Sondheim Flaws--a discussion

Those of us who often discuss Sondheim and love his work often have critiques of flaws in lyric and presentation. It is important to me that this is kept in context, however.

Is Sondheim a "perfect robot"? No, of course not. Am I more thrilled, challenged and intrigued by his work than most others? Yes, no question.

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I think the flaws with most of his shows are more due to shortcomings in the book or the staging, than in the scores he writes. He's long been plagued with having collaborators whom, while usually smart and creative and competent, just aren't up to his level in terms of clarity, inventiveness, coherency or, to put it out there, sheer genius.

I would call most of the works he's associated with flawed in one way or another, but I'm hard pressed to name many instances where the flaws are due to his contributions (and, in fact, in MANY instances, he's written songs to fill in the gaps, cover up failings or help cohere plot points in a show that his book writer couldn't figure out how to fix).

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Just to be more specific about how his book writers have sometimes let him down:

-- The main reason ANYONE CAN WHISTLE is rarely produced and has never gotten a major revival is mainly due to the highly experimental, absurdist book from Arthur Laurents which, while certainly interesting in several spots, is also incoherent in others. Laurents attempted to write a piece so radical and innovative and ambitious that it ended up being beyond his own skills and talents as a writer -- he couldn't figure out how to make it work as a whole and it doomed the entire project, including a fine score from Sondheim.

-- when people criticize COMPANY for being dated and too sitcom-ish, that's due to Furth's episodic book which was adapted from a group of one-act sex comedies he had written. Furth's book, as it is, is trite and unproduceable. Sondheim's lyrics have so many meaningful and relevant things to say about about relationships, marriage, the single life, commitment, and loneliness that it gives depth and resonance to Furth's superficial framework which makes the show thoroughly worthwhile to experience.

-- FOLLIES is a brilliant show, but it's never been a perfect show due to James Goldman's melodramatic, whiny book with it's cop-out of an ending. Sondheim's ingenius score allows the characters to express themselves in an incisive, multi-layered poetic way which they seem incapable of in Goldman's dialogue. The four "follies" numbers which Sondheim wrote give us more insight into the characters than anything Goldman writes. FOLLIES is a masterpiece in spite of its book not because of it.

-- SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE won the Pultizer and is one of Sondheim's greatest works -- but the chief criticism one constantly hears is that Act I and Act II (100 years later) don't comfortably fit together and some have suggested (including some very respected theatre professionals) excising Act II completely, feeling that Act I is complete on its own. All the blame for this carping must be placed in the hands of book writer (and original director) James Lapine and him alone. Sondheim's score is ravishing beginning to end -- IMO the finest he ever wrote.

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Updated On: 11/21/05 at 04:44 PM

It's painfully obvious that Stephen Sondheim will standout as one of the greatest, if not the greatest, Broadway composers/lyricists of all time. I do believe that nobody's pefect however. Sondheim appeals to me not so much because his music is the greatest, but rather he is brave enough to attack some rather odd material and turn it into something that can have a relatively universal appeal, rather than a dust cult following. There are a handful of composers who, when it comes to melody, write stuff that appeals to me more than Sondheim (Kander, Cy Coleman, Menken(when the music is allowed to stand alone)). These composers write for shows that are more conventional so I must give props to Sondheim for attacking demon barbers, Presidential assassins, and an amalgamation of fairy tales with a message. Besides "Into the Woods" and "...Forum," I've never heard any Sondheim music that I find to be more exemplary than other great composers. It's his subject matter and lyrics that set him apart.

Not to bash Sondheim, but I havne't found a complete score of his that I "love." I enjoy Company and Into the Woods, but I couldn't just sit down and listen to it all the way through. Although, I think I'd really enjoy Sweeny, so we'll see.

Do you think there is a reason why Sondheim doesn't write big show stopping numbers? Is that just not his style?

Interesting that his collaborations with Hugh Wheeler seem to be (to me) the strongest -- Sweeney and A Little Night Music are definitely my favorite shows to *see*, and my top two to listen to -- and couldn't be more different from each other. The depth and span of those two shows alone are enough for me to write off any flaws; I've never found him too cold or intellectual, or too analytical, etc. -- the man knows how to write a perfect line, and gorgeous music, and you never get the feeling he's being lazy about it -- he never settles for the easy way through. That alone has had an enormous influence on me over the years, and is one reason I consider him an "artist" of the first degree.

I am an enormous Sondheim fan and have been most of my life. However, I find the score to BOUNCE extremely flawed. Hands down his weakest work ever. I saw the show twice and hoped the score would grow on me, but after listening to it numerous times, I have to say it is one I will rarely revisit. I hope that he does not leave this show as his last contribution to the American Musical cannon.

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I think it is a good (or should I say BAD) example of how Sondheim did not even save the show from a weak book with a brilliant score. The whole show seemed misconceived and unfocused.

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And, speaking of big show-stopping numbers, what about:

-Ladies Who Lunch
-Being Alive
-There Won't Be Trumpets
-Someone in a Tree
-Please Hello
-Epiphany
-Franklin Shepard, Inc.
-We Do Not Belong Together
-Last Midnight

My feelings on Bounce: I didn't see the show in Washington, so I don't have an opinion of the show or how it played then, but I feel the score is, while different in many respects from his other scores, marvelous. The songs are clever, bright, hummable, and do a great job of telling the story (You, Boca Raton) as well as containing some great stand-alone numbers (What's Your Rush, Talent). Sondheim has said he continues to work on it, and hopefully it'll make it's way to Broadway, but I find it wonderful as is.

"Sunday" still manages to stop me dead almost every time I hear it; it's easily one of the best Act I closers ever.

I'm glad to read this string. Sondheim actually has several scores that I love. The show that really got me hooked, "Company" continues to be one of my favorite scores. I've listened to it over and over since I first bought it when I was 13. Also, I love the score of "Merrily We Roll Along", though I don't care for the show, also "A Little Night Music" and "Sweeney Todd". Of course, the main problem with many of his shows is that I can't play the score while I'm working or reading or doing something else because they need my attention.

The show of his that I like the least is "Passion". But I don't think it's the fault of his score, though it is perhaps too somber, it's because it makes me uncomfortable because it's too close to some things I've experienced.

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Sondheim's flaw is that his work is too sophisticated for those who want to see pure entertainment (such as the rockettes). His work has such depth, beauty and richness and he doesn't hide his work behind fancy lights and dances (at least not that i'm aware of).

As for the whole dialouge thing, maybe i misread it or something but i'm not sure what you mean when you say that sondheim can't fix the dialouge given to him. Doesn't he write all the lyrics to his songs? Why coulsn't he rewrite dialouge.

Sondheim may seem like a machine of perfection but even in the passion dvd's commentary there have been more than a few times when he tried to do something that didn't work out the way he wanted. Example, Giorgio's song "Is this what you call love?" he thought was too clumsy. Also the flashback sequence didn't work out the way he wanted either.