Company (musical): Difference between revisions
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==Film Version== |
==Film Version== |
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Sondheim once asked [[William Goldman]] whether he would be interested in writing a screenplay for a film version of the musical. Goldman: |
Sondheim once asked [[William Goldman]] whether he would be interested in writing a screenplay for a film version of the musical. Goldman: |
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<blockquote>''Company'' is one of those great shows, along |
<blockquote>''Company'' is one of those great shows, along with ''Gypsy'' and ''Pal Joey'', that I think of as the greatest, quintessential, most beloved musicals. I remember seeing ''Company'' five times and I loved it, and I had a huge... problem which was that the main character's gay but they don't talk about it. Hal, George and Steve all think its about a guy with commitment problems. Anyway I loved the show. And I figured out a way to change it, keep the score, but give it some narrative.<ref name="gore">Chris Gore, ''The 50 Greatest Movies Never Made'', St Martins 1999 p 186</ref></blockquote> |
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Herbert Ross was meant to direct but Goldman says the director talked Sondheim out of doing it.<ref name="gore"/> |
Herbert Ross was meant to direct but Goldman says the director talked Sondheim out of doing it.<ref name="gore"/> |
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In 2010 there was talk [[Neil LaBute]] would direct a film version.<ref>[http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/neil_labute_may_direct_film_version_of_stephen_sondheims_musical_company "Neil LaBute May Direct Film Version Of Stephen Sondheim's Musical 'Company'" by Oliver Lyttelton ''The Playlist''November 25, 2010] accessed 14 June 2013</ref> |
In 2010 there was talk [[Neil LaBute]] would direct a film version.<ref>[http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/neil_labute_may_direct_film_version_of_stephen_sondheims_musical_company "Neil LaBute May Direct Film Version Of Stephen Sondheim's Musical 'Company'" by Oliver Lyttelton ''The Playlist''November 25, 2010] accessed 14 June 2013</ref> |
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==Notes== |
==Notes== |
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{{Reflist|2}} |
{{Reflist|2}} |
Revision as of 23:45, 24 June 2013
Company | |
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![]() Original Broadway Playbill | |
Music | Stephen Sondheim |
Lyrics | Stephen Sondheim |
Book | George Furth |
Productions | 1970 Broadway 1971 US Tour 1972 West End 1995 Broadway revival 1995 West End revival 2002 John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts 2006 Broadway revival 2007 Australia 2011 New York Philharmonic International productions |
Awards | Tony Award for Best Musical Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical Tony Award for Best Original Score Tony Award for Best Lyrics Drama Desk Outstanding Music Tony Award for Best Revival Drama Desk Outstanding Revival |
Company is a musical comedy based on a book by George Furth with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. The original production was nominated for a record-setting fourteen Tony Awards and won six.
Originally titled Threes, its plot revolves around Bobby (a single man unable to commit fully to a steady relationship, let alone marriage), the five married couples who are his best friends, and his three girlfriends. Unlike most book musicals, which follow a clearly delineated plot, Company is a concept musical composed of short vignettes, presented in no particular chronological order, linked by a celebration for Bobby's 35th birthday.
Company was among the first musicals to deal with adult themes and relationships. As Sondheim puts it, "Broadway theater has been for many years supported by upper-middle-class people with upper-middle-class problems. These people really want to escape that world when they go to the theatre, and then here we are with Company talking about how we're going to bring it right back in their faces."[1][2]
Background
George Furth wrote eleven one-act plays planned for Kim Stanley as each of the separate leads. Anthony Perkins was interested in directing, and asked Sondheim to read the material. After Sondheim read the plays, he asked Harold Prince for his opinion; Prince thought the plays would make the basis for a musical. The theme would be New York marriages with a central character to examine those marriages.[3]
Productions
Original Broadway production
Company opened in Boston in out-of-town tryouts, receiving mixed reviews, from the Boston Evening Globe "Brilliant", to Variety Magazine "The songs are for the most part undistinguished."[4]
The musical opened on Broadway on April 26, 1970 at the Alvin Theatre, where it ran for 705 performances after seven previews. Directed by Hal Prince, the opening cast included Dean Jones (who had replaced Anthony Perkins early in the rehearsal period when Perkins departed to direct a play),[5] Donna McKechnie, Susan Browning, Pamela Myers, Barbara Barrie, Charles Kimbrough, Merle Louise, Beth Howland, and Elaine Stritch. Musical staging was by Michael Bennett, assisted by Bob Avian. The set design by Boris Aronson consisted of two working elevators and various vertical platforms that emphasized the musical’s theme of isolation.
