First it offers an overview of the history and techniques of the Actors Studio, focusing particularly on the direction of Lee Strasberg.Less
The chapter establishes the significant impact of Sondheim’s encounter with the Actors Studio in the mid-1950s and the role of Arthur Laurents in the development of Sondheim’s dramatic sensibility. It uncovers, through archival work and musical analysis, the ways in which the Studio concept of acting with “subtext” shaped Sondheim’s composition, pointing to multiple examples in which musical details suggest meanings not inherent in the lyrics. These include details in the orchestrations of Jonathan Tunick. The chapter focuses on examples from Gypsy, Follies, A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, and Merrily We Roll Along. First it offers an overview of the history and techniques of the Actors Studio, focusing particularly on the direction of Lee Strasberg.
James O’Leary
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0005
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
The chapter establishes Anyone Can Whistle (1964) as a watershed work in Stephen Sondheim’s career, a work that the composer considered to be the breakout score in which he discovered his voice, ...
More
The chapter establishes Anyone Can Whistle (1964) as a watershed work in Stephen Sondheim’s career, a work that the composer considered to be the breakout score in which he discovered his voice, despite the generally negative reception and subsequent critical neglect the show has received. Using archival sources, this chapter begins by examining the dramaturgical principles that Sondheim and Arthur Laurents were developing in the early 1960s, first in the play Invitation to a March (1960) and then in Anyone Can Whistle. Both shows leveled a broad critique against “conformist” postwar society, arguing that familiar cultural values and virtues had become subtle forms of control, even within an ostensibly democratic society. Next, the chapter describes how Sondheim translated these ideas into a musical idiom by focusing on his harmonic and formal innovations in these scores. Ultimately, the chapter outlines the ways in which Sondheim carried these dramaturgical and compositional ideas with him in his later works, forging a style that testified to his critical, nonconformist thought by standing apart from Broadway convention while also avoiding mere cool, cerebral, or cynical detachment.Less
The chapter establishes Anyone Can Whistle (1964) as a watershed work in Stephen Sondheim’s career, a work that the composer considered to be the breakout score in which he discovered his voice, despite the generally negative reception and subsequent critical neglect the show has received. Using archival sources, this chapter begins by examining the dramaturgical principles that Sondheim and Arthur Laurents were developing in the early 1960s, first in the play Invitation to a March (1960) and then in Anyone Can Whistle. Both shows leveled a broad critique against “conformist” postwar society, arguing that familiar cultural values and virtues had become subtle forms of control, even within an ostensibly democratic society. Next, the chapter describes how Sondheim translated these ideas into a musical idiom by focusing on his harmonic and formal innovations in these scores. Ultimately, the chapter outlines the ways in which Sondheim carried these dramaturgical and compositional ideas with him in his later works, forging a style that testified to his critical, nonconformist thought by standing apart from Broadway convention while also avoiding mere cool, cerebral, or cynical detachment.
Geoffrey Block
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195167306
- eISBN:
- 9780199849840
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195167306.003.0012
- Subject:
- Music, Popular
West Side Story, a collaboration of four extraordinary individuals Jerome Robbins (choreographer and director), Arthur Laurents (librettist), Leonard Bernstein (composer), and ...
