Sondheim is Rude??
Sondheim is Rude??
#0Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/4/04 at 9:42pm
A friend of a friend was working on a Stephen Sondheim show on Broadway. It was VERY early in the process and he was not familiar with Sondheim's work. I know that sounds rediculous, but go with it. Anyway he was not an actor, but a stagehand. He heard about how big Sondheim was and went to speek to him after a rehearsal. He misporonounced his name when addresing Mr. Sondheim. Called him SondhIEm. (Sond-heem) Stephen just responded with "It's Sondheim, you can pick up your check!"
He was fired! I realize he actually doesn't have the authority to actually fire a stagehand, but nobody was going to argue with him.
I was just a little surprised when I heard about that. Any thoughts?....
RockyRoad
Leading Actor Joined: 9/4/04
Plum
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/4/04
timote316
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/20/04
#4re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/4/04 at 9:51pmwow. i would really like some more details on this if you have anything else to say... somehow this doesnt shock me much though
#5re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/4/04 at 11:04pm
I was in a production of "Sweeney Todd" by Sondheim this summer at my theatre camp
Anyway, our stage manager was good friends with Sondheim and he was going to come to our show, he didn't promise to and he could because he had to fly somewhere for business but he told our stage manager to give us a note saying "good luck" ect. So I heard in was REALLY nice. I mean the fact that he would want to see a bunch of kids in a show and help them out with it I thought was really incredible :)
MargoChanning
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/5/04
#6re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/4/04 at 11:11pm
Because of the Dramatist's Guild Contract, he actually does have the right to fire anyone he wants (including actors and orchestra personnel). The Guild contract prevents anyone tampering with so much as a word of the script without his approval, as well as the right of approval over the director and all personnel -- he has final word on all casting and other hires and he has the right to withdraw his score at no penalty if he doesn't get his way (this covers playwrights, composers and lyricists).
Still, a pretty sh*tty thing to do considering the circumstances. He's generally rather easy to deal with (though, he can be a little prickly, so it probably wasn't a good idea to approach him if you didn't even know how to say his name properly).
#7re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 1:01amI have written to Mr. Sondheim on many, many occassions and each time he is incredibly kind, gracious, welcoming and answers any questions I might have with great thoughtfulness.
The opposite of creation isn't war, it's stagnation.
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#8re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 1:16amAs I've always understood it, the general concensus is that Mr. Sondheim believes his own press releases. And if you think he's demanding in a theatre, we won't even discuss how he is in the specialized basement of his townhouse.
MusicMan
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/16/03
#9re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 1:54am
In or out of the frying pan?
Seriously, the above story sounds very similar to one I heard referring to Bernstein.
Years ago, someone apparently went to the old Schirmer's music store and asked for a piece of music by "Bern-STEEN." At which point, the offended clerk drew himself up to his full height and, in the most supercilious and condescending of tones, harrumphed, "The maestro prefers to be known as Bern-STYNE."
I say it's spinach and the hell with it. (That's Ber-LIN.)
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#10re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 2:07am
MusicMan - Why bother with frying pans at all, unless branding is to be involved. Better to leap right into the coals and let the flames lick at your loins - but of course, only if that's what the master . . . I mean maestro . . . desires.
Katherine always destested all that screaming.
MargoChanning
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/5/04
#11re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 2:12amOh my, must we delve into the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune..... literally?
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#12re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 2:16amBut Margo, if we oppose them, our ends may be met with more severity than we can imagine.
#13re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 2:40amWhen it comes to the "ie" or "ei" sounds in names, everyone has an opinion. Just correct them nicely and get on with it. Maybe I'm very calm because no one ever pronounces my name correctly. I respond to Sharon, Sherry, Shirley, Shara, and Sarah. I gave up after a while....
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#14re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 2:48amShira - my mother's name is Chere' - and she goes through the same thing.
BT
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/16/04
#15re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 2:55amWell, kind or mean or chatty or angry, there is no disputing that Mr. S. can write a song! If you want a diva, head uptown and look at the Met - heck, Kathleen Battle is banned there. She was doing more than demanding the firing of stage hands. Sometimes greatness goes to the head.
amasis
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/7/04
#16re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 3:07am
"And if you think he's demanding in a theatre, we won't even discuss how he is in the specialized basement of his townhouse."
DGrant, I'm surprised at you! 
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#17re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 3:10amamasis - I know, I should be punnished - oh, that's what we were talking about anyway.
#18re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 3:14am
DGrant,
Chere (I can't do accents) is a beautiful name.
I remember at a Los Angeles high school graduation, so many graduates were foreign, no one could get them right. Poor deans, they kept trying...
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#19re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 3:18amShira - there's no excuse for that! It's not like they didn't know who would be graduating beforehand - and in LA you should be aware of all the different cultures!
#20re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 3:20amThat's right! Don't you live around here? LA and NY should really learn to pronounce names from all cultures and countries. I can't say I know how, but it would be useful.
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#21re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 3:34am
Shira - I live in the hinterlands outside of LA known as the 'Inland Empire' - kind of like what the Israelites spent 40 roaming around in We get into town frequently, though.
#22re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 3:47amIt's always nice to know that there is actually ONE other person in the Southern California area who likes theater...
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#23re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 3:51amShira - I don't belong to the group of people who think there's no theatre here in LA. We have season tickets to the Ahmanson and Taper, as well as South Coast Repertory. The west side of Santa Monica Blvd by Hwy 101 has now been designated Theatre Row, and has permanent stages for the Actor's Gang and Celebration, as well as many others. And the Kirk Douglas Theatre is soon to open in Century City, which along with Taper and SCR will highlight new works.
#24re: Sondheim is Rude??
Posted: 9/5/04 at 3:54amI recently discovered the OCPAC and SCR. I'm trying to find a time to see Brooklyn Boy at SCR. I believe the first show at the Kirk Douglas is "Apollo", which I'll be seeing for sure.
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