Stephen Sondheim in the Archives

I’ve nothing to say. Well, nothing that’s not been said. Any sentimental recounting of my memories of the few times I was lucky enough to interact with Stephen Sondheim would feel, to me, a sort of fraud compared to the memories of his collaborators, friends, and family who are grieving a fresh loss in their lives. I admired the man, but I couldn’t say I knew him well. His work, though, remains. That’s durable forever. 

Sondheim's papers have long been destined for the Library of Congress, and we are lucky that, over the past two decades, Mark Eden Horowitz has compiled the lengthy interviews he conducted about them into the book Sondheim on Music. Sondheim’s work is so voluminous, though, and his ingenious collaborators so many, that his work pervades our holdings at the Library for the Performing Arts as well. It would take too long even to scratch the surface of our holdings here, but there are a few objects that are among my favorite items—not just related to Sondheim, but in the entire collection.  

Program from college production of Winterset

In 1947, a 17-year-old Stephen Sondheim, then a college freshman, appeared as Garth in the Williams College production of Maxwell Anderson’s Winterset. Sondheim wrote several musicals while in college (including an adaptation of another Anderson play, High Tor), but was also frequently cast as an actor. We preserve one of the original programs for this production in our programs file. 

Animated photo of rehearsals for West Side Story 

The Friedman-Abeles studio photographed rehearsals of several of the musicals on which Sondheim collaborated. We preserve the original negatives, including the shots that were not selected for print, and in some cases it’s possible to create animations from a sequence of photographs taken in quick succession. I’ve always liked this (likely staged) shot of a “vocal rehearsal.” Sondheim, the lyricist, accompanies the cast at the piano while Bernstein “conducts.”

Correspondence with Richard Rodgers

Mana Allen, a long-time Library volunteer and performer who appeared in the original cast of Merrily We Roll Along, discovered this exchange in the Richard Rodgers papers several years ago. Sondheim’s relationship with Rodgers was famously fractious, so it is heartwarming to see the sincere admiration the two share for each other in these letters. 

Behind the scenes at Follies

The photographer Martha Swope started her career photographing rehearsals of West Side Story, and went on to become the photographer of record for Broadway shows for most of the 1970 and ‘80s. I love this peek at a moment at the Colonial Theatre in Boston during tryouts for Follies.

This glamor shot of Sondheim (photographer unidentified) taken to promote Follies also makes me smile.

Set models of the original productions of his musicals

Sondheim was quick to give credit to his collaborators, and he worked with many geniuses. The scenic designs for the original productions of his work often rose to the brilliance of Sondheim’s music and lyrics. We preserve original set models of several of Sondheim’s shows, many of which are currently on display in our “Brick by Brick” exhibition at the Library.

There’s so much more that could be shared. We have video recordings of many of the original productions of his work, letters to and from his collaborators, and scores of photographs, designs, posters, and scripts. For today though, this seems sufficient. Sondheim, for all his fame, seemed to me a shy person, always generous in his willingness to respond to correspondence, but reluctant to engage face to face. He did enjoy, though, talking about the art of making art. As we remember his life over these sad days, I keep hearing a line from Sunday in the Park with George: “Look out at the water, not at me.” There are more stories to tell, and more songs to be sung. To all the researchers, writers, and actors who use our collections each day, I hope these materials provide inspiration for you to “Give us more to see.”