Shortly after opening night, Jones withdrew from the show, allegedly due to illness, but actually due to stress he was suffering from ongoing divorce proceedings.[6] He was replaced by his understudy Larry Kert, who had created the role of Tony in West Side Story. Kert earned rave reviews for his performance when the critics were invited to return.[7] In an unusual move, the Tony Awards committee deemed Kert eligible for a nomination, an honor usually reserved for the actor who originates a role.[8]
Company: Original Cast Album
A documentary of the recording of the original cast recording was created by award-winning documentary filmmaker D. A. Pennebaker shortly after the show opened on Broadway[9] as a pilot for a series of TV documentaries which were to highlight the different ways a cast album recording session could be conducted and the results therefrom.
However, a week after the original screening, all the original producers for the proposed series were hired to go out to Hollywood and head up production at MGM. As nobody was left in New York to spearhead the project, the series was therefore scrapped. Only this lone pilot film remains of an idea never brought to fruition.[10]
The film is filled with behind the scenes footage of the recording process, complete with much of the musical direction from and insight of Sondheim himself. Several of the show's numbers are captured in the film including; Another Hundred People, Not Getting Married, and Being Alive. These tunes are all recorded with a live orchestra, done in multiple takes over the course of several hours.
Eventually only Elaine Stritch's The Ladies Who Lunch remains to be recorded. It is now well past midnight, and Stritch, Sondheim and the orchestra are all clearly suffering from the effects of the day's marathon recording session. Stritch struggles repeatedly to record a satisfactory version of the song, even going so far as to slightly drop the key for a few takes in the hopes of producing a satisfactory take. Her voice and performance continue to degrade. Some conflict is seen between Stritch and the producer and Sondheim as she struggles.
As dawn breaks over Columbia Records' Big Church massive recording studio down on 30th and 3rd, everyone agrees to call it a night. After Stritch leaves, they record one last take of the orchestra by themselves and agree to allow her to come back the following afternoon and record the vocal over the previously-recorded orchestra bed.[11]
The finale of the film features a revitalized Stritch, still in makeup from a matinee performance in the show, successfully performing the vocal we hear on the record in one take, as the sun sets over Kips Bay.
First national tour
The first national tour opened on May 20, 1971 at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles, California with George Chakiris as Bobby, and closed on May 20, 1972 at the National Theatre in Washington, D.C..
Original London production
The first West End production opened on January 18, 1972 at Her Majesty's Theatre, where it ran for 344 performances. The original cast included Larry Kert, Elaine Stritch, Joy Franz, and Donna McKechnie; Dilys Watling and Julia McKenzie were replacements later in the run.
1995 Broadway revival
After 43 previews, the 1995 Roundabout Theatre revival, directed by Scott Ellis and choreographed by Rob Marshall, opened on October 5, 1995 at the Criterion Center Stage Right, where it ran for 60 performances. The cast included Boyd Gaines, Kate Burton, Robert Westenberg, Diana Canova, Debra Monk, LaChanze, Charlotte d'Amboise, Jane Krakowski, Danny Burstein and Veanne Cox.
1995 London revival
The 1995 London revival was directed by Sam Mendes at the Donmar Warehouse. Previews began on December 1, with opening on December 13 and closing on March 2, 1996. The production transferred to the Albery Theatre, with previews starting on March 7, opening on March 13 and closing on June 29. The cast included Adrian Lester as the first black Bobby in a major production of the show. A videotaped recording of the Donmar Warehouse production was broadcast by BBC Two on March 1, 1997. On Sunday 7 November 2010, a one-off concert of Company starring most of the 1995 London revival cast, including Adrian Lester as Bobby, was held at The Queen's Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue, to commemorate the 80th birthday of the composer, Stephen Sondheim.[12]
Kennedy Center production
A Kennedy Center (Washington, DC) production, presented as part of a summer-long presentation of Sondheim musicals, opened on May 17, 2002 for a 17-performance run. Directed by Sean Mathias, the cast included John Barrowman as Robert, Emily Skinner, Alice Ripley, and Lynn Redgrave.[13]
2006 Broadway revival
A new revival had try-outs at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Robert S. Marx Theatre in March through April 2006. This production, directed and choreographed by John Doyle opened Broadway on November 29, 2006 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre with a cast that included Raúl Esparza as Bobby and Barbara Walsh as Joanne. As in Doyle's 2005 Broadway production of Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, the actors themselves provided the orchestral accompaniment. For example, in the closing number, "Being Alive," Raul Esparza, as Bobby, accompanies himself on piano; Angel Desai, as Marta, plays saxophone and violin, as well as singing solo on "Another Hundred People"; the entire company sings and plays accompaniment during the second-act opener. The production won the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical.[14][15] The musical closed on July 1, 2007 after 34 previews and 246 performances. It was taped[16] and broadcast on the Great Performances program of PBS in 2007.[14] That video was released on DVD and is available on Netflix Instant.
2007 Australian production
Kookaburra Musical Theatre mounted a production directed by Gale Edwards in Sydney in June 2007, starring David Campbell as Bobby, with a cast including Simon Burke, Anne Looby, James Millar, Pippa Grandison, Katrina Retallick, Tamsin Carroll and Christie Whelan. The show was well-received, and Sondheim travelled to Australia for the first time in thirty years to attend the opening night.[17] However, the production caused major controversy when Whelan was out sick for one performance and (with no understudy) Kookaburra chief executive Peter Cousens insisted the show be performed anyway, but without the character of April. This involved cutting several numbers and scenes with no explanation, and that night's performance ended twenty minutes early. Following complaints from the audience, there was considerable negative press attention to the decision, and Sondheim threatened to revoke the production rights for the show.[18]
2011 New York Philharmonic Concert
In April 2011, Lonny Price directed a staged concert production,[19] with Neil Patrick Harris as Bobby, Stephen Colbert as Harry, Craig Bierko as Peter, Jon Cryer as David, Katie Finneran as Amy, Christina Hendricks as April, Aaron Lazar as Paul, Jill Paice as Susan, Martha Plimpton as Sarah, Anika Noni Rose as Marta, Jennifer Laura Thompson as Jenny, Jim Walton as Larry, Chryssie Whitehead as Kathy, and Patti LuPone as Joanne. Paul Gemignani conducted a 35-piece orchestra, which uses similar orchestrations to the first Broadway production. This concert follows a long tradition of Stephen Sondheim concert productions at the New York Philharmonic, including Sweeney Todd and Passion.[20][21] A filmed presentation of the concert debuted in select movie theatres on June 15, 2011.[22] The DVD version was released on Nov. 13, 2012.[23] The cast of the production gathered again for a live performance at the 2011 Tony Awards, hosted by Harris, on June 12, 2011.[24]
International productions
This section needs additional citations for verification. (June 2011) |
- A 1997 Repertory Philippines production starred Victor Laurel as Bobby.[citation needed]
- A Brazilian production opened on February 8, 2001 at the Teatro Villa-Lobos in Rio de Janeiro, closed April 22, opened April 27 at the Teatro Alfa in São Paulo, then returned to the Teatro Villa-Lobos in Rio.[25]
- A 2010 production opened in Norway at The National Venue of Norway(Den Nationale Scene) in Bergen. The cast included Jon Bleiklie Devik, Karoline Krüger/Ragnhild Gudbrandsen, Wenche Kvamme, Monica Hjelle, among others.[26]
- A 2011 Israeli production opened on May 28, 2011 at the Beersheba Theatre.
- A 2011 production by Sheffield Theatres at the Crucible Theatre[27]
- A 2012 production in Lima, Perú, directed by Alberto Ísola. The cast included Rossana Fernández-Maldonado, Marco Zunino, Tati Alcántara and Paul Martin.
