Stephen Sondheim is Dead to Me!

So young.

FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I thought he was already dead.

I'm still here.

Not.

I guess he finished the hat.

😔

He whipped some hot ass, but he couldn't live forever.

Shhhhhhhtephen Shhhhhhhondheim !

Would it help if we talked about Follies?

The nail in the coffin of an era that won't ever be seen again. A true fucking loss, MARY me, but I'm kind of tearing up.....

Moved on.

One of the last true geniuses left in the Arts, and now he's gone.

It's fitting that West Side Story is premiering next week.

It's always sad when someone you thought has been dead for years, only died today.

RIP, Mr. Sondheim. And remember, demons will charm you with a smile...

I was to be told on Sunday!

This makes me sad as well. RIP.

Has Patti LuPone commented yet?

And when I say commented I mean made it all about her.

He was swell, he was great, he had the whole world on his plate.

RIP

At least we still have Andrew Lloyd Weber.

Will he be buried in his dungeon?

That's a wig on his head, right?

Sondheim, not ALW.

So sad. I was just listening to a playlist of his songs earlier today. RIP!!

Sleep well Sir.

At least we still have Lin-Manuel and his freestylin.

Damn.

Send in the frowns

And one for Sondheim!

He had a show on Broadway, one off, a movie memorializing his contribution to Jonathan Larson, and a remade movie of his first success. That’s the way to go.

He had to show up Lisa Brown’s death.

Is it bad I really want to listen to Being Alive........that's the first song of his I remember falling in love with as a gayling.

Wow. Can't say I know much about him (not a musicals person per se) but certainly one of the great legends of the form.

Everything's coming up Rose's what?

We will honor him with a Sassy rendition of one of his most famous compositions.

As a gay man and as I Jew, I was proud that he was belonged to both camps. I knew this day would come soon but it sucks. The most talented man of his generation.

I'll watch my new Criterion Collection edition of ORIGINAL CAST ALBUM: COMPANY tonight in his honor.

I'd like to sing at his memorial. And when I say sing I mean With One Look.

He's gone to the great FOLLIES production in the sky.

Completely agree, R9. I understand that he was infamously reclusive.

Follies!

I saw him at the Company showing November 15. Very sad.

Send in the Undertakers

[quote] The nail in the coffin of an era that won't ever be seen again. MARY me, but I'm kind of tearing up.....

R9 --

I'll MARY you a little

And love you just enough --

(((hugs)))

RIP, Steve.

What will Barbra do!?

Every day a little dead.

A couple years ago he married his husband... 48 years his junior.

I guess we can't have his stuff.

Was he a top or a bottom?

We’ve been lucky to have him, and his work. Sad, tonight.

Has anyone checked on Bernie? You know she must be prostrate with grief!

Sad. He was just at the re-opening of Company. Rip.

Playbill obit:

Is R13 Don Black or Georges Seurat? I can't tell if it merits an "oh, dear" or not.

Amazingly he never won an Emmy - and couldn't be EGOT

I think it rude of Playbill to show a picture from the casket.

Billy Porter has already released what he will wear to the funeral

Broadway has to go dark this evening to honor his contributions to the theatre.

Does anyone know what he died of, precisely? He had Thanksgiving dinner just yesterday with friends, so it can't have been "after a long illness."

Was it simply old age? But isn't it true that one doesn't "die of old age"--that it's always something?

The obituary was mum on the matter.

As he was so long-lived, I'd be curious to know what felled him.

Kennedy Center

Broadway should go dark for a damn month for all he did for it. The master of the craft.

He was truly great. Like Fosse great, or Warhol great. A great artist.

[quote] Does anyone know what he died of, precisely?

Ooh, let me, let me...

A PAPER CUT, ROSE!

R54: He was fighting an oil rig fire in the Gulf of Mexico....HE WAS 91!!!!!!

R56 Charlotte St Martin will probably say only the Sondheim theatre should go dark.

R55 Love that clip. Dame Angela is still kicking - recently 96. I wonder if she'll fly out for the funeral.

R53, my guess is that the theaters would need time to coordinate, though I'd be surprised if it doesn't happen in the next few days or so.

This must be one of his last interviews on a talk show, from about 2months ago. Here he talks about working on a new musical.

He was a genius. I know this descriptor is often overused, but in his case, it was simply true.

A true legend and one of the greats. Company is the best thing ever imho.

RIP. He was a great talent.

A sudden death - not ill - was fine on Thanksgiving and died Friday. Sad.

Tonight, the lights will be dimmed in all basement sex dungeons.

RIP, master.

It is crass to speak of money at such time, I know, but I looked him up on Celebrity Net Worth and it listed $20M. Certainly a fortune to me but seems low for such a prolific and hugely successful composer.

At 91, any sudden ailment can kill you. He lived a long life - began his career pre-Stonewall, which is insane to comprehend. He was there to see it all.

He began his career WAY before Stonewall. Two decades before.

Well damn.....rip.

I knew him and worked with him. Been bawling since I heard the news. A man of infinite talent and infinite soul.

Even I preferred La Cage.

It's a pity he and Anthony Perkins never did another screenplay.

Dyan Cannon and Raquel Welch are still available.

He also did the score for, in my opinion, an underrated Alain Resnais film starring another recently departed icon of a time past - Jean-Paul Belmondo. Wish he composed for more films!

All negativity must be banned form this thread until after the obligatory week of respectful mourning and remembrance.

Anything from Jake yet?

Did seeing himself depicted in Tick Tick Boom kill him?

Everybody dies!

I'm sure Patti will deliver a touching curtain speech tonight at Company.

R79 We can't exactly rule OUT Lin-Manuel Miranda culpability in Sondheim's death....

Everybody rise! Rise! Rise! Rise! After three days.

On Colbert a couple months ago. Ghastly.

I personally think it was the advance screening of Spielberg's WEST SIDE STORY, R82.

Barbra's already paid tribute to him on Twitter.

Audra

We'll continue to 'Send in the English Muffins' to hubby with our sincerest condolences.

What is the first clip everyone went to YouTube to see upon learning the news?

Mine:

Sadness. 😢

The articles say he was at a Thanksgiving dinner yesterday. I wonder what the direct cause of his death was

[Quote] All negativity must be banned form this thread until after the obligatory week of respectful mourning and remembrance.

DL has an obligatory 30 seconds

Surprised that Bob Dylan won the Nobel Prize in Literature but not Sondheim

So he's breathless?

[quote] I wonder if she'll fly out for the funeral.

Where does Angela Lansbury live?

Elaine Paige!

It is truly a great loss. 😥😥

R84, are you also R63?

Do not let it grieve you.

No one leaves for good.

Debra Messing

Divas.

Makes me very sad. A genius. RIP indeed :(

[quote]A sudden death - not ill - was fine on Thanksgiving and died Friday. Sad.

Come on... legendary career... in the arts history books.... dying suddenly at 91 the day after pleasant company... that's the jackpot. We should all be so lucky.

Genius and legend.

Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei.

Requiescat in pace, Stephen.

I bet Woody Allen will be next.

R91, Probably that green bean/cream of mushroom soup/fried onions concoction.

A genius. I'm destroyed. No one had that level of talent. I'm glad I lived in a time when he was still writing.

Bernadette:

[quote]I am so so sad to lose my friend Steve Sondheim He gave me so much to sing about ♥️♥️I loved him dearly and will miss him so much Thank you for all the gifts you gave the world Steve♥️

Deb Messing beat her to it R15.

She is “absolutely gutted”.

R53, a moving tribute to a career spent shutting down theaters.

I sang a song he wrote for a film a was in.

Wait, that was 30 years ago?

If Broadway goes dark, won't that be a trip hazard?

What was the deal with his mother - how crazy was she?

My fave Still Here...

Was he in any long term relationships?

Great story...

Someone needs to do a re-edit of the Princess Diana's dead video.

I’m on the verge of tears, but he had a long life, and in spite of rarely achieving the kind of commercial success that Rodgers and Hammerstein or ALW etc. enjoyed, he received the respect of critics and performers that he so richly deserved. He was one of the finest poets that this country has ever produced. A true genius. RIP

Was Angela Lansbury a stalwart Sondheim interpreter?

