Moments in the Woods

I remember the moment vividly, which is saying alot since it was over 20 years ago.  I was sitting in the back of Straughn Hall at Mansfield University watching a rehearsal for their spring musical.  Back then, Mansfield had a theatre department and did 4 shows a year.  I had already seen great productions of Midsummer Night's Dream and Little Shop of Horrors in the fall and knew that these theatre people did great stuff.  But I had never heard of the musical they were now working on so I was curious about what I was going to see.  It was their first dress rehearsal and first rehearsal with the orchestra.   As the house lights went down, and the music started, I was hooked - not with the production itself, but with the work and the music.   It was amazing to me -- the lush and haunting melodies, the rich and complex harmonies, the accompaniment, crazy rhythms.  I had always loved theatre, but this composer and his work spoke to me in such a way that my life was affected deeply.  The work was Sweeney Todd and the composer was Stephen Sondheim.

After that production, I wanted to find as much of his music as I could but the Music Library was limited in recordings.  I remember stumbling across CDs of his newest shows at the time - Into the Woods and Assassins -- at the mall one day.  I bought them and brought them back to my dorm room.  I laid on my bed and listened for 2 hours straight, mesmerized but what I heard.  They were even better than I thought.  Later I discovered the other great works such as Sunday in the Park with George, A Little Night Music and Company and the lesser know shows of Merrily We Roll Along and Follies. 

Then, when I was a senior in college, Into the Woods was chosen as the spring musical.  I had to be involved.   I worked up the courage to audition -- something I had never done before.  I wanted to play Jack.  However, that was not to be.  But, at the bottom of the cast list was a note about needing and assistant director.  So, again, I mustered up the courage and went to talk to the director and see if he could use me.   I'm not sure what he saw in me, but he gave me the job and we have worked together and too many shows to name.  Thus began my directing career --- all initiated by Stephen Sondheim.

Now those who know me well know that I love Sondheim and his work.  I'm not sure if I can really express what I feel when I listen to his music.  I am moved, transported, and always in awe of his genius.   I have had the pleasure of directing several of his shows, and it is always such joy to do so.  I love to be challenged and his work can certainly do that.  His lyrics are poetic and yet conversational.  His music is integral to the story being told and not just a song in between dialogue.  I always feel like I become a better director and better student of musical theatre any time I get the chance to work on one of his shows.

Actors seem to thrive on the challenge and complexity of his music and lyrics.  They work harder and really take hold of their characters, more so than in a musical with simpler tunes and words.   I get a much better product from the actors because of this, and that is something to behold.  One of my favorite examples of that was in my production of Sunday in the Park with George.  There are 2 scenes between the leads of George and Dot.  They are scenes rich with emotion and nuance.  They music and lyrics for the 2 songs (We Do Not Belong Together and Move On) are some of Sondheim's finest work, in my opinion.  When we were rehearsing the scenes, I felt like the scenes seemed flat.  They lacked something -- I wasn't sure what.  I talked to the actors and tried to convey my thoughts on these pivotal scenes.   I wanted the frustration and the love and the to mix with the music and give me the chills I thought should come from these scene.   They next time we did those pages, I had those chills!   They got it!  You could tell the actors felt it.  The rest of the cast felt it.  It was a moment that really made me feel proud to be a director and to work with actors and work with such great material.

Now I could write endlessly about each work of Stephen Sondheim, and probably will write more about him in the future.  But for now, I thought I would post some photos from my productions of his work all of which have a special place in my heart.  If you don't know much about Sondheim, you strongly urge you to listen to his songs.  They are, in my opinion, the best in musical theatre.

(ASSASSINS, A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM, MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG, PUTTING IT TOGETHER, SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE, INTO THE WOODS)