Jason Robert Brown on How (Not) to Insult Sondheim — Page 2

Exactly. And the only reason he GOT Parade was because Prince approached Sondheim, and he wasn't interested...

Also in the early 1990s, Oskar Eustis directed a production of JULIUS CAESAR at the Mark Taper Forum. For reasons I no longer recall, the production was aesthetically controversial and a series of dueling Op-Eds between Tony Kushner and the LA Times' Sylvie Drake ensued.

I saw the production at the end of the week and left a message on Oskar's answering machine that began with "I don't care what anybody says" (meaning Ms. Drake) and going on to talk about how the production had so changed my understanding of the play that I would never see it the same way again. Although the production had its problems, I meant what I said and thought it was the highest possible praise.

Oskar called me back, obviously hurt (though being very much an adult about it), and said, "What kind of message was that? What do you mean? What did who say?!"

I wish I had read Brown's essay at the time. I think his point is that even the most revered theater artist of our era is vulnerable when a new work is revealed to the public and that is no time to try to impress him with your insight and erudition.

And, yes, I like PARADE, but I think Brown is wrong about PASSION.

Thanks to PalJoey for sharing the blog. It's a good reminder, I think.

Updated On: 11/1/12 at 05:54 PM

Could be he's just lying.

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Honestly, Eric, I have an instinctive distrust of vague pleasantries. "I loved it" may be music to Sondheim's ears (and I do remember him saying words to that effect to Prince after the opening of A DOLL'S LIFE), but it's nearly meaningless to me. I'd rather hear about a specific moment or choice that you loved, or even a choice that didn't quite work but could with an adjustment.

But I've learned through experiences such as the one I detail above that other people don't necessarily take my most intense critical scrutiny as the compliment I intend it to be.

(To be entirely fair, I had taken a grad seminar from Oskar and had even written a paper on JULIUS CAESAR. So I was used to discussing the play with him in critical terms, but that was not the time.)

Updated On: 11/1/12 at 07:03 PM

JRB did not "insult" Sondheim, so the blog title is misleading. He was rude, but that's not the same as insulting--in this case anyway.

I don't agree with saying "I loved it" no matter what, but I do agree that "after the show" nothing negative should be said. If I didn't like someone's show/performance, I will usually tell the person "nice job." It's neutral and pleasant and it's not a lie, since as Sondheim himself wrote, nice is different than good.

Updated On: 11/1/12 at 07:09 PM

JRB didn't say he provided feedback, exactly though. He decided to say nothing for 20 mins--which must have been unbelievably awkward. When you do provide feedback, it's not very hard to start with positives, or deliver it in a positive manner. There are other issues--I'm not sure Sondheim wanted or needed feedback from JRB, but I do agree simply saying I Love It is the wrong way togo about it.

Eric, don't you think Sondheim could have elicited honest and specific feedback if he had really wanted it? Apparently he did not (and I'm not surprised if the show was PASSION, not because I dislike PASSION, but because I find it the most uncompromising of shows).

But then we're back to asking why have previews at all? So we can fix the unintentional laughter (as Sondheim admits they had to do with PASSION) and have those we know tell us how much they love it?

Updated On: 11/1/12 at 07:23 PM

This whole thing reads like a big dysfunctional, disconnected mess. From both sides.

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I've been on both sides of this kind of situation before. As a creator, you know what went wrong, what needs work, etc. All you really want to know immediately after the performance is that someone else found it worthwhile. Find something nice to say or don't meet up with the creative team afterwards. A general "what'd you think of the show?" moment is not the time to bust out your steno pad and give notes on everything you think is bad.

On the other side, you never know what could set someone on the creative team off. I remember saying nothing but nice things about a well-executed production of Footloose after being invited to the final dress rehearsal. The director thought something was up and asked if I liked the show itself. I told her what I thought of the book (I think it's a flawed adaptation of the film that relies too hard on cinematic memories to cover for a no stakes stage show) and she acted like she herself penned the libretto. I point blank told her it was a great production of that show, but she made up her mind that I hated it, so everyone would hate it. I never said that, but that's what she heard once any negative thoughts came in.

Artists are tricky people. Unless you were invited specifically to give notes after a performance, don't. They will very clearly let you know if they want constructive feedback or not. When they start poking around with "well what did you think of [theatrical element]?," they're fishing for feedback. "Did you like the show?" or "What'd you think?" are not usually invitations to say "it sucks and here's why."

"Eric, don't you think Sondheim could have elicited honest and specific feedback if he had really wanted it? Apparently he did not "

At an after show dinner you are treating two young fans to, after "treating" them to the show? I suppose he could have, but why should he have. If he had invited them a week later or something to discuss the show over dinner, that would be different.

"As unpleasant as it is, what Sondheim said is absolutely true. It's not right, but it's true."

Trannie, I agree with you, and I also applaud you for putting it so Sondheimianly. Still, I don't fault Brown for not praising Sondheim. It is also true that seeing Passion and feeling that it was not very good - an opinion I share - and not kissing Sondheim's ass is also abolutely true. Perhaps equally not right, but absolutely equally true.

Read more: https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.php?page=2&thread=1052819#ixzz2B18AhknD

At an after show dinner you are treating two young fans to, after "treating" them to the show? I suppose he could have, but why should he have. If he had invited them a week later or something to discuss the show over dinner, that would be different.

Eric, that sentence was a continuation of my question: what are previews for, if not for feedback?

Someone else said the creators "know what's wrong". Well, apparently not, or they would more often do a better job of fixing it. (I don't mean PASSION; as you know, I think that show was exactly what its creators wanted it to be.)