- A 2012 production in Singapore, directed by Hossan Leong. Staged at the Drama Centre November 1-16, 2012.[28] The cast included Peter Ong, Seong Hui Xuan, Mina Ellen Kaye, Tan Kheng Hua and Petrina Kow.[29]
Synopsis
Note: In the early 1990s, Furth and Sondheim revised the libretto, cutting and altering dialogue that had become dated and rewriting the end to act one. This synopsis is based on the revised libretto.
Act I
It's Robert's birthday. He's 35, he lives in New York City and he's single. His friends, most of them married and all of them couples, have gathered at his apartment to give him a surprise party (a party Robert knows about thanks to a careless message left by one of his friends, the neurotic Amy) and to wish him the best. None of them know each other, they just all know Robert, or, as he is alternately known, Bob, Bobby, Robby, Robbo and a variety of other pet names bestowed on him by the ten married people to whom he has attached himself. Robert tries to blow out the candles, but they stay lit. It's all right, someone cries, he still gets his wish. What was his wish? Nothing. Not even to be married. Joanne and Larry, Peter and Susan, Harry and Sarah, David and Jenny, and Paul and Amy, his married friends are all he needs ("Company").
What follows is a series of disconnected scenes, each featuring one of the couples and Robert.
The first scene features Robert with Harry and Sarah. Robert has brought over some brownies and some bourbon for a nightcap, but Sarah is dieting and Harry is on the wagon, or at least that's what they say. Between needling and taunting each other mercilessly about their respective vices, Harry sneaks glasses of brandy and Sarah hides bites of the brownie. Sarah has been studying karate, and Robert implores her to demonstrate a throw or two. She does so, on Harry. He tries to counter, and they are soon thrashing about in violence that may or may not be playful. The caustic Joanne, the oldest, most cynical and most-oft married of Robert's friends, watches and observes that it is "The Little Things You Do Together" that make a marriage work. After Sarah has gone to bed, Robert asks Harry if he ever regretted getting married. He answers, and the other married men concur, that you are always "Sorry-Grateful", and that marriage changes both everything and nothing about the way you live.
Robert is with Peter and Susan next, on their apartment terrace, from which they can almost see the East River. They seem to be a perfect couple, apart from her frequent fainting spells. He's Ivy League, she's a southern belle, and they love each other very much. Robert innocently flirts with Susan, telling Peter that if they ever break up, he wants to be the first to know. Well, they reply, he's the first to know. They're getting divorced.
At the home of Jenny and David, Robert has brought some marijuana along with him. Jenny is rather uptight and David is very chic, and all three puff away feeling very hip and proud of themselves. David declares himself potted and the self-admitted square Jenny talks non-stop before realizing she is completely stoned. The couple, even in their enlightened state of consciousness, finds the strength to grill Robert on why he hasn't gotten married yet. It's not like he's opposed to it. He's looking. In fact, he's found three lovely young women he is currently fooling around with. The women, Kathy, Marta and April appear and proceed, Andrews Sisters-style, to berate Robert for his reluctance to commit ("You Could Drive a Person Crazy"). As the evening at Jenny and David’s comes to a close, David tells Robert privately that Jenny really doesn't enjoy the pot, but she does it to please him.
Everyone it seems is trying to pair Robert off with someone, and each of the deeply envious men has found someone perfect for a night of pleasure or two. When you can have that, they chorus, why would you want to get married ("Have I Got a Girl For You")? But Robert is waiting for someone who is a composite of the best parts of all his married female friends ("Someone is Waiting").
Robert meets his three girlfriends in a small park in the East-Fifties on three separate occasions as Marta sings of the city: crowded, dirty, uncaring and wonderful ("Another Hundred People").
Robert meets with April first. She's an airline flight attendant, and not a very bright one. She knows she's boring and dumb, and she's okay with it. She's found a great set-up with an uninterested male friend, and seems happy.
Robert and Kathy meet in a secluded, quiet clearing in the park. She loves it here because it's out of place in the hectic City, just like she is. Robert admits that at the beginning of their past relationship, he would have married her. She admits the same thing, and they laugh at the realization that they both wanted to marry each other before she drops a bombshell: she's going back to Cape Cod to get married. She doesn't belong here; just like the clearing they're in. And then she's gone.