[quote]As a gay man and as I Jew, I was proud that he was belonged to both camps.

Somehow the word 'camps' just feels grossly inappropriate.

Since movies are distributed digitally, it’s not too late to include a dedication on Spielberg’s WSS.

Do it.

R118. Why would noted Jewess Barbra Steisand be thinking the Lord?

Kinda bombed, R124.

Did he have a rent controlled apartment and can I have it?

WTAF? He's been dead for most of the delay, and there's only ONE thread about it nowhere close to being maxed out?!?

You cunts are definitely slipping. Either that or the Sondheim freaks are too geriatric & addled to type for themselves.

*Most of the DAY goddammit

R118 by "Lord" she meant G-d.

On a scale of 1-10, how DL of me is it that I saw the news getting ready to go out for the night and briefly considered staying home to watch you bitches?

Eeeeeeeeverything's pushing up daisies!

I know, I hate it when I'm trying to be witty and make wretched typos, R128

I’m more of a Jerry Herman fan myself.

Sad to see him dead, but glad he was at least able to see the Broadway revival of Company first.

Can someone sing the Diana scream?

In retrospect, he probably should have declined that Thanksgiving invitation from Stephen Schwartz.

R126 His four-story townhouse at 246 East 49th Street is owned by a Trust.

It’s strange - I’m not sad for him - he lived a long life and died suddenly hopefully without pain. I’m more sad for the world. If that makes any sense. I don’t often feel that way - certainly never with a celebrity. It just seemed like a richer world with him in it.

Mary!!! I know I know. This one just hits differently.

Step by step putting it together

Bad angel says At least this will prevent another rewrite of Roadshow.

Good angel is listening to Cleo Sings Sondheim with crystalline tears in his eyes.

[quote] I’m more sad for the world. If that makes any sense.

MARY!!!!!

There will never be another like him…

Unless they send in the clones.

[quote]Can someone sing the Diana scream?

I can!

Has anyone posted this yet?

A lovely tribute from Lin-Manuel’s father

R138, with all due respect, the world has bigger problems.

r43: I'm sure there will be an estate sale. Sotheby's and Christie's are probably chatting with the widower as I type.

I hope he left a little something to his gorgeous 43 year old kept boy.

r52

thank you for making me laugh, we knew it was coming but still... RIP

[quote]A giant of the stage is gone, but his work will live with us forever. Isn’t it lovely how artists can capture us? Thank you for The Hat, Steve.

And don't tell Jeff, but I'm not getting buried today.

Did he marry for estate planning or were they an actual romantic couple?

Take him to the world.

[Quote] I’m more sad for the world. If that makes any sense.

It doesn't make sense.

Send in the clowns. She was a good girl. May she RIP.

[Quote] I can!—Glenn Close

With enough retakes.

I'm reminded of the scene in "Queer as Folk" where they do a porn sweep of their dead friend's house. I guess the husband will convert Steve's dungeon.

I just looked him up last night.

Sondheim detested his mother,[11] who was said to be psychologically abusive[12] and projected her anger from her failed marriage on her son:[13] "When my father left her, she substituted me for him. And she used me the way she used him, to come on to and to berate, beat up on, you see. What she did for five years was treat me like dirt, but come on to me at the same time."[14] She once wrote him a letter saying that the "only regret [she] ever had was giving him birth".[15] When his mother died in the spring of 1992, Sondheim did not attend her funeral. He had already been estranged from her for nearly 20 years.[11][16]

Boo hoo hoo.

Is anyone else just DEVASTATED at this news? I feel unable to speak or sing. This leaves Lin-Manuel as our greatest living composer.

As gay man with a dungeon, I think Sondheim would have appreciated this thread.

I was just today clearing up some of my old DVRs & came upon a mid-‘60s Password featuring Stephen Sondheim. I decided not to delete it until he died. I’m sure I jinxed him.

I'm impressed that (so far) this is the only thread on the subject.

R160 - Surely you jest.

You're an ignorant jackass, R59. Nobody dies simply of being 91.

I'll say it again for you, dumbass: everybody dies of SOMETHING SPECIFIC. And the Times obit didn't specify what that something was.

You don't celebrate Thanksgiving at 91 and then die all of a sudden a day later of being 91. YOU DIE OF SOMETHING THAT KILLS YOU. A fall, a cold, chicken pox, etc.

Shithead.

I’m sad. I saw Company last week and really enjoyed it. RIP genius.

[quote]This leaves Lin-Manuel as our greatest living composer.

Pardon me all to hell.

Could Timothée play Henrik?

r165: Overeating?

r157, the sling is all hung with black crepe.

He gave us BETH HOWLAND and her straws. Thank you.

And he made sure not to give us Patty's witch!

[quote]Amazingly he never won an Emmy - and couldn't be EGOT

Who needs an EGOT when you're a GOAT?

R111, I bought the Breathless CD at the time and was struck by Madonna's "Special Thanks" section in the liner notes, where she thanked "Stephen Sondheim, for the privilege." That was 1980 and she was at the peak of her stardom, so I thought that was rather gracious. Not an adjective I expected ever to associate with Madonna.

This is so fucked. He was doing fine until fucking Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving and even (especially?) "Friendsgiving" kills!

He had a good ride, but feels like there was more left.

91 is a nice round age. Impressive.

I guess now he’s just decomposing.

Ugh. I hate the past two years.

[quote] 91 is a nice round age.

90 is nice round age. 91 is just impertinent.

His timing was a bit off. It would have been best for WSS BO for him to have died during premiere week, but we'll take this.

Off topic, but I would have loved to have seen Lauren Bacall tackle Gypsy.

What a lousy ending to an otherwise nice, quiet day after Thanksgiving.

Or Bacall do I'm Still Here in Follies.

The real Gyps would have pulled out something from her g-string to get Bacall off of her. Tackled, geez.

" But, I didn't eat the salmon mousse."

Damn the husband was 50 years younger?

50-year younger surviving spouse Jeff Romley is ready to manage the Estate. Hopefully that Sondheim money will keep coming in the form of residuals forever.

Aww that’s a shame.

He was a great director. I think my favorite movie of his was Jaws, but Duel was a close second.

Has anyone checked on Stephen Schwartz lately?

R178 He's too dead for that gesture.

[quote] Has anyone checked on Stephen Schwartz lately?

He’s fine. He sends his love from R167.

This can't be Rose from "Golden Girls" -- how on earth would she even know what "Duel" is?

One

Singular sensation?

Is dead.

Listen to those of you mentioning Stephen Schwartz...I like Pop-U-Lar but believe me when he dies you won't see everyone from Anna Kendrick to Uzo Aduba rhapsodizing him. Frank Rich, Terry Teachout, Ben Brantley and even Chasten Buttiegieg won't rush to their computers. Barbra, Bernadette, Audra, Lea, Vanessa, Hugh, Josh, and George Takei wont stop what they are doing to post their tributes

They would for Lin though.

RIP Mr. Sondheim. Your legend will live forever.

Wikipedia page updated:

Someone get Larry King on the Ouija board

[Quote] I would have loved to have seen Lauren Bacall tackle Gypsy.

I don't think Bacall had the warmth for Herbie.

R182, George Michael's death spoiled Christmas, now Sondheim TG.

The producers of Company are secretly THRILLED. box office, reviews, Tony all dancing like sugarplums in their heads

He was living in Roxbury, Connecticut?

Is that what killed him?

Beaten to death by ruff trade, but it will be all hush-hush to protect his legacy.

He was molested!

By Ansel Escort!

He had sufficient.

CT. is cool. There's no end to this pandemic. City life is a terrible idea during a global pandemic .

Well maybe next year....

Apparently not!

Has the grieving widower Mr. Jeff Romley issued a statement?

Yes, it said “Oh, thank go—, er, I’ll make a statement at a later date.”

How about Susan Dey...has she issued a comment?

Barbara Streisand, Bernadette Peters and others are just too verklempt, but mananged to issue short statements.