More
West Side Story, a collaboration of four extraordinary individuals Jerome Robbins (choreographer and director), Arthur Laurents (librettist), Leonard Bernstein (composer), and Stephen Sondheim (lyricist)-premiered on Broadway on September 26, 1957, and ran for 734 performances. After a national tour that lasted a year, it returned to Broadway for an additional 249 performances. A bona fide hit but not a megahit like Oklahoma! or My Fair Lady, West Side Story eventually logged in as the twelfth longest-running show of the 1950s. The Bernstein-Sondheim-Laurents-Robbins collaboration contains a dream ballet and a mimed prologue that creates a backdrop for the story to follow. More than perhaps any previous book musical, West Side Story uses dance for many additional purposes, not only in musical numbers where characters would be expected to dance (the “Dance at the Gym” and “America”), but in more stylized choreographic settings for several of the show's crucial dramatic events (“The Rumble” and “Taunting Scene”). The creators of West Side Story also managed to take a canonic and extremely well-loved Shakespeare play and adapt it for 1950s audiences while remaining faithful to the spirit of the original. Most significantly, the adaptation both provides dramatically credible and audible musical equivalents of Shakespeare's literary techniques and captures his central themes.Less
West Side Story, a collaboration of four extraordinary individuals Jerome Robbins (choreographer and director), Arthur Laurents (librettist), Leonard Bernstein (composer), and Stephen Sondheim (lyricist)-premiered on Broadway on September 26, 1957, and ran for 734 performances. After a national tour that lasted a year, it returned to Broadway for an additional 249 performances. A bona fide hit but not a megahit like Oklahoma! or My Fair Lady, West Side Story eventually logged in as the twelfth longest-running show of the 1950s. The Bernstein-Sondheim-Laurents-Robbins collaboration contains a dream ballet and a mimed prologue that creates a backdrop for the story to follow. More than perhaps any previous book musical, West Side Story uses dance for many additional purposes, not only in musical numbers where characters would be expected to dance (the “Dance at the Gym” and “America”), but in more stylized choreographic settings for several of the show's crucial dramatic events (“The Rumble” and “Taunting Scene”). The creators of West Side Story also managed to take a canonic and extremely well-loved Shakespeare play and adapt it for 1950s audiences while remaining faithful to the spirit of the original. Most significantly, the adaptation both provides dramatically credible and audible musical equivalents of Shakespeare's literary techniques and captures his central themes.
Kim H. Kowalke
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0010
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
This chapter is devoted to the astonishing career of Sweeney Todd. Although many of Sondheim’s other works are also generic hybrids, none comes close to the multiplicity and ambiguity inherent in ...
More
This chapter is devoted to the astonishing career of Sweeney Todd. Although many of Sondheim’s other works are also generic hybrids, none comes close to the multiplicity and ambiguity inherent in this “musical thriller.” The author traces this musical’s hybridity right back to its relationship with its literary sources and to the divergent visions of Sondheim, Prince, and Wheeler as they created the show. The chapter convincingly identifies Brechtian elements, pace Sondheim, and discusses the multiple generic juxtapositions that exist between, and within, individual numbers. It argues persuasively that the work’s “generic failure” has actually enabled it to be reconceived radically again and again. The chapter also chronicles numerous productions, large and small, all the way to Tim Burton’s 2007 screen adaptation. The chapter concludes by suggesting that the work’s identity crisis may be the very source of its continuing success.Less
This chapter is devoted to the astonishing career of Sweeney Todd. Although many of Sondheim’s other works are also generic hybrids, none comes close to the multiplicity and ambiguity inherent in this “musical thriller.” The author traces this musical’s hybridity right back to its relationship with its literary sources and to the divergent visions of Sondheim, Prince, and Wheeler as they created the show. The chapter convincingly identifies Brechtian elements, pace Sondheim, and discusses the multiple generic juxtapositions that exist between, and within, individual numbers. It argues persuasively that the work’s “generic failure” has actually enabled it to be reconceived radically again and again. The chapter also chronicles numerous productions, large and small, all the way to Tim Burton’s 2007 screen adaptation. The chapter concludes by suggesting that the work’s identity crisis may be the very source of its continuing success.
Andrew Buchman
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0008
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
Drawing on manuscript study, the chapter documents in detail Sondheim’s role in shaping the multiple versions of the script of Company, focusing particularly on issues of sexuality in the ...