Marta, on the other hand, loves the city. It's the center of the universe. The out-there Marta babbles on about topics as diverse as true sophistication, the difference between uptown and downtown New York, and how you can always tell a New Yorker by his or her ass. Robert is, frankly, left stunned.
Amy and Paul have lived together for years, but are only now getting married. Amy is in a state of panic, and as a celestial soprano comments and Paul harmonizes rapturously, Amy patters an impressive list of reasons why she is not ("Getting Married Today"). Robert, the best man, and Paul watch as she self-destructs over warm orange juice and burnt toast and the rain and the fact that Paul is Jewish while she's Catholic and finally just refuses to go through with it. Paul dejectedly runs out into the rain without a coat. Robert tries to comfort Amy, but winds up proposing to her: "Marry me and they'll all leave us alone!" His words jolt Amy back into reality, and with the parting words "you need to marry some body, not some BODY," she runs out after Paul.
Back at the birthday party, Robert is given his cake and tries to blow out the candles again. He wishes for something this time, someone to "Marry Me a Little," praying for an easy, no-strings marriage.
Act II
At the party, Robert blows out his candles again. This time, he gets them about half out, and the rest have to help him. The couples share their views on Robert with each other, comments that range from complimentary to unflattering, as Robert reflects on living in threes ("Side By Side By Side"), a turn soon followed by the up-tempo paean to Robert's role as the perfect friend ("What Would We Do Without You?"). In a dance break in the middle of the number (or, in the case of the 2006 revival, in a musical solo section), each man in turn does a dance step (or, in the case of the 2006 revival, plays a solo on his instrument), answered by his wife. Then Robert does a step (or, in the case of the 2006 revival, plays two bad notes on a kazoo). No one answers it.
Robert brings April to his apartment for a nightcap after a date. She marvels ad nauseam at how homey his place is, and he casually positions her over the bed as they share stories about a crushed butterfly and a spoiled date, going through the usual movements associated with casual sex. Meanwhile, the married women worry about Robert. He's lonely, they say, he needs a woman. A real woman, someone like them, not the girl he's with now, who couldn't be more wrong for him. ("Poor Baby"). When the inevitable sex happens, Kathy appears and performs a dance that conveys the difference between having sex and making love ("Tick-Tock"). The next morning, April wakes up to report for duty. She's got to be on Flight 18 to "Barcelona" in a few hours. Robert makes the customary false pleas for her to stay, and for some inexplicable reasons, the pleading works and she does. Robert is less than pleased.
Robert takes another girlfriend, Marta this time, to visit Peter and Susan's terrace. They've gotten their divorce. Peter flew to Mexico to get it, and it was so nice there he phoned Susan and she joined him there for a vacation. They're still living together. They have too many responsibilities to actually split up, and their relationship has actually been strengthened by their divorce. Susan takes Marta inside to make lunch, and Peter asks Robert if he's ever had a homosexual experience. They both admit they have. Robert asks Peter if he's gay, which he denies, but Peter questions if mankind wouldn't prefer to just "ball it" if it weren't for social norms and wonders if he and Robert could ever have something. Robert, clearly uncomfortable, laughs the conversation off as a joke as the women return.
Joanne and Larry take Robert out to a nightclub, and as Larry dances, Joanne and Robert get thoroughly drunk. She regales him with tales of her ex-husbands and insults Larry before yelling at some women at the next table to stop looking at her. She blames Robert for always being an outsider, and then berates Larry again. She raises her glass in a mocking toast to "The Ladies Who Lunch", a song judging rich middle aged women, who waste their lives away doing meaningless activities. However, at the end of the song, Joanne realizes she is the worst Lady Who Lunches of them all. She is the type who wastes her life away judging the other ladies, meanwhile doing nothing to improve her own life. Larry takes Joanne's drunken rant without complaint and explains to Robert that despite the fact she's so abusive, or maybe because of it, he loves her dearly. When Larry leaves to pay the check, Joanne propositions Robert. She says, "I'll take care of you", but he replies, "Who will I take care of?" Larry returns, and Joanne tells him, "I just did someone a big favor." Larry and Joanne go home, leaving Robert lost in thought.
He finally confronts the five couples. Why get married, he cries. What do you get from it but someone to smother you and make you feel things you don't want to feel? But his arguments pale and he finally, finally wishes for someone to share his life with, someone to help and hurt and hinder and love, someone with whom to face the challenge of "Being Alive."
