INSIDE THE ACTORS STUDIO: STEPHEN SONDHEIM (TV)
Summary
One in this series of interview programs at New York City's New School for Social Research, in which host James Lipton explores the work of well-known individuals in the performing arts. In this program, Lipton talks to composer/lyricist Stephen Sondheim while guest artists Liz Callaway and Jim Walton, accompanied by pianist Paul Ford, perform selections from his work. Sondheim begins by discussing the unique relationship he had with mentor and surrogate father Oscar Hammerstein II and the many things Hammerstein taught him about songwriting -- including the power of a single word, the ways in which words grow when applied to music, and the importance of creating character in songs. Sondheim also recalls the influence of his teachers Robert Barrow and Milton Babbitt, compares the different challenges and rewards in writing music and lyrics, and focuses on the difficulty of writing songs in the English language. He remembers how Hal Prince encouraged him to transform George Furth's one-act plays into the musical "Company," which Sondheim calls a sort of "Twilight Zone Revue." Callaway and Walton sing "Barcelona" from the show as an example of Sondheim's style of writing dialogue. Next, Sondheim recalls James Goldman's idea for a reunion of Ziegfeld Follies girls in the atmospheric mood piece "Follies," from which Callaway sings the sarcastic "Could I Leave You?" The composer also provides some insight into his songwriting process, explaining that he favors the use of a rhyming dictionary and prefers not to bring the piano into the creative process too early. After Walton performs "Pretty Women" from "Sweeney Todd," Sondheim talks about how he and James Lapine developed the idea behind "Sunday in the Park with George." Walton and Callaway provide insight into the main characters, the artist Georges Seurat and his model, by singing the title song and "Move On." Lipton draws this segment of the program to a close with a regular feature of "Inside the Actors Studio," a list of questions that determine the guest's likes and dislikes. Sondheim ends the program by discussing the following topics in response to questions from the audience: the similarities and differences between musical theater and opera, the musical influences that shaped his talent, and the importance of audience contact in a musical.
This selection from the Alan Gerry Cable Collection has been made available by the Gerry Foundation, Inc.
Details
- NETWORK: Bravo
- DATE: June 7, 1995 10:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:00:10
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:57856
- GENRE: Talk/Interviews
- SUBJECT HEADING: Composers; Interviews; Lyricists; Musical revues, comedies, etc. - Excerpts; Music, popular (songs, etc.); Theater
- SERIES RUN: Bravo - TV series, 1994-2018; Ovation - 2019-
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- James Lipton … Executive Producer, Writer
- Del Prete, Lou … Producer, Director
- Catherine Newman … Associate Producer
- Stephen Sondheim … Composer, Lyricist
- Angelo Badalamenti … Theme Music by
- James Lipton … Host
- Stephen Sondheim … Guest
- Liz Callaway … Singer
- Jim Walton … Singer
- Paul Ford … Instrumentalist, Pianist
- Milton Babbitt
- Robert Barrow
- George Furth
- James Goldman
- Hammerstein, Oscar, II
- James Lapine
- Prince, Hal (See also: Prince, Harold)
- Georges Seurat