More
Drawing on manuscript study, the chapter documents in detail Sondheim’s role in shaping the multiple versions of the script of Company, focusing particularly on issues of sexuality in the construction of character and plot. It reveals the centrality of Sondheim’s vision to the dramaturgical development process in his collaboration with George Furth and Hal Prince. It also details the changes to the show that have been made with Sondheim’s sanction over the course of the past five decades. The chapter focuses on how the representation of the central character’s (Robert’s) sexuality evolved through the numerous drafts and subsequent productions.Less
Drawing on manuscript study, the chapter documents in detail Sondheim’s role in shaping the multiple versions of the script of Company, focusing particularly on issues of sexuality in the construction of character and plot. It reveals the centrality of Sondheim’s vision to the dramaturgical development process in his collaboration with George Furth and Hal Prince. It also details the changes to the show that have been made with Sondheim’s sanction over the course of the past five decades. The chapter focuses on how the representation of the central character’s (Robert’s) sexuality evolved through the numerous drafts and subsequent productions.
Lara E. Housez
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0013
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
The chapter offers a highly detailed analysis of Sunday in the Park with George and reveals the intricate connections that exist at seemingly every level between the first and second acts in this ...
More
The chapter offers a highly detailed analysis of Sunday in the Park with George and reveals the intricate connections that exist at seemingly every level between the first and second acts in this musical by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine. The chapter examines the origins of these large-scale similarities and unpacks their significances as expressions and extensions of Georges Seurat’s painting, Un dimanche après-midi à l’Île de la Grande Jatte (A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte). It also identifies parallels between Seurat’s techniques and theories, particularly chromoluminarism, and a variety of aspects of the script and score, and it traces Sondheim’s penchant for creating intricate designs, in part, to his compositional studies with Milton Babbitt.Less
The chapter offers a highly detailed analysis of Sunday in the Park with George and reveals the intricate connections that exist at seemingly every level between the first and second acts in this musical by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine. The chapter examines the origins of these large-scale similarities and unpacks their significances as expressions and extensions of Georges Seurat’s painting, Un dimanche après-midi à l’Île de la Grande Jatte (A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte). It also identifies parallels between Seurat’s techniques and theories, particularly chromoluminarism, and a variety of aspects of the script and score, and it traces Sondheim’s penchant for creating intricate designs, in part, to his compositional studies with Milton Babbitt.
Geoffrey Block
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0011
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
This chapter counters received critical opinion and Sondheim’s own negative views by coming to the defense of the 1978 film adaptation of A Little Night Music, a musical that was itself based on a ...
More
This chapter counters received critical opinion and Sondheim’s own negative views by coming to the defense of the 1978 film adaptation of A Little Night Music, a musical that was itself based on a film. Drawing on extensive archival investigations, the chapter details the deletions, revisions, and new material created by Sondheim that achieved this transformation of genre. It also considers the broader context of cinematic adaptations of stage musicals during this period and beyond, noting a number of contemporary film musicals. The chapter alerts us to an inherent bias against later adaptations and leads us to consider how received critical consensus tends to predetermine future criticism and our own experience of a work. It also considers the film’s cast, focusing on Elizabeth Taylor’s performance.Less
This chapter counters received critical opinion and Sondheim’s own negative views by coming to the defense of the 1978 film adaptation of A Little Night Music, a musical that was itself based on a film. Drawing on extensive archival investigations, the chapter details the deletions, revisions, and new material created by Sondheim that achieved this transformation of genre. It also considers the broader context of cinematic adaptations of stage musicals during this period and beyond, noting a number of contemporary film musicals. The chapter alerts us to an inherent bias against later adaptations and leads us to consider how received critical consensus tends to predetermine future criticism and our own experience of a work. It also considers the film’s cast, focusing on Elizabeth Taylor’s performance.
Jim Lovensheimer
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0012
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
This chapter explores Sondheim’s treatment of time throughout his musicals, focusing on the works in which time and memory are central topics and in which presentation of narrative time is anything ...
