Mr. Cranky @ Large

Side by Side by Sondheim Dot Com

Love him or hate him, Stephen Sondheim is the icon of the American musical theatre, credited with or blamed for the modern musical. His shows receive critical raves but little longevity despite an almost cultlike adulation of his admirers. Other than his collaborations as lyricist, of his dozen or so musicals few have run as long as a year on Broadway -- yet they continue to be revived and performed everywhere from high schools to regional theatre. And he doesn't seem to have any trouble getting backing for these slow-to-recoup-if-ever projects.

Granted, you'll probably find ten times as many sites devoted to Dwight Gooden or Spam®, but the primary sites concerning the elliptical Mr. Sondheim show the same kind of attention to detail, focus, and frequent bursts of crystalline beauty you find in his work.

SSS
Longest on the scene and most comprehensive and sprawling is the Stephen Sondheim Stage (aka "SSS"), the brain-/love-child of hijinks design's always bubbly and artistic Mark Bakalor. The eminently readable site is chock full of data and info about Sondheim. The site is broken into nine primary sections:

  1. News/This Just in... - where you find the latest Sondheim-related stories and news articles, like what's going on with his latest effort, Wise Guys?; is the on again off again world premier of Sondheim's unproduced 1950's effort Saturday Night on again or off again?; what award has SS won this week? Plus links to the slightly insipid "One from column a...," written by the pseudonymous "Real A," with gossip and trash. This week's column features details about the author's eating habits (s/he nibbles his/her shirt while surfing the net) and excerpts from a fictional battle between Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber carried out in song parodies -- not the only song parodies on the page, there's also Assassins as written by Oscar Hammerstein and an answer to the question of the author's sex to the tune of "Love and Marriage." About the only thing of value on the page is an area where the Real A answers questions. If this kind of juvenalia is your cup of tea, go for it -- this is a sophomoric blot on an otherwise mature and informative site.
  2. The Library - which has links to sound clips provided by Music Previews Network, details about scripts, videos, a magazine devoted to SS -- The Sondheim Review, production requirements and contact info, and a huge list of all Sondheim's tunes and scores known to be available for purchase. Plus links to a comprehensive discography, edited by Bill Jennings of Better Living Through Show Tunes fame, and a Sondheim FAQ (answers to Frequently Asked Questions) written by rec.arts.theatre.musicals regulars by Alisa Roost and David Levy.
  3. Finishing the Chat - Alright, this has me just a little confused -- you have this chat area where readers get to post their own comments questions and statements, generally carry on discussions, but it's in a document named /forum/. Later you'll see an area called The Forum, but it points to a page named /discussions/. Well, whatever it's called, you'll find some serious and heady conversation in this area.
  4. Show and Production Info - has in depth info on all the shows, with synopses, credits, song and cast lists; also info about what's playing where, in North America and Great Britain.
  5. Side by Side with... - Links to interviews with Sondheim and others.
  6. The Forum - see Finishing the Chat above for my confusion. This is an area with links to scholarly and less than scholarly articles about Sondheim and his work written by pros and civilians, fans and critics. More heady material here, at greater length than you find in the discussions, er... chats, I mean, oh never mind. Sondheim's critics often point to his fascination with mathematical and word games when complaining about what they see as dry and emotionless in his lyrics. This is the area where you'll find out more about Sondheim the puzzler. You'll also find the obligatory links to other sites.

The awful "Column A" aside, this is a wonderful and thorough site (just don't look to closely at the coding or the chat/discussion/forum thing gets confusing).

SSRG
Not enough specifics for you at the SSS? Then check out the newer Stephen Sondheim Reference Guide, by Michael Hutch. Inspired by Bill Jennings' discography at the SSS site but hankering for more depth, Mr. Hutch set about amassing the details he was looking for. You'll certainly find them here -- I bet there are songs listed that even Sondheim can't remember writing.

With a simpler goal in mind, the site itself is far less complex than the SSS site. What's extraordinary about the Reference Guide is its extensive crosslinking. Within the site you'll find links from the bios to the shows to the songs to the publications to the performance history to the bios and on and on. The straightforward organization of the site makes it easy to see where you are and where you want to go:

  1. The Shows - full details on every major production, cast, song lists (including discrepancies and changes between productions, recordings), and publication info. Also contains info on the revues, other works, and special performances.
  2. The Songs - crosslinked to the shows and recordings.
  3. Sondheim People - bios of the major names associated with SS, with links to the shows and recordings, as well as links to external sites devoted to those names.
  4. Current Productions - what's playing where.

There's also an extensive bibliography and chronology of events in the life of SS -- and of course the obligatory links page. Mr. Hutch has done very extensive and solid research, and students, collectors, and others interested in the work of Sondheim will find this site of absolute value.

Some others

Each week I exhort you to go see a show! Once again, this week I'm going to be a little more specific -- if you're going to be around NYC, go see Two Pianos, Four Hands. This brilliant tour de force, splendidly performed by its creators, filled with glorious music and pathos, just arrived in New York after a successful Canadian run. Directed by Gloria Muzio. I haven't seen anything I liked anywhere near as much as this in a long time. Don't miss it!

Originally published at Suite101.com Theatre, 11/4/97

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