Favorite Sondheim Scores

1. Sunday in the Park with George
2. Sweeney Todd/Into the woods- can't decide
3. Follies
4. Company
5. Assassins

Updated On: 11/28/14 at 02:45 PM

Hm, probably A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC for number one.

COMPANY, FOLLIES, PACIFIC OVERTURES and ANYONE CAN WHISTLE are all tied just below.

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They're all so brilliant and rich that I can never settle on one.

It depends on the week you ask me.

This week I'd probably say Sweeney Todd.

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SWEENY on any level of measurement is his undisputed masterpiece. Compositional mastery on the level of virtually any 20th century operatic masterpiece. Difficult, absolutely. Worth the effort, without a doubt. This "show" reaches very deep, far beyond the confines of a B'way show. Think "Candide" or "Three Penny". My only real criticism is that unlike opera scores Sondheim does not provide the orchestration, which is a critical aspect of musical composition. However, in the case of Sweeny, his work with Jonathan Tunick was hand in glove. The individual songs "arias" if you will, easily stand on their own" "Linnet Bird", "Johanna", "Pretty Women", "Kiss Me", "The Ballad of Sweeny Todd" and the Rossini pastiche "The Contest with Pirelli".
This work will not soon be equaled on a Broadway stage.

"undisputed"? That's a bit of a strong word, as I would dispute that Sweeney is his "masterpiece" and though I may not be relevant to you, I am somebody, so that by definition does not make it undisputed.

My favorite is no contest, SWENNEY TODD!

This is a cruel, cruel question.

Ha!

It's like Sophie's Choice.

I also have a huge love for Assassins. I think it's tremendously underrated within Sondheim's canon.

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For me PACIFIC OVERTURES is a score of unmitigated brilliance (though wedded to a flaccid play). SUNDAY has whole passages that I adore and can tear up over, though there are whole passages I want to fast-forward through as well. (Turns out NOT everyone loves Louie). I used to love SWEENEY and still find it one of the most thrilling shows to see onstage but it's a cd I seldom play.

One score has always been my favorite, favorite Sondheim show and favorite musical ever, despite the sad little bowdlerized affair they pretended was its recent revival-- I'm speaking of the sublime A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC. Those exquisite Ravel-esque harmonies, sparkling wordplay tethered to characters you really care about, and the 1-2 punch of "Send in the Clowns" followed by "The Miller's Son"-- even the outtakes (Two Fairytales) and film add-ons (the reworked "The Glamorous Life") are among the very best things he's ever written. The fact that the OBC of ALNM was my 2nd show on Broadway back on New Year's Eve of 1973 should in no way diminish the impartiality of my choice here.

This is a really tough pick, his run from Company to Assassins is unparalleled, and I like them all for such different reasons that it's hard to put one above the other, so here's three shows for three reasons:

Most cohesive show: Sweeney Todd. Far and away this is his best show in terms of engaging the audience from start to finish. The musical throughlines are so superb and he deftly carries the listener along with the music - it's one of the very few sung-through (well, almost) musicals that doesn't totally wear me out after an hour.

Most listened-to: Merrily We Roll Along. It's insane how often I've listened to this in various forms - OBC, off-broadway, broadway preview recording. I just can't get enough of it, it seems, even if I do find a couple numbers a little grating (Frank couldn't write something less annoying than "Bobby and Jackie and Jack"?). Just a fabulous score.

Most interesting: Sunday in the Park with George. It took me a few tries to really get this show, but once I did I really GOT it. There's something so satisfying about it, it's like, brain-stimulating theater. I spend the whole show thinking intensely, interacting and engaging with it like a really good book or film.

Curious3 - As far as I know, he's always been very close to the orchestrations on almost all of his shows, but it helps that Jonathan Tunick is really good at what he does.

FOLLIES
SWEENEY TODD
ASSASSINS
COMPANY
PASSION
INTO THE WOODS
A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC
ANYONE CAN WHISTLE
MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG
PACIFIC OVERTURES
FORUM
ROAD SHOW
SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE
THE FROGS
ROAD SHOW

Obviously, I am omitting those shows for which Sondheim wrote only lyrics.

And I must confess that while I have confidence in my top 4 choices and my bottom 4 choices, the shows in the middle could easily be reordered.

No offense taken, Fantod. But "You Could Drive a Person Crazy" is one of Sondheim's most famous songs (among show music aficionados). That you don't even know the title makes me question your familiarity with his work.

Updated On: 11/28/14 at 07:03 PM

I really just love Pacific Overtures, with Follies coming in a close second!