More
This chapter explores Sondheim’s treatment of time throughout his musicals, focusing on the works in which time and memory are central topics and in which presentation of narrative time is anything but conventional and linear. Company may be understood as distending one specific moment in time, Merrily We Roll Along moves backward through time, Pacific Overtures fast-forwards many decades at the end, and past and present appear to coexist in Follies. The chapter discusses the difference between (linear) plot and situation and how Sondheim's scores for these and other shows moved musical theater forward by focusing on the latter. The interpretive work presented reveals that our relation to time is a consistent philosophical topic in Sondheim’s oeuvre.Less
This chapter explores Sondheim’s treatment of time throughout his musicals, focusing on the works in which time and memory are central topics and in which presentation of narrative time is anything but conventional and linear. Company may be understood as distending one specific moment in time, Merrily We Roll Along moves backward through time, Pacific Overtures fast-forwards many decades at the end, and past and present appear to coexist in Follies. The chapter discusses the difference between (linear) plot and situation and how Sondheim's scores for these and other shows moved musical theater forward by focusing on the latter. The interpretive work presented reveals that our relation to time is a consistent philosophical topic in Sondheim’s oeuvre.
Ethan Mordden
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780199394814
- eISBN:
- 9780199394999
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199394814.003.0001
- Subject:
- Music, History, American
This introductory chapter describes the life and subsequent Broadway career of American composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim. Born into an upper-middle class family in New York, Sondheim enjoyed ...
More
This introductory chapter describes the life and subsequent Broadway career of American composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim. Born into an upper-middle class family in New York, Sondheim enjoyed the privilege of private schooling, a secular worldview, and a wide cultural perspective. Growing up, Sondheim formed a strong bond with Oscar Hammerstein, who gave him the stable relationship of an appreciative “parent,” and later became his mentor. Sondheim eventually launched a career in music theatre, and later worked on play and movie scripts. By the 1960s, Sondheim began flourishing in the New York theatre world. He wrote the music and lyrics for A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To the Forum (1962) and Anyone Can Whistle (1964), in addition to West Side Story (1957) and Gypsy (1959). Some of his most celebrated works include Company (1970), Sweeney Todd (1979), and Into the Woods (1987).Less
This introductory chapter describes the life and subsequent Broadway career of American composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim. Born into an upper-middle class family in New York, Sondheim enjoyed the privilege of private schooling, a secular worldview, and a wide cultural perspective. Growing up, Sondheim formed a strong bond with Oscar Hammerstein, who gave him the stable relationship of an appreciative “parent,” and later became his mentor. Sondheim eventually launched a career in music theatre, and later worked on play and movie scripts. By the 1960s, Sondheim began flourishing in the New York theatre world. He wrote the music and lyrics for A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To the Forum (1962) and Anyone Can Whistle (1964), in addition to West Side Story (1957) and Gypsy (1959). Some of his most celebrated works include Company (1970), Sweeney Todd (1979), and Into the Woods (1987).
Ethan Mordden
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780199394814
- eISBN:
- 9780199394999
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199394814.001.0001
- Subject:
- Music, History, American
Stephen Sondheim’s Company appeared in 1970, and the American musical theatre has never been the same. The adventures of a bachelor and his married friends, Company exploded the musical’s traditional ...