If there is a bright side to this somber news, it’s that Kristin Chenoweth is no longer among the missing.

If you asked me my ideal death, it would be a quick one at an old age after a likely beautiful and delicious feast with loved ones, on a glorious fall/winter day, with the leaves changing. I hope it was in his sleep, all the better.

He was at a performance of Company last week.

If I’m a rube and don’t have much experience with Sondheim beyond Into the Woods, where should I start?

R213, MARY!!!

Thank you all for the cards and the flowers.

[quote] Does anyone know what he died of, precisely?

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, Rose.

[quote] He was at a performance of Company last week.

Yes on November 15th. See R38.

R201 et al

Some of you just don't have a clue. Roxbury, CT is quite full of notable people from entertainment world or otherwise famous.

Dustin Hoffman has a place in Roxbury. As does Rex Reed, Tom Cole....

For drama, R215, try Sweeney Todd. If you're into glorious music go to Pacific Overtures and Passion.

Does Kristina Lenk still stink in "Company"?

[quote] “Broadway has lost a musical genius.” — Actor and author Marlee Matlin, via Twitter.

How can she tell?

As befitting Litchfield County, Roxbury ticks many boxes for certain people.

[quote] “We shall be singing your songs forever. Oh, my heart hurts…” — singer and actor Lea Salonga, via Twitter.

Well, that's my personal idea of hell.

My head hurts now too!

the news played some of his greatest hits, too many to mention. "There is a Place For Us",

It was likely Thanksgiving dinner that did Stephen Sondheim in (he died on Friday morning).

There should be an coroner's inquest with particular focus on who prepared and served that meal....

R54

"Does anyone know what he died of, precisely?"

His heart stopped beating....

[quote]It was likely Thanksgiving dinner that did Stephen Sondheim in (he died on Friday morning).

I hope he had the chocolate cake.

We told you not to cook stuffing inside the bird.

He almost died 40 years ago when he heard Liz Taylor sing "Send in the Clowns" for the first time.

A LEGEND FOR SURE... WILL BE GREATLY MISSED, WILL BROADWAY GO DARK TONIGHT FOR HIM?

Let's see whose first out of the gate to launch a "best of Sondheim" concert or recording...

My guess is Bernadette Peters or Barbara Streisand on female vocalist side.

On another note lights tonight are dimmed on Broadway to note passing of Stephen Sondheim.

[quote]If I’m a rube and don’t have much experience with Sondheim beyond Into the Woods, where should I start?

Start with Cleo Laine's Sondheim album. "Cleo Sings Sondheim" It is an excellent representation of his work.

Then listen to the original cast albums of:

Follies

Company

A Little Night Music

Sweeney Todd

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum

Gypsy

West Side Story

R213 beautifully said. Death is harsh but under the right circumstances, it's just another ceebration of life.

BILL TAYLOR is that you at R232?

"This leaves Lin-Manuel as our greatest living composer."

Said no one ever.

R165 it was probably the aids that finally caught him.

Follies is so overrated especially on DL.

[quote] Let's see whose first out of the gate

Oh, DEAR!

I bet the husband clubbed him to death with a frozen turkey. Then when the police showed up, he offered to feed them with a delicious Thanksgiving turkey.

"Oh, officer. He started to get up from that chair, had an attack of vertigo and fell, hitting his head."

R187

Until reading of will throws a few surprises at Mr. Jeff Romley

R63 will his last unfinished work be completed by someone else, I wonder?

R242 here again.

Mr. Jeff Romley had been with Mr. Stephen Sondheim for many years before they became an official item, then subsequent marriage.

It thus likely Mr. Sondheim long ago had put his affairs in order including as consequence of marriage to Jeff Romley. Happily for Mr. Sondheim he lived long enough to see same sex marriage made legal. Among other things this greatly lessened complications of estate planning vis-à-vis having a legal spouse of sex he preferred to love.

Going by usual format, and we'll likely find out something in due time, some sort of foundation will be set up and or other sort of trust or trusts to deal with Mr. Sondheim's vast catalog. The couple did not have children, so unless Mr. Romley does so later on everything will have to go somewhere when he himself dies.

R233

While shopping for something appropriate in black, Patti LuPone was overheard on her cell phone speaking with her agent about her big Sondheim one woman show....

Elaine Paige shall be milking this come her BBC2 radio programme on Sunday.

[quote]RIP to the man who composed the soundtrack of basically the first twenty-five years of my life. And then some.

They should remaster "Cleo Sings Sondheim".

r213. same.

I won't rest until Julia McKenzie makes a statement. She was the British Angela Lansbury. ;)

[quote] Damn the husband was 50 years younger?

A 46-year difference is one thing. But 50 years?! How appalling.

[quote] She was the British Angela Lansbury.

?

[quote]This leaves Lin-Manuel as our greatest living composer.

Just making sure I got this right: r160 means "our greatest living BROADWAY composer", right?

Lea Salonga, R225, NOT Lea Michele.

Surely not, r253.

Look into their eyes and you'll see what they know: everybody dies!

[quote]What a lousy ending to an otherwise nice, quiet day after Thanksgiving.

Black Friday indeed.

After waiting an appropriate period of time (read a day or two...), scores of actors and male singers (gay) will be lining up to make their move on Jeff Romley, the man will be beating them back with a stick....

[quote] Has anyone checked on Stephen Schwartz lately?

Oh, he hasn’t done anything since The Brady Bunch.

Playbill has assembled all of the tributes:

Sondheim's first post upon joining Instagram over a year ago.

"White. A blank page or canvas. The challenge -- bring order to the whole"

Oh, Christ! Marie's Crisis is going to be a madhouse tonight.

Epoch Times is reporting that Sondheim died of rickets.

r220 I'm an old New Yorker.

Piss on CT

Julie said "Have another slice of turkey Steve it will not kill you"

[quote]Let's see whose first out of the gate to launch a "best of Sondheim" concert or recording...

I wonder if Stephen Colbert will be the first out of the gate with a musical tribute by bringing someone on his show to sing for Sondheim. Patti perhaps?

Goodbye for now...

R62 here. If R233 is correct and they are dimming the lights in his honor tonight, then my humble apologies to R53.

[quote] It thus likely Mr. Sondheim long ago had put his affairs in order

I notice that the house belongs to a trust.

So I wonder if that trust was there to help if Sondheim lapsed into dementia and to keep gold-diggers away.

Stephen Sondheim

March 22, 1930 – November 26, 2021

Damn, he just married his husband four years ago at age 87.

RIP

He had a way with words.

Don't ask. I didn't know him.

r91

He must have been murdered by one of the other guests! But which one? They all have secrets to hide...

R267, Liz Callaway is performing tomorrow evening in the Boston area.

Sorry to read this

Reactions

[quote] I notice that the house belongs to a trust.

A lot of rich people do this. It's a way to lower the taxes they pay, buy property anonymously and protect their assets from legal issues.

Has Susan Dey commented yet?

r272, we know you aren't Susan Dey, because that's a statement and Miss Dey don't roll that way.

To think of all the hot ass that passed through his sex dungeon...

R269

Many famous and or wealthy persons put real estate into trusts. This yes, even though they are married, have children, and so on.

One main reason is for tax purposes. As part of a trust that property in Roxbury, CT isn't part of the Sondheim estate. If it was done before marriage this had important tax advantages to the estate. Even afterwards it can deliver benefits to surviving spouse.

Baron Lloyd Webber has weighed in, and conceded that Sondheim was indeed the greater of the two.

Baron Lloyd Webber throws shade: An inspiration not just to two but to three generations (ie, you were composing musicals when Moses was a babe swimming in the Nile, ie you were an old, old fart).

[quote]scores of actors and male singers (gay) will be lining up to make their move on Jeff Romley, the man will be beating them back with a stick....

Steve taught him well

Romley had a bit on the side. When things quiet down, he'll move the bit into the NYC townhouse.

I'm sure he bequeathed something special to good buddy Bernadette Peters.