Back at the opening party, his friends waited two hours, but Robert hasn't shown up. Finally, they all get the message and go home, wishing their absent friend a happy birthday. Robert appears alone, smiles, and blows out his candles.
Characters and original cast
- Robert (Dean Jones) – The central character; his 35th birthday brings the group together
The couples (all married except Amy and Paul)
- Sarah (Barbara Barrie) – Learning karate and has issues with food and dieting.
- Harry (Charles Kimbrough) – Friendly and affable, but with a drinking problem.
- Susan (Merle Louise) – A gracious Southern belle who suffers from fainting spells
- Peter (John Cunningham) – Formerly Ivy League, possibly gay.
- Jenny (Teri Ralston) – Sweet, but a bit square
- David (George Coe) – Chic and a bit controlling.
- Amy (Beth Howland) – Neurotic, gets cold feet on her wedding day
- Paul (Steve Elmore) – Amy's fiancé, Jewish, who has learned how to put up with her manic spells.
- Joanne (Elaine Stritch) – Cynical and very acerbic. Only drinks with Robert.
- Larry (Charles Braswell) – Joanne's third husband. Sweet and understanding.
The Girlfriends
- April (Susan Browning) – A naive flight attendant. Self-described as "dumb"
- Marta (Pamela Myers) – Hip and vulgar. Loves New York.
- Kathy (Donna McKechnie) – A small town girl, Robert's long-time on-off girlfriend.
The Vocal Minority:
- pit singers – Cathy Corkill, Carol Gelfand, Marilyn Saunders and Dona D. Vaughn. In subsequent productions, the Vocal Minority have been eliminated. They were brought back for the 2011 New York Philharmonic production.
Song list
|
|
* In the 1990s, "Marry Me a Little" was restored permanently to close Act I and added to the 1995 and 2006 revivals, it is also included in the official composer's edition of the vocal selections, published in 1996 (ISBN 0-7935-6763-7).
The "Overture" and "Entr'acte" were part of the original Broadway Production. (Source: Original Official "Company" Vocal Score)
A brief reprise of "Have I Got a Girl for You" was not part of the original production, but was added in for the 1995 Broadway Revival.
** The dance number "Tick-Tock" (arranged by David Shire) was abridged for the first Broadway revival, and afterwards deleted entirely from the score. It had become a liability in productions without dancers of the caliber of Donna McKechnie (or Charlotte d'Amboise in 1995). However, it has since been restored in some productions (such as the 2004 Reprise! production in Los Angeles and the 2011 New York Philharmonic staging).[30]
*** The song "Multitude of Amys" was the original finale but was cut due to major structural changes in the script. "Marry Me a Little" was started as a replacement but subsequently moved to the end of the first act. "Happily Ever After" was used as the finale for the first few performances, before being replaced by "Being Alive".[31]
Recordings
The Broadway cast album did not include Kert, because it had already been recorded before he assumed the role of Bobby. However, after having Jones' original vocals mixed out of the original Broadway backing tracks, when the cast travelled to London to reprise their roles, Columbia Records took Kert into the studio to record new vocal tracks. This "new" recording featuring the new vocals laid over the original Broadway backing tracks was released as the Original London Cast recording. In 1998, when Sony Music who had acquired the Columbia catalogues, released a newly digitalized CD version of the original Broadway cast recording, Kert's rendition of "Being Alive," the show's final number, was included as a bonus track.[32]
There are also cast recordings of the 1995 Broadway and London productions and the 2006 Broadway production.
Video recordings are available of the 1995 London, 2006 Broadway, and 2011 New York Philharmonic revivals.
Awards and nominations
For the only time, the Tony Awards for Music and Lyrics were split into two categories. Sondheim won both awards.
Original Broadway production
Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1971 | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Book of a Musical | George Furth | Won |
Outstanding Director of a Musical | Harold Prince | Won | ||
Outstanding Lyrics | Stephen Sondheim | Won | ||
Outstanding Music | Won | |||
Outstanding Set Design | Boris Aronson | Won | ||
Theatre World Award | Susan Browning | Won | ||
Tony Award | Best Musical | Won | ||
Best Book of a Musical | George Furth | Won | ||
Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical | Larry Kert | Nominated | ||
Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical | Elaine Stritch | Nominated | ||
Susan Browning | Nominated | |||
Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical | Charles Kimbrough | Nominated | ||
Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical | Barbara Barrie | Nominated | ||
Pamela Myers | Nominated | |||
Best Direction of a Musical | Harold Prince | Won | ||
Best Choreography | Michael Bennett | Nominated | ||
Best Original Music | Stephen Sondheim | Won | ||
Best Original Lyrics | Won | |||
Best Scenic Design | Boris Aronson | Won | ||
Best Lighting Design | Robert Ornbo | Nominated |
1995 Broadway revival
Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1996 | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical | Veanne Cox | Nominated |
Tony Award | Best Revival of a Musical | Nominated | ||
Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical | Veanne Cox | Nominated |
1995 London revival
Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1996 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best Actor in a Musical | Adrian Lester | Won |
Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical | Sheila Gish | Won | ||
Sophie Thompson | Nominated | |||
Best Director | Sam Mendes | Won |
2006 Broadway revival
Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2007 | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Revival of a Musical | Won | |
Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Raúl Esparza | Won | ||
Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical | Barbara Walsh | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Director of a Musical | John Doyle | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Orchestrations | Mary Mitchell Campbell | Won | ||
Tony Award | Best Revival of a Musical | Won | ||
Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical | Raúl Esparza | Nominated | ||
Best Direction of a Musical | John Doyle | Nominated |
Film Version
Sondheim once asked William Goldman whether he would be interested in writing a screenplay for a film version of the musical. Goldman:
Company is one of those great shows, along with Gypsy and Pal Joey, that I think of as the greatest, quintessential, most beloved musicals. I remember seeing Company five times and I loved it, and I had a huge... problem which was that the main character's gay but they don't talk about it. Hal, George and Steve all think its about a guy with commitment problems. Anyway I loved the show. And I figured out a way to change it, keep the score, but give it some narrative.[33]
Herbert Ross was meant to direct but Goldman says the director talked Sondheim out of doing it.[33]
In 2010 there was talk Neil LaBute would direct a film version.[34]
Notes
- ^ "Company" PBS.com, Broadway: the American Musical, accessed August 16, 2011
- ^ Broadway: the American musical, episode 5: "Tradition (1957–1979)," 2004.
- ^ Zadan, Craig. Sondheim & Co. (1986) ISBN 0-06-015649-X, p. 116
- ^ Citron, Stephen. "Prince and Company" Sondheim and Lloyd-Webber: The New Musical, Oxford University Press US, 2001, ISBN 0-19-509601-0, p. 172
- ^ Kelly, Kevin. One Singular Sensation: The Michael Bennett Story, Doubleday, 1990, ISBN 0-8217-3310-9, page 68
- ^ Filichia, Peter. "How Now, Dean Jones?" Theatermania.com (March 19, 2002). Retrieved on April 4. See also Zadan, Craig. Sondheim & Co. (2nd ed.). New York: Harper & Row, 1986;Yahoo! "Movies bio of Jones" movies.yahoo.com, accessed August 16, 2011 and "Povonline article" povonline.com, accessed April 10, 2007.
- ^ "Biography of Kert" lambertville-music-circus.org, accessed April 10, 2007.
- ^ Weinman, Jamie."Article about Company" zvbxrpl.blogspot.com, September 06, 2006, accessed August 16, 2011. See also "Biography of Kert" lambertville-music-circus.org, accessed April 10, 2007.