More
Stephen Sondheim’s Company appeared in 1970, and the American musical theatre has never been the same. The adventures of a bachelor and his married friends, Company exploded the musical’s traditional business model of romantic tales with a beginning, middle, and end (in that order) and neatly packaged songs. In Sondheim’s shows, the music flows in and out of the stories, often completely taking over, and romance may be overshadowed by doubt. Moreover, Follies (1971) skips the beginning, Sunday in the Park With George (1984) lacks a middle, and Merrily We Roll Along (1981) has an end, a middle, and a beginning in that order. As this book explains it, Stephen Sondheim is a classical composer who happens to write musicals, which explains why the center of gravity in his scores is so elevated. But more: Sondheim has intellectualized the musical by tackling serious content usually reserved for the spoken stage: nonconformism (in Anyone Can Whistle, 1964), history (in Pacific Overtures, 1976), a serial killing spree and cannibalism (Sweeney Todd, 1979). Yet these are above all theatrical shows, produced with flair and brilliance, whether in the lush operetta of A Little Night Music (1973) or the quixotic fairy-tale magic of Into the Woods (1987). The book addresses the newcomer and the aficionado alike, with fresh insights and analysis of every single Sondheim show, from his first hits (West Side Story, 1957; Gypsy, 1959) to his most recent titles (Passion, 1994; Road Show, 2008). Each musical gets its own chapter, with articles as well on Sondheim’s life and his major influences.Less
Stephen Sondheim’s Company appeared in 1970, and the American musical theatre has never been the same. The adventures of a bachelor and his married friends, Company exploded the musical’s traditional business model of romantic tales with a beginning, middle, and end (in that order) and neatly packaged songs. In Sondheim’s shows, the music flows in and out of the stories, often completely taking over, and romance may be overshadowed by doubt. Moreover, Follies (1971) skips the beginning, Sunday in the Park With George (1984) lacks a middle, and Merrily We Roll Along (1981) has an end, a middle, and a beginning in that order. As this book explains it, Stephen Sondheim is a classical composer who happens to write musicals, which explains why the center of gravity in his scores is so elevated. But more: Sondheim has intellectualized the musical by tackling serious content usually reserved for the spoken stage: nonconformism (in Anyone Can Whistle, 1964), history (in Pacific Overtures, 1976), a serial killing spree and cannibalism (Sweeney Todd, 1979). Yet these are above all theatrical shows, produced with flair and brilliance, whether in the lush operetta of A Little Night Music (1973) or the quixotic fairy-tale magic of Into the Woods (1987). The book addresses the newcomer and the aficionado alike, with fresh insights and analysis of every single Sondheim show, from his first hits (West Side Story, 1957; Gypsy, 1959) to his most recent titles (Passion, 1994; Road Show, 2008). Each musical gets its own chapter, with articles as well on Sondheim’s life and his major influences.
Dominic McHugh
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0003
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
Based on a detailed study of the surviving manuscripts, the chapter explores Sondheim’s abandoned effort to adapt P. L. Travers’s Mary Poppins stories for the musical stage, a project Sondheim ...
More
Based on a detailed study of the surviving manuscripts, the chapter explores Sondheim’s abandoned effort to adapt P. L. Travers’s Mary Poppins stories for the musical stage, a project Sondheim pursued in his late college years. Pushing back at his self-criticisms, it finds much to praise in this work and locates hints of Sondheim’s later style and techniques. It includes Sondheim’s story layouts, a list of song sources, and a scene-by-scene breakdown of the action and music. Though destined to be unfinished and unperformed, Mary Poppins displays Sondheim’s growing skill at transforming a complex literary source for the stage and his rather cinematic approach to constructing crucial scenes as a form of musical montage.Less
Based on a detailed study of the surviving manuscripts, the chapter explores Sondheim’s abandoned effort to adapt P. L. Travers’s Mary Poppins stories for the musical stage, a project Sondheim pursued in his late college years. Pushing back at his self-criticisms, it finds much to praise in this work and locates hints of Sondheim’s later style and techniques. It includes Sondheim’s story layouts, a list of song sources, and a scene-by-scene breakdown of the action and music. Though destined to be unfinished and unperformed, Mary Poppins displays Sondheim’s growing skill at transforming a complex literary source for the stage and his rather cinematic approach to constructing crucial scenes as a form of musical montage.
Stacy Wolf
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0009
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
Based on extensive interviews and study of recent productions, this chapter explores what Stephen Sondheim’s works signify on college campuses today, particularly in terms of his representations of ...