Unlike a year ago when we lost Rebecca Luker (and others) Broadway isn't on covid lock down any longer. Thus no reason for proper usual respects to be paid to mark the passing of one of their own.

Lights went out on Broadway for Hal Prince two years ago, damned if they don't now for Stephen Sondheim.

He was a cutie pie when he was younger:

Chatter on Broadway World....

Did Broadway dim for Nick Cordero?

From Joe Keenan:

My favorite word in a Sondheim lyric is "forever" in "Sunday." A painting rapturously celebrates its own immortality, the music building to joyful crescendo on those 3 syllables. He understood the permanence art can achieve when it's skilled and passionate and timeless and true.

Interview with the NYT done just this past Sunday

Hugh Jackman

R291

Don't thinks so... Both Luker and Cordero died while Broadway was still on lock-down. Under normal circumstances lights would have been dimmed, but since theatres where shut don't think it happened to mark either death.

Perfect. Perfect. Perfect

[quote]Under normal circumstances lights would have been dimmed, but since theatres where shut don't think it happened to mark either death.

But Broadway lights were kept lit all during the pandemic. They could have dimmed if they wanted to.

You know you're a legend when you're satirized.

R260 Well of course Jeremy O Harris has to make it about him by pointing out Sondheim came to some of his plays. Ugh he just can't help himself

[quote] Epoch Times is reporting that Sondheim died of rickets.

Oh, that’s just dumb.

Cricket bites are not fatal.

Well there goes my birthday!

What did he die of?

His heart stopped, r302.

John Barrowman - Part 1

The 1961 West Side Story will be in cinemas courtesy Fathom Events this Sunday (11/28) and Wednesday (12/1).

Barrowman posted Part 2 and Part 3 as replies to his Part 1. I can't seem to link the replies, so go to John's page to see all.

At 91 with previous heart trouble and a sudden death, likely sudden onset ventricular fibrillation and quick death. Possibly a massive stroke.

Crazy business this, this life we live in.

Can't complain about the time we're given.

With so little to be sure of in this world...

We had a moment...

"At least we still have Andrew Lloyd Weber."

was that supposed to make me feel better?

r293 some of us are locked out of being able to read that article, it would be great if you could post it here.

R297

Well supposed Broadway could have dimmed lights marking those deaths, but much like public wearing of mourning much of the impact is lost if no one is there to observe.

In normal course of things dimming lights on Broadway has a huge impact because theatre goers and others in area notice something is up. You could have flung a dead cat for miles last year or so on Broadway and not hit a living soul. That's how empty things were.....

Marque lights only go out on Broadway for one minute, so unless you happen to be in area you'll miss entire thing.

R309

Back story on dimming lights

Or...

Lin Manuel Miranda

It was the PTSD from that recording session with Elaine Stritch. I KNEW there was a blood clot just WAITING for the right moment to take him away!

At the piano as a kid.

I was the first, r313...

I hope Sondheim and Arthur Laurents are smacking the shit out of each other over who gets to fuck porno twinks like Kurt Marshall (who died when AIDS-related illnesses were running rampant).

Thank you 311

Is Caroline or Change worth seeing? Going to NYC in a few weeks.

Everybody rise!

"I'm still here".

Is there a good biography of Sondheim?

What was on his...oh, forget it!

Betty Buckley has been posting all evening on her Twitter page about him.

r320 I'm not sure why you thought this was the appropriate thread to ask that question. Why don't you take it to the THEATRE GOSSIP thread?

Well, we know it wasn’t Lady Gaga sings The Sound of Music R324

Will "Sondheim/Prince" follow on the heels of "Fosse/Verdon"?

Lin-Manuel's comment about Shakespeare was utterly stupid.

Didn't Jerry Herman die this year too?

R329 = Bradley Whitford.

2019, r331.

Sondheim's last words: "If Datalounge mentions Follies one more time..."

Now he can be reunited with the love of his life: Lee Remick.

It wouldn't surprise me if someone makes a Sondheim biopic and makes Lee Remick his Girl Friday.

Whoa there, r335...

R336 Ugh yeah, it'd be just like the Alan Turing biopic, where they overemphasize the platonic bond between a fag and his hag in order to dilute the gayness of the real person. Or the Freddie Mercury biopic, which was a little bit different because he did actually have a romantic relationship with the woman before coming out.

[quote] Dyan Cannon and Raquel Welch are still available.

So are we, bitch.

Some people will do anything to avoid those Black Friday crowds.

For what it's worth, Sondheim was the most brilliant conversationalist I ever met. Funny, intelligent, bitchy, and profound.

He hit me in the head with a fondue pot.

Patti:

[quote]The last of the great Musical Comedy composers has died. Steve, I will never be a able to properly thank you for the lessons learned. You are the Gold Standard.

[quote]What did he die of?

He was fighting an oil rig fire in the Gulf of Mexico.

He was 91, Rose!

Speech from Marianne Elliot and Patti at Company tonight

Is Madge singing live at r111?

When did she learn to sing and dance at the same time?

Well he’s not around anymore

[Quote] bitchy

That reminds me of when Soundheim told Lapone, live on the radio, that she wasn't a star.

Amazingly, the ATC thread on Sondheim is nowhere near as long as I thought it might be -- I thought it might approach the infamous on "treasure trails" during the revival run of "South Pacific", but nope. Even stalwart poster AlanScott must be in shock today , since he hasn't posted yet.

Critic’s Appreciation: The Rapture and Relevance of Stephen Sondheim:

I would have liked to have been there when he ran into Richard Rodgers.

There is no speech from Patty at r346

R353 Okay it's short but she says they're dedicating the performance and the rest of the run to him. And if we're being pedantic here, it's Patti.

Patti needs to stop acting like she was Sondheim's muse now that he's dead. Her foghorn voice with poor diction didn't fit his light, precise songs at all.

Sit down, Patti LuPone!

And another hundred people just got off of the train....

R342 = Ann Miller

I'm beside by side myelf.

This just in: Jeff Romley is negotiating with a leading psychiatric hospital chain to use “Losing My Mind” as a jingle for its radio commercials.

I'm beside by side myself.

Why does everyone have to say he was the most talented person ever in their speeches? I think we are getting a tad carried away here with those claims. He had a narrow niche after all.

To R161, did he really have a Dungeon in his basement? I have a Sondheim story in which I insult him

R361 it was a narrow niche in terms of artistic product, but writing entire musicals is fucking hard and he was brilliant at it. I don't think it's overstatement to say he was the greatest Broadway composer to have lived in the last 50 years, at the very least.

First of all there are only like 5 Broadway composers and secondly they each have their own thing. It’s just not apples to apples. It’s just weird and pretentious that now everybody has to say how he was the most brilliant composer in history to let it be knows that they are a theater expert. It’s just exhausting copy cat behavior. Come up with your own accolades.

Strouse and Adams, Sheldon Harnick and John Kander are still with us, as well, and they are all terrific and have classic shows. Actually most of them wrote shows more popular and longer running than Sondheim. But Sondheim really dominated the musical for about half a century, and it's sad to hear of his passing.

[Quote] Jeff Romley is negotiating with a leading psychiatric hospital chain to use “Losing My Mind” as a jingle for its radio commercials.

Raquel Welch is the dame to do it!

tick... tick...

There's a lot I'll have missed

But I'll not have been dead

When I die!

And a person should celebrate everything

Passing by.

[quote] Now he can be reunited with the love of his life: Lee Remick.

***ahem***

***£*%$%$£%("(*$***

It's cool that he actually recorded a commentary for the Criterion edition of the Company doc before he died. Haven't listened to it yet but looking forward.

It was fun seeing "Tick, Tick... Boom!" tonight knowing nothing about the story and finding out that he's a character in it (played by Bradley Whitford). He's treated as a kind benevolent spirit in the story--it was really sweet to see his character in it tonight, like he hadn't left us fully.

That Tick, Tick...Boom' sounds SO pretentious and self-absorbed.

Was he a raging alcoholic or was he born with those bags?

When did he quit smoking? Don't tell me Friday.

What will happen with Square One ?

