Stephen Sondheim On Upper Broadway

In 2018 I attended the "Wall to Wall Leonard Bernstein" program, an eight-hour tribute to the life and work of the conductor/composer/pianist, at Symphony Space, a cultural gem at the corner of 95th Street and Broadway on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

This year Symphony Space honored jazz saxophonist John Coltrane with a "Wall to Wall" program that I also attended. I was able to see and hear bassist Reggie Workman and saxophonist Gary Bartz perform live. Both men are jazz legends.

While browsing the theatre's brochure for the 2019/2020 season, I was delighted to learn that in May there will be a "Wall to Wall Stephen Sondheim" program that, like all the previous "Wall to Wall" events, will run for eight hours (3 pm to 11 pm) and will be free to the public (donations are suggested). The program will celebrate Sondheim's creative genius as well as his 90th birthday.

Sondheim, a co-creator of West Side Story (along with Bernstein, Arthur Laurents, and Jerome Robbins), as well as the composer/lyricist of other Broadway shows, is one of my favorite composers. And next year I'll get the chance to hear for the first time his music live in a theatre. All other times have been via television, film, and sound recordings.

The Missing Sondheim TV Interview

Stephen Sondheim is one of the four gay Jewish men who created the Broadway musical West Side Story. And he is the only surviving member of that creative team. (The others were composer/conductor Leonard Bernstein, choreographer Jerome Robbins, and librettist Arthur Laurents.) You would have thought that his comments would have been sought when a local New York TV news show did a report commemorating the 50th anniversary of the movie version of the musical. Only two cast members from the movie George Chakiris and Russ Tamblyn appeared on-camera. ( As a tie-in,the report mentioned that the investigation of fellow cast member Natalie Woods's 1981 drowning was being re-opened that week by the authorities.) For me, a fan of Sondheim 's music, I was greatly disappointed that his voice was missing from the report.

Happy Birthday, Stephen Sondheim

Yesterday was Stephen Sondheim's 80th birthday. Happy birthday, Mr. Sondheim. Keep writing those marvelous songs.