More
Based on extensive interviews and study of recent productions, this chapter explores what Stephen Sondheim’s works signify on college campuses today, particularly in terms of his representations of female characters and with regard to issues of cross-gender and gender-neutral casting. It notes the abiding popularity of Sondheim’s works for college theater programs and presents telling statements made by student performers and directors about their perceptions of women’s roles in these musicals. It takes into account the attitudes of student theater makers, especially during the contemporary era of #MeToo and “everyday feminism.” Shows discussed include Company, Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods, Assassins, and A Little Night Music.Less
Based on extensive interviews and study of recent productions, this chapter explores what Stephen Sondheim’s works signify on college campuses today, particularly in terms of his representations of female characters and with regard to issues of cross-gender and gender-neutral casting. It notes the abiding popularity of Sondheim’s works for college theater programs and presents telling statements made by student performers and directors about their perceptions of women’s roles in these musicals. It takes into account the attitudes of student theater makers, especially during the contemporary era of #MeToo and “everyday feminism.” Shows discussed include Company, Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods, Assassins, and A Little Night Music.
Ashley M. Pribyl
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0007
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
The chapter discusses the one Sondheim musical that emphatically sought to represent nonwhite characters in an exotic setting and to feature performers of color: Pacific Overtures (1976). It traces ...
More
The chapter discusses the one Sondheim musical that emphatically sought to represent nonwhite characters in an exotic setting and to feature performers of color: Pacific Overtures (1976). It traces the early development of this show in John Weidman’s multiple versions of the original script as well as how the message and focus of the musical shifted in the collaborative process of Weidman, Hal Prince, and Sondheim. It argues that the musical, and the original spoken play version in particular, resonated pointedly with the Vietnam War period, and it reports on the show’s reception by the Asian American community, as well its casting requirements, which were unique for its time.Less
The chapter discusses the one Sondheim musical that emphatically sought to represent nonwhite characters in an exotic setting and to feature performers of color: Pacific Overtures (1976). It traces the early development of this show in John Weidman’s multiple versions of the original script as well as how the message and focus of the musical shifted in the collaborative process of Weidman, Hal Prince, and Sondheim. It argues that the musical, and the original spoken play version in particular, resonated pointedly with the Vietnam War period, and it reports on the show’s reception by the Asian American community, as well its casting requirements, which were unique for its time.
Elizabeth A. Wells
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.003.0014
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
The chapter demonstrates how Sondheim manages to complicate and make intriguing even such a seemingly standard Broadway convention as the 11 o’clock number. It suggests that Sondheim created an “11 ...
More
The chapter demonstrates how Sondheim manages to complicate and make intriguing even such a seemingly standard Broadway convention as the 11 o’clock number. It suggests that Sondheim created an “11 o’clock principle,” given that he turned this type of number into a multipart format in many of his shows. It notes that Sondheim’s 11 o’clock–type numbers frequently do not appear at the penultimate moment at all and that he occasionally offers several such numbers in a row in this position. This analysis and Sondheim’s innovations spur readers to realize that the terminology for labeling Broadway numbers and structures is rather loose. Examples briefly discussed include Gypsy, Company, Follies, Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, Sweeney Todd, Assassins, and Road Show.Less
The chapter demonstrates how Sondheim manages to complicate and make intriguing even such a seemingly standard Broadway convention as the 11 o’clock number. It suggests that Sondheim created an “11 o’clock principle,” given that he turned this type of number into a multipart format in many of his shows. It notes that Sondheim’s 11 o’clock–type numbers frequently do not appear at the penultimate moment at all and that he occasionally offers several such numbers in a row in this position. This analysis and Sondheim’s innovations spur readers to realize that the terminology for labeling Broadway numbers and structures is rather loose. Examples briefly discussed include Gypsy, Company, Follies, Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, Sweeney Todd, Assassins, and Road Show.