- ^ Original Cast Album-Company (1970). IMDb.com. Retrieved on April 10, 2007
- ^ Company: Original Cast Album film by D.A. Pennebaker LaserDisc liner notes Retrieved on January 29, 2011
- ^ "Review: 'Company' (1970)" musicorld.com, July 19, 2004
- ^ "The Baz Bamigboye Column", Daily Mail (London), November 5, 2010 (no page number)
- ^ "'Company' listing, The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2002" Sondheimguide.com, accessed August 18, 2011
- ^ a b "Sondheim Guide, 2006 Broadway Revival" Sondheimguide.com, accessed March 25, 2011
- ^ Brantley, Ben. "Theater Review: A Revival Whose Surface of Tundra Conceals a Volcano", The New York Times, November 30, 2006, p.E1
- ^ Gans, Andrew and Jones, Kenneth."Playbill News: Tony-Winning Revival of 'Company' to Be Filmed for "Great Performances" Broadcast" Playbill.com, June 28, 2007
- ^ (no author). "Stephen Sondheim to Visit Sydney" Australian Stage, June 10, 2007
- ^ Dunn, Emily."Send Off The Clowns" Sydney Morning Herald, July 21, 2007
- ^ Holden, Stephen."A Bachelor, Five Couples and All Their Tuneful Discontents" The New York Times, April 8, 2011
- ^ Gans, Andrew."Neil Patrick Harris to Star in New York Philharmonic Company Concerts" Playbill.com, December 10, 2010
- ^ Staff. "Patti LuPone Gets Ready for Company With Neil Patrick Harris" Broadway.com, January 13, 2011
- ^ Gans, Andrew."Philharmonic's 'Company', With Neil Patrick Harris and Patti LuPone, Will Hit Cinemas in June" Playbill.com, April 9, 2011
- ^ "Company (Stephen Sondheim) (2011)". Amazon. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
- ^ Staff. "Cast of Neil Patrick Harris Led 'Company' to Perform on Tony Awards Telecast" Broadwayworld.com, June 2, 2011
- ^ 2001 Brazil Production" sondheimguide.com, accessed April 14, 2011
- ^ 'Company' Den Nationale Scene, (in Norwegian), accessed April 14, 2011
- ^ 'Sheffield Theatres Production' of Company.
- ^ "SISTIC Singapore". Sistic. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
{{cite web}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ Pew, Gwen. "You've Got 'Company'". Retrieved 18 November 2012.
- ^ Kendt, Rob."Theater Review" Los Angeles Times, May 21, 2004[dead link]
- ^ (no author)"In Tune: Being Alive" carlinamerica.com, accessed August 16, 2011
- ^ News From Me – Archives. newsfromme.com (September 24, 2005). Retrieved on 2007-04-11.
- ^ a b Chris Gore, The 50 Greatest Movies Never Made, St Martins 1999 p 186
- ^ "Neil LaBute May Direct Film Version Of Stephen Sondheim's Musical 'Company'" by Oliver Lyttelton The PlaylistNovember 25, 2010 accessed 14 June 2013
References
- Hutchins, Michael H. (June 7, 2006). The Stephen Sondheim Reference Guide. sondheimguide.com. Retrieved on October 4, 2007.
- Interview with Barbara Walsh. Downstage Center (a collaboration of the American Theatre Wing and XM Satellite Radio). First aired January 12, 2007. Retrieved on February 4, 2007. (RealAudio interview; MP3 podcast.)
- Interview with John Doyle. Downstage Center First aired November 24, 2006. Retrieved on February 4, 2007. (RealAudio interview; MP3 podcast.)
Further reading
- Ilson, Carol. Harold Prince: A Director's Journey (2004), Limelight Editions, ISBN 0-87910-296-9.
- Prince, Harold. Contradictions: Notes on twenty-six years in the theatre (1974), Dodd, Mead, ISBN 0-396-07019-1.
- Rich, Frank. The Theatre Art of Boris Aronson (1987), Knopf. ISBN 0-394-52913-8.
- Mandelbaum, Ken. A Chorus Line and the Musicals of Michael Bennett (1990), St Martins Press, ISBN 0-312-04280-9.
External links
- Company at the Internet Broadway Database
- Company at LiveBway.com – Filmed Broadway Shows Database[dead link]
- Company (1970) at IMDb, documentary about the recording of the original cast album
- Company (1996) at IMDb, filmed stage revival starring Adrian Lester
- Company (2007) at IMDb, filmed stage revival starring Raul Esparza
- Company (2011) at IMDb, filmed stage revival starring Neil Patrick Harris
- Company at Music Theatre International
- Company recordings at CastAlbums.org
- Musical Cyberspace: Company
- You’ve Got ‘Company’: Stephen Sondheim's Masterpiece Comes to Singapore