-- Split Views on Stephen Sondheim



“If people have split views about your work, I think it's flattering. I'd rather have them feel something about it than dismiss it.”
Stephen Sondheim


For many people, Broadway musicals have a reputation as being somewhat facile, fulfilling their role as accessible “feel-good” entertainment.  Composer, writer, lyricist, and producer Stephen Sondheim has made a career out of both identifying and challenging this notion, notably claiming that "the dumbing down of the country reflects itself on Broadway. The shows get dumber, and the public gets used to them."  This comes from the man whose name has become practically synonymous with musical theatre.

Even those who have never attended a Sondheim show are likely familiar with his work. Early in his career, Sondheim wrote the lyrics for such beloved and frequently-revived musicals as West Side Story and Gypsy, which gave him the opportunity to earn further recognition with the music and lyrics of such award-winning shows as A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1962), Company (1970), Follies (1971), A Little Night Music (1973), Sweeney Todd (1979), Sunday in the Park with George (1984), Into The Woods (1987), and Passion (1994).  In 2008, Sondheim won a Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, and there have been a number of revues and anthologies produced for the sole purpose of featuring his music, including Marry Me a Little, You’re Gonna Love Tomorrow, Side by Side by Sondheim, and Putting it Together.

Despite this popularity and acclaim, Sondheim’s songs are notorious for their complexity.  One of the most persistent criticisms of his work over the past thirty years has been that Sondheim doesn’t write “hummable” tunes that stick with the audience like some catchy musical standards.  Sondheim himself acknowledged this in his song “Opening Doors,” part of his 2010 revue Sondheim on Sondheim, with the lyrics, “It isn't every day I hear a score this strong. But fellas, if I may there’s only one thing wrong. There's not a tune you can hum. There's not a tune you go bum, bum, bum, di, dum. You need a tune you can bum, bum, bum, di, dum. Give me a melody.”  Many people are surprised to learn that Oscar Hammerstein, who gained his fame writing such hummable melodies as “Oklahoma!,” was an early mentor of young Sondheim.  The complexity and technical difficulty of Sondheim’s music reflects the challenging nature of much of his lyrical material, which often explores darker themes such as loneliness and the search for human connection.

Sondheim’s work gained new audiences with the 2007 film version of Sweeny Todd, starring Johnny Depp.  In December 2014, Depp is bringing the Wolf to the big screen with the Into the Woods film.  Perhaps we are finally learning to appreciate what Sondheim has been telling us with his music all along: “It’s complicated.”


Further Reading:

Finishing the Hat: Collected Lyrics (1954-1981) with Attendant Comments, Principles, Heresies, Grudges, Whines and Anecdotes by Stephen Sondheim

The Oxford Handbook of Sondheim Studies by Robert Gordon

Sondheim on Music: Minor Details and Major Decisions by Mark E. Horowitz and Stephen Sondheim

Stephen Sondheim: A Casebook by Joanne L. Gordon

Stephen Sondheim: A Life by Meryle Secrest

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