Stephen Sondheim: Tributes Flow To The Musical Composer And Lyricist

Legendary composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim sadly passed away on 26^th November 2021 aged 91. Often thought of as a musical genius, and one of the most important figures in 20^th Century musical theatre, the iconic creative has received an outpouring of tributes from fans and those in the industry alike.

Stephen Sondheim – his best known works

Stephen Sondheim showed great musical potential from an early age. Mentored by Oscar Hammerstein II, he was undoubtedly trained and influenced by early American musical theatre, and went on to redefine the genre throughout his illustrious career.

After completing his theatre studies at Williams College in Massachusetts, the work that first catapulted Sondheim to his musical acclaim was undoubtedly West Side Story – Sondheim wrote the lyrics to Leonard Bernstein’s score for the much-loved production back in 1957, while his musical sound as both a lyricist and composer moved and evolved through the years, never staying still or becoming stuck in any one style or genre.

Sondheim worked as a lyricist on a variety of well-known shows following West Side Story – Gypsy came in 1959, with a steady stream in the decades that came after including A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum in 1962, Company in 1970, Follies in 1971, A Little Night Music in 1973, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in 1979, Merrily We Roll Along in 1981, Sunday in the Park with George in 1984, and Into the Woods in 1987. Perhaps his most famous individual track is the song Send in the Clowns, which was from the musical A Little Night Music, and has subsequently been covered, recorded and performed countless times to great acclaim by the world’s biggest stars through the ages.

Tributes

The theatrical producer Sir Cameron Mackintosh had renamed his Queen’s Theatre after Sondheim back in 2019, and has contributed to the tributes saying the world has lost one of its greatest and most original writers.

Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber also paid tribute, saying:

“Farewell Steve, the musical theatre giant of our times, an inspiration not just to two but to three generations. Your contribution to theatre will never be equalled.”

Lin-Manuel Miranda shared a touching screenshot of a recent correspondence between himself and the musician, talking about the reception of Miranda’s recent project Tick, Tick… Boom, mentioning specifically Sondheim’s kindness and mentorship.

& last week, when I wrote him to say his ears must be burning from the countless Sondheim kindnesses being shared from the generations of writers he mentored, he wrote this in reply.
Steve: you repaid your debt to Oscar 1000 times over. We love you. I love you. THANK YOU. -LMM pic.twitter.com/6aeHW4CWFH

— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) November 27, 2021

There have been many that echoed Miranda’s sentiments on what a giving mentor Sondheim was, not least a touching post by Fae O’Toole, who shared a photograph of a framed letter she received at the age of 16, which Sondheim had included along with an enclosed selection of music from A Little Night Music, Sweeny Todd, Company, and Into the Woods.

RIP Stephen Sondheim. Receiving this letter as a theatre-mad 16-year-old made me cry for weeks and propelled me towards a career of art and writing. Thank you for everything. Rest easy. pic.twitter.com/QHRsL4T5vr

— Fae O’Toole (@faeotoole) November 26, 2021

Barbara Streisand shared a photo of the pair together, with kind words mentioning his talents.

https://twitter.com/BarbraStreisand/status/1464364472399761413

Sir Paul McCartney also took to Twitter, posting:

“Very sad to hear of the passing of the great Stephen Sondheim. I was fortunate to meet him and chat about songwriting. He was a witty intelligent man. ‘Send in the Clowns’ is one of my favourite songs. So well crafted and beautiful with it. We have lost a great talent but his music will live long and prosper. Goodbye Stephen, we love you. Paul x”

Twitter accounts of companies including ASCAP and The Tony Awards also paid tribute, with the Tony’s sharing a video of Sondheim’s acceptance speech from years gone by, captioned with his words:

“I’d also like to thank the theatre as a profession. I just thought as I was sitting there tonight of something the young playwright named David Trainer said about the theatre. He said it’s the only medium that acknowledges the presence of the audience, and that’s why it’ll never die. If you laugh at a movie screen or boo at a movie screen or anything the actors go right on, they do exactly what they want to do. Same thing with television, but not the theatre. And that’s why I’m proud to be in it. Thank you.”

He left us with so many words, but none enough for this post. Goodbye, old pal. Thank you, Stephen Sondheim, for so much brilliance in the theatre and sharing your music with us all. pic.twitter.com/Qe55GcDQeS

— The Tony Awards (@TheTonyAwards) November 27, 2021

Additionally, Broadway and the West End have organised memorials, with a wonderful turn out in New York City taking place on Sunday, with Lin-Manuel amongst those leading the tributes.

This morning’s tribute to Stephen Sondheim was stunning, sad, inspiring, & left my heart so full. It was healing to see & squeeze so many friends. And a took a few photos: pic.twitter.com/qTFfdrrdOa

— Michael Hull (@MichaelHullNYC) November 28, 2021

In the West End, theatres dimmed their lights for two minutes on Monday 29^th November as a mark of respect to the musician. There’s no doubt that there will be more tributes and memorials to come, as so many are joined in collectively celebrating the life of such a prominent member of the musical theatre community. In the Jewish faith, it is customary to say, “may their memory be a blessing”, which is a sentiment that is undoubtedly felt by all who appreciate the legacy of the man and the music.

Also by Michelle Sciarrotta: