LaChiusa vs. Sondheim — Page 2

Try Agnes De Mille vs. Debbie Allen. That's way more fun.

De Mille. No contest.

Nell Carter vs. Jennifer Holiday is a better one.

But Jennifer Holiday looks fabulous after her gastric bypass surgery.

When you are questioning Schwartz' integrity it is likely to be taken personally. I don't care for his recent work but I have nothing to say against Schwartz' integrity.

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Are you kidding me? LaChiusa and Sondheim don't write to sell tickets? That's completely absurd. If they weren't writing to sell tickets why wouldn't they just spend their own money to produce their own shows and not charge anybody to see them? Sondheim certainly could with his share of the West Side Story records.

Stephen Sondheim is and will always be a Broadway Baby. He might not write a show with the express of hope of making extraordinary sums of money but he does write to sell tickets. Sondheim writes for an audience, not himself. If he wrote for himself he wouldn't do the rewrite directors have asked him to do. If he wrote for himself he wouldn'tve changed anything to fit Angela Lansbury's voice or Glynis Johns voice.

Stephen Sondheim is a Broadway Baby who would love nothing more than to have people buy tickets to see his shows.

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Sum, sometimes you are just plain wrong.

It is in LaChiusa's contract that there will be a lawsuit against the producers if his shows recoup/make a profit.

Check your facts, buddy. He does not write to sell tickets.

Updated On: 4/19/06 at 08:04 PM

I actually think LaChuisa is melodically much more accessible.

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LaChiusa is more melodically accessible, but his music is much more complex and is sometimes difficult to assimilate.

I love it. I directed a production of Hello Again a few years back, and I think the score to that show is outstanding. One of the best ever written. "Mistress of the Senator" is a wonderful song.

Sorry BSoBW2 I completely forgot!

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Sum, I have to disagree with you. I don't think either composer is really writing in order to sell tickets. The compromises you mentioned are those of artistic integrity. They are compromises any artist would make because theatre is a collaborative effort, not one in which Sondheim's ego should reign. And he knows that.

However, what they are not compromising is the art THEY wish to produce. Both Sondheim and LaChiusa are perfectly capable of writing an accessible, commercial musical to sell tickets. But they don't. They are about their art.

It's a given that they would like people to buy tickets to their shows and that the experience they want to create is for their audience, but their artistic choices are not made IN ORDER to make people buy tickets.

If people do not wish to enter the debate, why must they come here and rain on everyone's parade? If you find the comparison unfair then find another thread...no offense, you are more than welcome, but so many people are such naysayers.

Thanks!!

I understand you need two sides in a debate.

"This debate is stupid" is not a side, it's an editorial comment by someone who obviously isn't interested in the debate. That's cool, but why register the complaint. This is just people discussing art...

No one will die if we don't figure out which one is better.

I don't think there are many people her qualified to know which one is better. Those who are will realize why like I said there is no comparison. In order to find out which one is BETTER (which is different than which one you like more, one must have an intimate knowledge on what it means to write a quality lyric, melodic line (not to mention the use of harmony) and book (which Lachiusa writes almost all of his own. Something Sondheim doesn't do). NOt only do you need to know the art of songwriting AND playwrighting, you also must have a knowledge of what lands with audiences. A lot of that comes from years of doing it. I think it's fair to say that none of us are that qualified. I mean everyone's in agreement that the lyrics to "Jellicle Cats" are pretty bad. Similarly the lyrics to something like "Miller's Son" are brilliant. But really how many people can intelligently talk (in theatrical terms) about WHY the Jellicle lyrics suck and actually have the training to back up what they're saying.

I'm saying all of this to say that debate is good. I love it but like Ron said, you'll never come to a real conclusion about what it is because "which do you like better" is such a subjective question. NO one can be wrong. BTW saying the comparison is unfair is actually contributing to the debate. It just happens to be a neutral answer.

Updated On: 4/20/06 at 02:38 AM

Well truth be told, I'm pretty open to other composers, but none have effected me like Sondheim's work. When another dude or dudette comes along who can do that I'll be up his/her butt too.

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