From 1970, the lyricist and composer Stephen Sondheim created a daring musical comedy every two years, directed and produced by his friend Harold Prince. Bloody like “Sweeney Todd” or melancholic like “Follies”.
They called him God on Broadway. He was best known as the lyricist of West Side Story. As a composer, he revolutionized the musical comedy genre in the second half of the 20th century.
- We tell you about his essential career in musical theater during three shows, during which we will find him at the microphone of 42nd Street. A faultless and demanding musical journey with the key word: telling stories.
Stephen Sondheim was both a composer and a lyricist. He single-handedly revolutionized the genre of musical theater for 60 yearsfrom the social “West Side Story” to the bloody “Sweeney Todd” adapted to the cinema by Tim Burton, from the musical concept “Company” to the impressionist “Sunday in the park with George”. His musicals on the edge of opera for his serious themes and Chekhov’s theater for painting human relations knew how to reconcile entertainment, irony and modernity. They always evoked with tact, finesse, humor eternal themes: the place of the artist in society, the wavering democracy, impossible love, the need to unite against, but also openness to the West. of a country like Japan or a city ruled by a fascist.
Radio France will never ask you to provide your bank details.
Nourished seriously with the harmonies of Maurice Ravel, Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky and Milton Babbitt, he had also grown up listening to Broadway greats George Gershwin, Cole Porter and of course Leonard Bernstein.
Himself has inspired great authors of current musicalsto start with Jonathan Larson, the creator of “Rent” and Lin Manuel Miranda that of “Hamilton”, two huge pop successes of contemporary musical theatre.
Stephen Sondheim disappeared on November 26 on the eve of Thanksgiving at his residence around the friends he had invited.
Concert given at the Théâtre du Châtelet on April 25, 2013: Sunday in the Park with George by Stephen Sondheim
A native podcast in 10 episodes signed Laurent Valière & directed by Sophie Pichon.
News
- Trouble, Gus Van Sant’s musical about Andy Warhol
American director Gus Van Sant, notably Palme d’or in 2003 for Elephant, go to the scene. He writes and composes Trouble, a musical show centered around a mythical figure: the founder of pop art, Andy Warhol. We come across the artist from the Factory but also other icons such as the writer Truman Capote, the actress Edie Sedgwick or the art critic Clement Greenberg. So many characters interpreted by a dozen young actors and actresses. A show in the form of a tribute which also works, as Gus van Sant likes to do, on the states of youth and the desire to found a community capable of acting on the world
Comedy of Reims
Friday 4 and Saturday 5 February
- Sammy by Sammy, documentary on Sammy Davis Jr, On OCS Géant
Sunday January 30
Social networks
We would like to thank the author of this post for this amazing material
Once upon a time Stephen Sondheim (2/3): Audacity above all, from Follies to Sweeney Todd