W. Anthony Sheppard (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9780197603192
- eISBN:
- 9780197603239
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197603192.001.0001
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
Sondheim in Our Time and His offers a wide-ranging historical investigation of the landmark works and extraordinary career of Stephen Sondheim, a career that has spanned much of the history of ...
More
Sondheim in Our Time and His offers a wide-ranging historical investigation of the landmark works and extraordinary career of Stephen Sondheim, a career that has spanned much of the history of American musical theater. Each contributing author uncovers the aspects of biography, collaborative process, and contemporary context that impacted the creation and reception of Sondheim’s musicals. In addition, several authors explore in detail how Sondheim’s shows have been dramatically revised and adapted over time. Multiple chapters invite the reader to rethink Sondheim’s works from a distinctly contemporary critical perspective and to consider how these musicals are being reenvisioned today. Through chapters focused on individual musicals and others that explore a specific topic as manifested throughout his entire career; by digging deep into the archives and focusing intently on his scores; and from interviews with performers, directors, and bookwriters to close study of live and recorded productions, the authors have aimed to bring together Sondheim’s past with the present, thriving existence of his musicals.Less
Sondheim in Our Time and His offers a wide-ranging historical investigation of the landmark works and extraordinary career of Stephen Sondheim, a career that has spanned much of the history of American musical theater. Each contributing author uncovers the aspects of biography, collaborative process, and contemporary context that impacted the creation and reception of Sondheim’s musicals. In addition, several authors explore in detail how Sondheim’s shows have been dramatically revised and adapted over time. Multiple chapters invite the reader to rethink Sondheim’s works from a distinctly contemporary critical perspective and to consider how these musicals are being reenvisioned today. Through chapters focused on individual musicals and others that explore a specific topic as manifested throughout his entire career; by digging deep into the archives and focusing intently on his scores; and from interviews with performers, directors, and bookwriters to close study of live and recorded productions, the authors have aimed to bring together Sondheim’s past with the present, thriving existence of his musicals.
W. Anthony Sheppard
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- October 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780190072704
- eISBN:
- 9780190072735
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190072704.003.0010
- Subject:
- Music, History, American
This chapter focuses on examples of American japonisme and interactions with traditional Japanese culture from the past few decades, thereby revealing connections with older representational ...
More
This chapter focuses on examples of American japonisme and interactions with traditional Japanese culture from the past few decades, thereby revealing connections with older representational techniques and concerns. The chapter starts with an extended discussion of Stephen Sondheim’s Broadway musical Pacific Overtures and a brief discussion of films during the trade war period. The second section focuses on Weezer’s Pinkerton album as a continuation of Tin Pan Alley exoticism. In the early twenty-first century, multiple female pop stars (Madonna, Katy Perry) appropriated the geisha image in performance. The chapter then turns toward Asian American postmodern attempts to undermine Orientalism, as in David Henry Hwang’s M. Butterfly. Recently, organizations such as the Japan Society have commissioned numerous American composers to create works for Japanese instruments. In addition, numerous Americans have become professional shakuhachi players and teachers. The chapter concludes with recent examples of japonisme aimed particularly at children (animation, video games).Less
This chapter focuses on examples of American japonisme and interactions with traditional Japanese culture from the past few decades, thereby revealing connections with older representational techniques and concerns. The chapter starts with an extended discussion of Stephen Sondheim’s Broadway musical Pacific Overtures and a brief discussion of films during the trade war period. The second section focuses on Weezer’s Pinkerton album as a continuation of Tin Pan Alley exoticism. In the early twenty-first century, multiple female pop stars (Madonna, Katy Perry) appropriated the geisha image in performance. The chapter then turns toward Asian American postmodern attempts to undermine Orientalism, as in David Henry Hwang’s M. Butterfly. Recently, organizations such as the Japan Society have commissioned numerous American composers to create works for Japanese instruments. In addition, numerous Americans have become professional shakuhachi players and teachers. The chapter concludes with recent examples of japonisme aimed particularly at children (animation, video games).