Did he like Asian Noodle?

Somewhere, I hope Sondheim and Hammerstein have been reunited.

I was thinking of Sondheim and Perkins. Did they remain friends until Perkins' death?

[quote]That Tick, Tick...Boom' sounds SO pretentious and self-absorbed.

Thanks for letting us know, but I tend not to give a lot of weight to opinions from people who haven't actually seen the movie or play in question.

Not to worry r381. I'm sure that particular poster has plenty of his own weight to spread around.

RIP Mr Sondheim you will be missed💛 What a talent you were.

Will Dennis Christopher be at the funeral? (or does no one here on DL know that story).

[quote] Come up with your own accolades.

Ok. He was the most brilliant composer in history.

She probably had no clue what she was doing, yet Cher, yes CHER - managed to deliver the very best version of Send in The Clowns. Yes, Cher. Don't inform her.

Roxane didn't make some pissy, race- and gender-related comment about a white man? Wow.

Brit here, woke up in the night to read the news and felt sad chills indeed (Mary me a little). I hoped Sondheim would just go on and on.

Point above about a 'narrow niche' (tautology anyway) misses the point. Most genius has a niche by definition. Philip Roth didn't also exhibit paintings, Stanley Kubrick didn't also publish poetry. The depth and breadth of Sondheim's contribution was enough for three lifetimes, and leaves us riches indeed to explore and savour.

If there's a comparable genius at work in any other field, in his or her 'narrow niche', let's all know about it. As for now, Sondheim is rightly being mourned and celebrated, and will be for decades.

Not an ordinary Sunday.

It keeps changing.

Has Jeanine Tesori commented yet?

Wonder if he saw the final "West Side Story" cut.

No comment from Liza yet?

Her version of "Losing My Mind" was a plus for her back in 1989.

His 90th birthday celebration...

Boy, are you stupid, R361.

That’s a spectacular version of Sunday. Thanks for posting R394.

R361, "Send in the Clowns" certainly widened his niche when it became a crossover classic song sung and recorded by so many varied artists.

R394 What the hell is it about The Royal Albert Hall that calls for everything to become a Cecil B. DeMille production?

Some of you are over the top with the praise. Greatest composer ever? Compared to Beethoven and Mozart? Gimme a break.

His husband (who is 50 years younger) hit the jackpot!!!....Congrats Jeff!!....And barely in your 40s and handsome?....Wonderful!!

R401 Neither of them did much work for the Broadway stage.

Attention Whore Lin Miranda has weighed in. Because, of course. I'm surprised he took the time to remove his nose from Jimmy Fallons low rated butthole.

I always said there were two celebrities/famous people whose deaths I could see myself getting emotional over. Sondheim was one, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't cry when I heard the news. I know - total Mary moment. I remember taping Into the Woods on our VCR as a kid and watching it over and over until the tape basically wore out.

If you never saw the Six by Sondheim documentary on HBO, I recommend it. Here it is uploaded to YouTube.

R401, what R403 said. I don't think anyone here said Sondheim was the greatest composer in the history of music, but possibly, arguably, on Broadway.

I've never heard the Dennis Christopher story and I've been here a while.

He's got a bit of explaining to do to Oscar about that ' a man of limited talent' remark.

When Sondheim was 50 years old, his husband was born...Kinda creepy.

Stop clutching your pearls, Mary R409.

Didn’t Sondheim invent the phrase “everything’s coming up roses”? That phrase had a life outside of the musical Gypsy.

Has Dame Angela commented yet ?

She has asked repeatedly for her butterscotch pudding r412.

R409 unless he was a minor when they started dating.....why?

Lloyd Webber was gracious and duly awed about Sondheim's genius this morning on BBC radio. He mentioned that when 'West Side Story' first opened, the NYT review didn't once discuss the lyrics! LW observed that WSS was 'probably' the greatest musical ever. LW went to the most recent WE revival of 'Merrily' three times, seeing more on each visit. Charming little interview.

Liaisons

Who but Angela Lansbury could make chiffonier a dirty word?

R331

Mr. Jerry Herman died in 2019... Please keep up!

Bernadette Peter's version of Not a day goes by stills breaks my heart.9

Lin Manuel is not a composer. He’s a rapper.

With the death of Sondheim, Broadway now becomes like opera. No longer new or relevant, it will only be barely capable of exhuming long dead creators in order to extract what few dollars it can from midwestern fraus. And I don’t expect that audience to last much longer. Broadway will be non profit in the next two decades, begging for corporate subsistence like the Met, relegated to six or so houses on 44th and 45th.

Bernadette’s ridiculously self indulgent and teary version of Not A Day Goes By certainly breaks her own heart R419. I don’t know about the audiences.

NYT archives of almost every review of late Stephen Sondheim's work.

Has Nathan Lane issued a statement?

Wow, his husband is gorgeous!

R421, broke mine at the very least.

No hyperbole, he was one of the greatest songwriters of all time. His songs could live outside of musical theater and never be confined by that term "showtune." While none of his songs were commercial hit singles, at some point every singer of note in the 20th century recorded or performed one of his songs.

I always thought "Send In The Clowns" -- overwrought and tedious in the wrong hands -- was a joke song. But whenever his material met with a great interpreter it could knock the wind out of you. 91 was a long, fruitful life and he gave us sooo much. RIP.

I have no idea who he is since I am not that familiar with gay icons. I kind of like West side story and that is about it.

Sondheim was a gracious and generous man. I imagine his last will contains many philanthropic gifts for the next generation.

[quote] he was so long-lived, I'd be curious to know what felled him.

Life.

One day these bodies will just stop working, even without illness or injury. I hope to have great health for a long time, and to dine extravagantly with family, friends and loved ones, go to sleep and never wake up.

Sondheim naturally loved words and word games of all sorts. So I can't resist repeating this topical fun fact I just learned: Omicron is an anagram for Moronic.

I've the feeling Sondheim - whose name is an anagram for Hedonism - would indeed have taken pleasure in the above.

According to Claybourne Elder, somewhere or other, the cast was told that his death was "easy" and his loved ones were with him.

[quote] Mr. Jerry Herman died in 2019... Please keep up!

Take your own advice, considering we were told that two posts later at r333.

Do keep up!

Where they came and where they went I was part of the event I was someone in a tree!

Godspeed, SS, and eternal thanks for scoring my life.

R247 Must've been so hard for you to copy and paste someone else's thoughts, you fucking cunt turd brain.

R435 sounds EXHAUSTED!

[quote]Bernadette Peter's version of Not a day goes by stills breaks my heart.

Oh, dear.

R436 Fuck off/die. Janbot. Cunt. Turd brain.

[quote]Lin Manuel is not a composer. He’s a rapper.

He has composed two of the biggest musicals of the last twenty years. And Hamilton was a landmark in musical theatre. Sondheim even knew that.

This is why Broadway threads are tedious, it's because you have eldergays who can't comprehend that an art form can change and expand with time. Who thumb their nose with derision over what "younger audiences" like because it isn't what you salivated over fifty years ago. They don't understand, and rather than simply admit that, adapt an air of thin moral superiority that doesn't hold up against an argument with any depth.

And the "He's a rapper" comment cements that. Another form of music you clearly don't get.

I get why Lin Manual Miranda irritates the hell out of people (me too at times) but he’s extremely talented at weaving together different styles of rap, hip-hop, and past Broadway hits, like he did for different characters in Hamilton, building up layers of different references so that the musical was entertaining on its surface but also fascinating for people who have deep experience with the history of hip-hop (famously self-referential) and trends in Broadway musicals. Lumping all that into “he’s a rapper” says more about you than him or the music he writes.

'With the death of Sondheim, Broadway now becomes like opera. No longer new or relevant, it will only be barely capable of exhuming long dead creators in order to extract what few dollars it can from midwestern fraus. And I don’t expect that audience to last much longer. Broadway will be non profit in the next two decades, begging for corporate subsistence like the Met, relegated to six or so houses on 44th and 45th.'

Oh, get over yourself. Broadway was here for many years before Sondheim and will be here for many years after. His latest offerings have all been financial flops. Only delusional Sondheim-philes believe in his deification.

