Jason Robert Brown on How (Not) to Insult Sondheim — Page 3

Sorry that I slightly misunderstood you...

And of course--but I think that's a different case. If Sondheim had said that audiences attending previews had no right to express their opinion (and I know some feel that people shouldn't post their opinions of previews here--I disagree), or maybe even come up to him and politely say they were disappointed, I would disagree with him. But when you're an invited friend, or even an uninvited friend, I think the immediate reaction should be one of support.

I think the immediate reaction should be one of support.

In the case of the show of a friend, host or even just a friend-of-a-friend, I can't imagine starting with anything but a list of what I like about the performance.

And I do agree that Sondheim via Brown makes a good point. But the fact that the show in question was in previews makes the entire issue more complicated. Rather than an uncomfortable silence, however, as you point out above, Eric, a better way to go would have been questions: what attracted you to this material? Why did you decide to maintain the epistolary style of the novel? Whatever happened to MUSCLE, that sounded like fun?

If you look at Brown's paraphrase of Sondheim's words, it's very clear when and where "honesty" is appropriate:

Maybe next week, maybe next year, maybe someday down the line, I’ll be ready to hear what you have to say...

And, remember, this is Brown's paraphrased memory of Sondheim's point, which is not one of "contempt" or "self-centeredness" (what?!?), but something that is true of all creative people:

...but that moment, that face-to-face moment after I have unveiled some part of my soul, however small, to you; that is the most vulnerable moment in any artist’s life.

And, he goes on to say, IF in that "most vulnerable" moment of an artist's life:

...I beg you, plead with you to tell me what you really thought, what you actually, honestly, totally believed, then you must tell me, "I loved it." That moment must be respected.

Why did Brown write the blog? He says, in the final paragraph, that the whole unpleasant experience turned out to be a gift:

I could have spent an entire life worshiping at his altar and never understanding that such great art as he creates can only be borne of deep vulnerability.

Pity some of the people commenting in this thread about cockamamie assumptions of "self-centeredness" can't glean that lesson from the words Brown actually wrote.

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I don't see the irony at all, except if you misunderstand the blog entirely.

Neither Sondheim or Brown says that opinions should be censored. The blog is about what one artist (or friend) should or should not say to another artist at the raw and vulnerable moment of creation.

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I just can't believe that someone would have the audacity to tell another that what they slaved over for months wasn't good. I mean i sit through Sh*tty highschool performances all the time and when i see my friends i always say, "Oh it was so good!" Because they worked hard. I am not a critic, i can critique but when a friend asks me how i liked it it is nothing less than fantastic. In that moment i am not a director, a writer or a fellow actor, i am a supporter.

We have to support art because as the quote says, "The woods would be silent if no birds sang except those who sang best."

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Why is this "blog" entry new news? This same thing appeared in The Sondheim Review, what, a year ago?

Who said it was new news?

rankly, I have a hard time thinking Sondheim *actually* said this vs. how much of it was colored by JRB, unintentionally or otherwise. And if Sondheim did, in fact, dole out this ego-protecting advice, I wonder if he still stands by these words, or if they’re something he said in the heat of the moment. From what I gather, Passion was a very personal piece, written during a seminal moment in his life (he was in love), coupled by a particularly challenging path to its creation. So maybe he was especially vulnerable feeling? He needed kind words of love and encouragement. We all do, every now and then. I get it, Sondheim. I do.

But, if he feels it’s ok to send his critique of a show he hasn’t even seen yet to The New York Times, well…I think those days of guarding your opinion and leaving that work to the creators are firmly behind him. Or, maybe he feels his advice to JRB simply doesn’t apply to himself
You like me! You really, really like me! Or, why Sondheim needs to suck it up

I just find JRB a self-important, egocentric jerk, and the fact that he had the cajones to behave in such a way back then is a shame. 23 or 53, you behave with tact and enthusiasm after a preview performance of a show someone you know is a part of. Ricky Ian Gordon wrote a similar piece for The Sondheim Review, but he came across better, I feel.

And my opinion of the man is not based on nothing-- I've had experiences, and I have no problem expressing my feelings after experiencing him.

And Urban Cowboy was a collaboration between JRB and several other composers, and Matt Cavenaugh's abs.

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It wasn’t “Passion”!
Comment by Jason Robert Brown on November 1, 2012 at 8:48 pm

EDIT: Frank Rich's Times review of PUTTING IT TOGETHER appeared April 2, 1993.

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Updated On: 11/2/12 at 12:13 PM

Sondheim's missive brought back a memory. When I was 25 and wide-eyed in love with theatre, I began dating a theatre professional 5 years my senior. Suddenly I was thrown into the world of post-performance parties, receptions, hanging socially with theatre artists, etc. When we saw someone's work that didn't fully come together for us, my friend would nonetheless effusively praise those involved afterward, while I would remain speechless, having no skill (yet) at what felt to me like outright lying. At some point I asked him the reason for his reaction, which I found kind of appalling, and he told me "What is there to be gained in criticizing? If something isn't working, they already know that. If they approach me later for my professional notes, I'll give them, respectfully and honestly. But I'm not there to give notes. I'm not there for brutal honesty. I'm there to show my support, and that's exactly what I do — support a fellow artist who has worked hard and has just exposed themselves in front of everyone, good or bad. Your silence is what's hurtful."

I know now. He was right. Lesson learned.

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"What is there to be gained in criticizing? If something isn't working, they already know that. If they approach me later for my professional notes, I'll give them, respectfully and honestly. But I'm not there to give notes. I'm not there for brutal honesty. I'm there to show my support, and that's exactly what I do — support a fellow artist who has worked hard and has just exposed themselves in front of everyone, good or bad.

That says it all.

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