Stephen Sondeim Onstage Again in New York

A Little Night Music is just one of the great musicals that is currently onstage in New York. It is part of the recent trend to popularize musical and dramatic revivals of shows that have been popular in the past or show a new potential for social interest and commercial success. The musical is currently playing at the Walter Kerr Theatre on 48th Street and has been running there since its opening in December of last year. One of the greatest attractions with the current production, which is of course in addition to the fact it is one of Sondheim's loved musicals, is its two primary stars, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Angela Lansbury. Having major celebrity names attached to any production greatly increases its popular appeal and chances for success, but when those same celebrities have the scale of talent that is seen in Zeta-Jones and Lansbury the critical approval of the production is also expected to be strong.

Trevor Nunn is another famous name in theatre and also film. He directed this recent production, and is primarily known for his Shakespearean work. He directed the film version of Twelfth Night, which starred Helena Bonham Carter. A Little Night Music was originally produced in 1973 at the Schubert Theatre. Sondheim based the musical on the Ingmar Bergman film titled Smiles of a Summer Night. In addition to the numerous professional stage productions the show has also been adapted into a film which starred Elizabeth Taylor, Lesley-Anne Down, Diana Rigg and Len Cariou with Harold Pinter directing. Sondheim is always a name that attracts top talent it remains the case with the current Broadway production.

One of the most popular songs in this musical is also one of the most popular and famous from all of musical theatre. This, of course, is the sad ballad Send in the Clowns. It is also one of those rare theatrical gems that has made the transition from stage hit to mainstream success. Another example of this cross over song is Memory from Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats. Sondheim is a Tony Award as well as Academy Award winning composer and lyricist, who did both for this show. In addition he has won Grammy Awards as well as the Pulitzer. Some of his most popular shows include A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Sweeney Todd, Company, Gypsy and West Side Story. He was born in New York and it is clear that the city, the theatre and Broadway run through his veins.

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