[quote] I have no idea who he is since I am not that familiar with gay icons. I kind of like West side story and that is about it.

Then why r427 are you on this thread, and why would you take the energy to write that, and why would you waste anyone else's energy to read it?

What’s the Dennis Christopher story? I wanna know!

I also would like to know.

No one ever sang it better r296.

[quote]It's always sad when someone you thought has been dead for years, only died today.

AKA the Mandela Effect.

LMM wasn't fit to sniff Sondheim's farts. Everything he does is played out and derivative and catering to the lowest possible denominator. The only people who seem to consider Lin a visionary are those who haven't encountered any form of art before 2005.

Sondheim was a true original, a genius, and yes, the likes of him will never be seen again. It's not an "eldergay" thing to say. Just like the filmmaking of his era will never be seen again, the Broadway of his era is now nearly fully dead and gone. RIP.

[quote] Wonder if he saw the final "West Side Story" cut.

Might be what killed him.

1973 Tribute

What's the damned Dennis Christopher story, already?

It's crazy to me that WSS was his only mainstream success, and that was mostly due to Bernstein's music.

r343 did Webber write musical comedy?

You don't consider GYPSY a mainstream success, r451?

[quote]With the death of Sondheim, Broadway now becomes like opera. No longer new or relevant, it will only be barely capable of exhuming long dead creators in order to extract what few dollars it can from midwestern fraus. And I don’t expect that audience to last much longer. Broadway will be non profit in the next two decades, begging for corporate subsistence like the Met, relegated to six or so houses on 44th and 45th.

He was just a man. He hasn't had a new production since "Passion" in 1994 . "Passion" might have won awards and it might have gotten raves, it was indeed a flop running only 280 performances not counting 52 previews. So why would Broadway change NOW?

Or ALNM?

Send in the clowns waa everywhere in the 70s and 80s.

Passion got raves, r454?

[quote]Why does everyone have to say he was the most talented person ever in their speeches? I think we are getting a tad carried away here with those claims. He had a narrow niche after all.

I agree, and I'm only a lukewarm fan, but he did create the template for modern musicals. He was brilliant but limited and because of that we have gotten a bunch of meh, from all the young composers who want to be just like him.

[quote]This is why Broadway threads are tedious, it's because you have elder gays who can't comprehend that an art form can change and expand with time. Who thumb their nose with derision over what "younger audiences" like because it isn't what you salivated over fifty years ago. They don't understand, and rather than simply admit that, adapt an air of thin moral superiority that doesn't hold up against an argument with any depth.

As an elder gay I applaud this comment. Theater will die if left up to those elder gays, and others like them, who can't appreciate a broader display of genius relative to Sondheim's.

[quote]You don't consider GYPSY a mainstream success, [R451]?

The songs were mainstream successes, but the movie wasn't.

[quote]You don't consider GYPSY a mainstream success?

[quote]The songs were mainstream successes

Which were Sondheim's department, albeit he wanted to write the music too. Nonetheless "Gypsy" was good enough to Sondheim to afford him his Manhattan townhouse. 'The house "Gypsy" bought', as Sondheim said.

Had no idea that little piece on the 1973 tribute even existed r449. Magic.

R451, I would include Gypsy.

[quote]The depth and breadth of Sondheim's contribution was enough for three lifetimes, and leaves us riches indeed to explore and savour. If there's a comparable genius at work in any other field, in his or her 'narrow niche', let's all know about it. As for now, Sondheim is rightly being mourned and celebrated, and will be for decades.

I think all of the celebrity Twitter eulogists could learn a lot from R388. Beautifully said.

[quote]One day these bodies will just stop working, even without illness or injury. I hope to have great health for a long time, and to dine extravagantly with family, friends and loved ones, go to sleep and never wake up.

My father, who seemed perfectly fine on Saturday, never woke from his sleep on Sunday. I was the one who found him. (I was 10 at the time, I'm 56 now.) I think this is probably what happened to Sondheim. I agree it is the perfect way to leave this mortal coil.

R449, I have a complete audio(soundboard) recording of that evening, which the double LP with the Scrabble cover omitted.

I'll be waiting for someone to post "Well, smell you!".

He's sharp and vital (and doesn't sound like a 90 year-old man) on the commentary track for ORIGINAL CAST ALBUM: COMPANY, recorded for the Criterion Collection earlier this year.

People, including SS, are smoking in the sound recording room. They are even smoking whle singing. It's hilarious.

Sorry for the apostrophe abuse. It should have read

[quote] Bernadette's Peter

His coffin should be a music box..

Or one of those hand cranked Jack in the Boxes.

Or a sling.

His battles with Turtle Bay neighbor Katharine Hepburn reportedly got rather fierce.

r459 Seriously? Who cares about the movie -- the SHOW was and is one of the most successful and revived in the history of musical comedy.

He also co-wrote the screenplay to one of my all time favorite films -- co-wrote with Tony Perkins, no less.

R463, thanks so much for that, appreciated. I felt the need to make a small sincere tribute, and DL seemed the best place.

I thought you were talking about the show in general being a main stream success, r459. If you're singling out the movie versions, WSS's success wasn't due to mainly Bernstein.

R459 . . .

Gypsy (1962 film)

Box office performance — Produced on a budget of $4 million, the film grossed $11,076,923 at the box office, earning $6 million in US theatrical rentals.

Well, smell you, R465.

[quote] LMM wasn't fit to sniff Sondheim's farts.

Now there's an image I could have spent my entire happy never to have imagined.

He did a piano duet with Andrew Lloyd Webber in a comic tribute to a producer. They appeared comfortable with each other.

Song starts at 1:01.

Jule Syne wrote the music to " Gypsy," not Sondheim, so it's not a Sondheim show.

I’d consider Into the Woods a mainstream success given its popularity for middle school / high school theater productions. It’s right up there with Peter Pan, Fiddler on the Roof, Hello Dolly, etc.

R481, only Act One. Many schools eliminate the second act.

I don't know why the DL theater crowd feels they have to pit Webber and Sondheim against each other. Sondheim was almost 40 when Webber began his career. Webber probably was a fan of Sondheim and looked up to him for the genius and pioneer he was. Other then writing musicals they are in no way the same in how they approach their art. Why compare them?

Hello DL'ers, how are you doing today? Could some DL person who knows Broadway please explain 2 things. Did Sondheim have a dungeon in his home and "WTF" is the Dennis Christopher story. Inquiring minds need to know. Thank You, Phillywhore. I don't know shit about Broadway, other than the fact that Eddie Windsor was a very good stagehand!!

"Some people sit on their butts - got the dreams yea, but NOT the guts!"

I was startled as an eleven year old sitting in a small town movie theatre.......Rosalind Russell just said "butts!"

Thanks to SS for making butts acceptable in mainstream media!

Was it natural causes?

[quote]Jule Syne wrote the music to " Gypsy," not Sondheim, so it's not a Sondheim show.

1. Jule STYNE.

2. And Leonard Bernstein wrote the music to "West Side Story," which is what the person was claiming was Sondheim's only mainstream hit. So "Gypsy" is every bit as much a Sondheim show as "WSS" is.

I'd like to say that the person who first brought up the Christopher/Sondheim story is a shit. I now assume there is none and I got so excited for nothing.

I thought Funny Thing got him his townhouse. It was a big Broadway hit, he got royalties for both music and lyrics and it was sold to the movies. So it actually being Gypsy is news to me.

Comments like R420's are so ignorant. Yes, Sondheim was God -a Greek pantheon-style god who made, and made room for, other gods. His passing will not be the death of Broadway nor of musicals. I don't think anyone in this thread has mentioned the brilliant work of Ahrens and Flaherty (Ragtime, Once On This Island, The Glorious Ones...) who are still around and very much in the Sondheim school. And we still have Maury Yeston (Nine, Titanic, Death Takes A Holiday) and people like Jeff Blumenkrantz, Pasek and Paul, Andrew Lippa, Michael John LaChiusa, Maltby and Shire, Tim Minchin, Jeanine Tesori... And what about Adam Guettel, and William Finn? None of them are Sondheim (and best don't try to be), but they have a voice and they might still have some of their best work in front of them.

As for Lin-Manuel Miranda, I suppose it's easy to hate him because he skyrocketed to fame and fortune -but he did so for a reason. In The Heights was fantastic theatre, and the first real successor to Jonathan Larson and RENT. He's already begun influencing a whole new generation of writers and composers. His Spanish translations for the revival of West Side Story were nothing short of brilliant. And he, like Larson before him, was embraced by Sondheim because Steve knew that theatre is a living, breathing form. It has to grow, develop, change, and continually reinvent itself. One theme that he repeated in interviews and lyrics was, "If no one gets to hear it it's as good as dead." No one wanted new stars of musical theatre to come along more than Stephen Sondheim did.

I treasure the times I spent with the man, and all the things he taught me. Any conversation became a master class. But now the king is dead, and we have to say "long live the king" because there will be another king -another dynasty. And this is one Eldergay who can't wait for him/him/them to come along -with or without trumpets.

Personally, I would prefer trumpets.

R488, Their paths never crossed professionally.

SO whose social media lament has been the most insufferable? I’m nominating Melissa Errico who has still managed to make her every comment about him, about her.

There's also David Yazbek and Robert Lopez, who've each written some fine musicals as well, but they don't get the press of Miranda. Yazbek, in particular, is a very funny and witty guy.

Every day a little death...

Always wondered how Errico seemed to pop out of nowhere to get cast on Broadway as Eliza in revival of "My Fair Lady". She's ok...

What is so sad is that it really is the end of the line of Broadway greatness. He was the direct heir of Hammerstein and all the great men he had worked with and he also worked on two of the great classics of Broadway. A great bond has been permanently broken with his death. The talents that have come along since are very nice but that's about it.

And she’s too precise and patrician to really be right for any Sondheim she’s tackled.

A gay life well lived.

John Kander ain't chopped liver with "Cabaret" and "Chicago" still being performed and many other great scores.

Yes, R500, I would definitely say that John Kander is in Sondheim's league of great, legendary composers.

My bad! Mea culpa. Mea maxima, maxima culpa... Don't know how I could have left out the wonderful David Yazbek from my rant. Or Robert Lopez, for that matter. I'm grieving, and clearly not thinking straight. The great John Kander is still with us, of course, but I'm not aware that he is still working (somebody correct me?).

I wasn't intending my list to be inclusive, so much as pointing out there are still some fabulous voices out there to be heard.

Kander was still working pre-pandemic, about 2years ago, on some musical he co-wrote that was being done one of the theaters over near Union Square in NYC.

I hear he was working on Golden Girls, The Musical at the end.

Saving the best for last.

OK I'll give you Kander. And he's almost exactly three years older than Sondheim.

What's interesting about Sondheim to me is that I've never listened to one of his musicals and loved it initially, but they keep me coming back and over time they become favourites. It's kinda nice because then you're always discovering new things. I remember not liking Into the Woods initially and actually really disliking Sunday in the Park with George, but now I really enjoy them both. His musicals are worth investing more time in, I find. Sweeney Todd is probably my favourite, Company has terrific songs, and the closing of Act 1 of A Little Night Music is probably one of my favourites in any musical.

[quote] Mea maxima, maxima culpa...

Oh, what the hell does a Nissan have to do with this?

[quote] and clearly not thinking straight.

I know the feeling.

Among other living musical writers are Charles Strouse and Lee Adams, wrote "Bye Bye Birdie", the wonderful "It's A Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman" and other musicals; plus Strouse wrote (with Martin Charnin) this other perennial called "Annie". Sheldon Harnick, also alive, wrote the lyrics to "Fiddler on the Roof", "She Loves Me", "Fiorello" and other wonderful shows.

Did he do any non-musical writing other than THE LAST OF SHEILA and GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER?

I think John Kander has a workshop of a new show coming up early in 2022.

Strouse and Adams also gave us "Applause" with Lauren Bacall, and in her breakout role, DL fave Bonnie Franklin.

Strouse is 93 and Adams is 97!! Steve really did leave us early.

I've been googling for the alleged Dennis Christopher story and so far only found this.

Sondheim was brilliant, but he wasn't necessarily successful. For instance, none of his shows were among the biggest in history.

Top-Grossing Broadway Musicals of All Time:

1. The Lion King $1.68 billion

2. Wicked $1.37 billion

3. The Phantom of the Opera $1.25 billion

4. Chicago $681 million

5. The Book of Mormon $659 million

Here's the list of the top-grossing Broadway musicals in history. Sondheim is not on the list.

Walked by the Stephen Sondheim Theatre (AKA the Heim) this morning and there were only a few bouquets and a Virgin Mary prayer candle out front. I wanted to walk over to 8th Avenue and buy a ball gag to add to the remembrances but I didn’t have the time.

And the bean counters have arrived

Yes, r514 and r515, we know.

And McDonald’s sells more burgers than Minetta Tavern.

He was successful by his own measure.

No, he was successful by the measure of quality. Remember that? Good vs bad. It’s actually a thing.

And that was his measurement. What are you so spiky about?

Does anybody have the goods on the dungeon? He must have had non disclosure agreements out the wazoo.

R403 has never heard of the opera.

Either that, r522, or there was no dungeon. Why in the world do you care?

Yeah, I’m thinking the dungeon stuff was made up or exaggerated.

Right. Think handcuffs.

Nobody of any worth is on that list except for Kander and Ebb.

The apartment he lived in doesn't even have a basement.

[quote]Here's the list of the top-grossing Broadway musicals in history. Sondheim is not on the list.

I'm willing to bet that if you added in all of the revivals of "Gypsy," it might make it onto that list.

And of course one needs to adjust for inflation.

The apartment he lived in was a 4-story house. The ground floor is living space; there's a washer-dryer and a freezer in the smallish sub-basesment. But thanks for playing, r528.

I wonder if Sondheim was ever a happy person. When your mother tells you that her biggest regret in life is having you how can you ever be happy?

r531 I've worked through it. It helps to write a book.

Yes, the "dungeon" is grossly exaggerated. Steve did enjoy S&M scenes -at least in his younger days with Tony Perkins. He also had a penchant for young twinks (chickenhawk, they used to say) and the assumption was that he loved to get rough with them -but that was mere assumption based on what he got up to with Perkins. The reason no one has come forward with lurid tales in all these years is that there were no unwilling participants -NDAs weren't a thing in the 60s and 70s.

Just my opinion now, but I think that R531 hits it on the head. His mother left him an emotional mess that took decades to sort out.

[quote]there's a washer-dryer and a freezer in the smallish sub-basesment

So are you trying to say that he had a sling with a couple whips hanging between the washer and the freezer r530?

[quote] The apartment he lived in doesn't even have a basement.

Was it a pizza place?

r535 Yes, but there were two guys and no girl.

^^Fookin brilliant!

Right, r534. I'm saying there was a washer and a dryer and a laundry sink, and nothing else.

r531, I think he didn't begin to become a happy person until his mother's death. But I think he has been a happy person for a number of years.

He had to wait until he was in early 60s until Monster Mom died.

Is there an echo in here?

[quote]When your mother tells you that her biggest regret in life is having you how can you ever be happy?

I don't understand the question.

Sondheim's mother sounds as evil as Peter Lawford's mother.

[Quote] Bernadette's Peter

Funnily enough, she actually is Peter's Bernadette.

Has Victor Garber weighed in on Sondheim's passing anywhere yet? Wasn't he dating Sondheim around the time he got cast in "Sweeney Todd"?

If he was, he's been very circumspect about it.

I never liked Send in the Clowns. Weird song.

He's actually a real theater actor; I don't think he's ever been as focused on the fame and publicity thing as much as the work though. But he's dated some cute guys over the years.

R546 If you know if mainly through the Judy Collins version, which was a hit on the radio, it's possible to agree. Collins has a lovely voice, but sings it almost without any emotion or sense of what the song is about.

Jake pays his respects.

[quote] jakegyllenhaal Verified: This picture of Mr. Stephen Sondheim, was taken during curtain call on the opening night of “Sunday in the Park with George.” I am grateful to have shared time with the master and maestro of American musical theater, and to have played his George. We have lost a giant. We will miss you. Rest In Peace.

I enjoy Anna Kendrick. Even if DL doesn't. Patti, Audra, Betty, BSM, NPH, Heather Headley, Bernadette, Donna and all the great ladies have paid him lovely tribute. Anna keeps her fresh. Nice.

An interview Patti did with Sondheim will be airing tomorrow on CBS Sunday Morning

This thread should be required reading for every DL newbie.

Anna got to do this at 16, how many actresses can say that? And he did a cameo in the movie, so I assume he met most of the kids at that time.

Did Mrs. Bobby Lopez win the “most insufferable comment” award?

Let it go, R554.

In college, I took a course on Sondheim and we all travelled to NYC meet with him. What an extraordinary day!

At the end of the course, I mailed Sondheim my final paper. He send me a lovely note about it, which I look at every now and again.

R556 You’re not going to share what the topic of your paper was? I’m imaging something along the lines of the significance of the monkey in Sunday In the Park with George.

R544, One evening in 1979, I was standing in line at the Uris Theatre box office to pick up my tickets for Sweeney Todd and overheard two very attractive young women in front of me tell the box office person that they were picking up Victor Garber's house seats for that evening.

[quote] I think he has been a happy person for a number of years.

I can't hear any happiness in his lyrics nor his (non-melodic) music.

I saw every Sondheim show I could, starting with the “Company” tryout in Boston, then again in New York. (I was very lucky to see Dean Jones both times!) Everything Sondheim wrote sticks with you. I saw all the original casts of his shows in New York, when I lived there, from 1972 to 1987, including the original Off-Broadway production of “Marry Me a Little,” with Craig Lucas. I’d get lp releases of his songs, just to hear previously unreleased ones. (The 1973 “Tribute” album was a revelation.) After I left New York, I’d come back and see his shows, like “Passion” and “Road Show.” When I lived in San Diego, I even saw that “Murder” play of his at the Old Globe.

I never saw him or met him. I got a ticket to see him in a concert presentation up in Irvine, CA, but his flight was cancelled because of a snowstorm.

There was always something so fascinating about him, about the way he saw things and described them. If I’d ever met him, I wouldn’t have known what to say, he impressed me so. I’m sure he would have been gracious.

I’m sorry he’s gone, but I’m glad he didn’t seem to suffer. Though he had a monster for a mother, he seemed to have transcended her, and made the best of his life. I’m glad he enjoyed it. More power to him.

But New York will never seem the same without the prospect of another new Sondheim show to look forward to.

Forgot to say I also saw the original “Follies” twice, as well as the Equity Library Theatre production, in which a friend played Ben. The original will always be the best. No other can have the same perspective. Or extravagance.

R557, in typical college mental masturbation fashion, the paper was about the Holy Trinity being reflected in the various social triangles in Sweeney Todd.

Yes, it was silly in retrospect and Sondheim even wrote in his note that he didn’t intend anything that I wrote about in my paper.

I'd like to hear about the relationship with Victor Garber too. Garber was a real cutie in the late 70s, terrible hair aside.

[quote] Yes, it was silly in retrospect and Sondheim even wrote in his note that he didn’t intend anything that I wrote about in my paper.

This is both hysterical and adorable at the same time.

And you’re cool for letting us know about it.

[quote]His mother left him an emotional mess that took decades to sort out.

Whose mother didn't?

I saw the original Follies twice when I was very young though not exactly being held on my mother's lap. I've told this story already but I don't care I'll tell it again. I had kept the original souvenir program in perfect condition and decades later he was giving a talk at the Guggenheim and I wanted him to sign the cover. I would then have it framed. After the talk he was speaking to Lauren and Betty and Adolf. There was a guy in front of me with an Into the Woods cd with the booklet out for him to sign. When there was a lull in the conversation he asked Sondheim if he would sign it. Sondheim suddenly turned on him and yelled at the guy in front of us all, 'I am not a commodity!' My friend and I looked at each other and got out of there. I am thankful there was that guy in front of me. That would have hurt.

[quote] 'I am not a commodity!

How precious!

I have it on good authority that either Angela Lansbury, Dorothy Collins, Lee Remick, or Hermione Gingold opened what she thought was a closet in Sondheim's house and saw a young boy hanging by a leather strap.

On. Good. Authority.

MARY! me all you want, but a few days ago I had a dream where I was talking to an 80-something Lee Remick. When I brought up Sondheim she started to hurry off with her assistant. I hope that means she was ready to see her friend again.

Strange dreams aside, his work has gotten me through many difficult times in my life. Rest in peace, Stephen.

Step aside, bitches. Let a diva show you how it's done. There's no faking those last notes. You either got 'em or you ain't.

Hit it, Earl!

[quote] I was talking to an 80-something Lee Remick.

That’s a lot of Remicks!

I don't think your authority is very good because it happened to be Mary Rodgers who opened that door. Unless it happened to all of them at various dinner parties.

[quote]I don't think your authority is very good because it happened to be Mary Rodgers who opened that door. Unless it happened to all of them at various dinner parties.

It was Barbara Cook. Or Elaine Stritch.

Or Beth Howland.

Sondheim is non commercial. That’s why we like him.

It was Ethel Shutta. Eddie Cantor told me.

Those top notes need to be belted for maximum impact.

Has Julia McKenzie commented? Or Cleo Laine?

I'd like to write a tribute to Stephen Sondheim, but so many others are more eloquent than I could ever be. I do need to say this: he was a great songwriter, of course, with a career envied by most composers and playwrights and poets. He was *the* great musical dramatist, perhaps the greatest there ever was. But ultimately, he was the most important person in theater in our lifetimes, comparable to Shakespeare. Yes, Sondheim is our Shakespeare. He is unequalled.

Please don’t yell at me r576 but who is that?

[quote] Sondheim is our Shakespeare

The pinnacle of the US cultural pantheon compared to the pinnacle of the British cultural pantheon.

[quote]You’re not going to share what the topic of your paper was?

"A history of dungeons in medieval Europe."

R576, "I'm Still Here" sung by Kim Criswell, matchless high notes.

[quote]sung by Kim Criswell,

Has *SHE* commented on Sondheim's death? Sondheim hated her.

How do you know this?

Well, she retweeted this.

Criswell came in to audition for a revival of "Merrily We Roll Along." She told Sondheim what was wrong with the show. She never worked on Broadway again.

No. She auditioned for anothe show and it was mentioned that they were reworking Merrily for a new production (in California, I think). Criswell said something like: "Good. The original didn't work." Sondheim thought her impertinent and called her agent to let them know.

*another

[quote]Criswell said something like: "Good. The original didn't work." Sondheim thought her impertinent

Sondheim worked with Elaine Stritch, so you know he could handle impertinent women.

Well, the "I'm not a commodity!" story illustrates that, like most people, it depends upon when you catch him.

Goodbye Mr. Stephen Sondheim, thank you for being part of the sound track that is my life.

" Before my past once again can blind me, fly away..."

[quote]Strouse is 93 and Adams is 97!! Steve really did leave us early.

And John Kander is 94 and Sheldon Harnick 97 as well, both alive and kicking. What is it about longevity and American musical lyricists?

R591 you’re kidding right? Good thing this thread is almost bajour

We love Patti LuPone. Sondheim loved Patti LuPone. Patti and Bernadette Peters ARE Sondheim.

But The Baker's Wife is NOT by Sondheim.

Steve was alive and kicking at 91. Until he wasn't.

I wonder if he sang "I am going to the Lordy" as he was leaving this world?

Sondheim liked actors who could sing. LuPone and Peters don't qualify.

R595

Oh my! Thought it was, my faux pas!

Never mind then and carry on....

Sexy ass Johnny Sibilly has a little thread going that y'all can participate in.

Anyone can Whistle!