📖 Something's Coming: Four New Sondheim Books Approach 📖
The ever-growing catalog makes "finishing the shelf" impossible
Shalom, Broadway lovers!
In today’s monthly FREE Premium edition of MARQUEE: The Broadway Maven’s Weekly Blast: an essay about upcoming Sondheim-related books; a Broadway Maven YouTube Gem about Oscar Hammerstein’s use of bird imagery; a Broadway Blast about Heathers; a fun rebus puzzle; a homework video for the September 9 class about Fiddler on the Roof; and a Last Blast about Guys and Dolls.
ESSAY: For Sondheim book-lovers, the next 15 months will bring "perpetual anticipation" (yeah, a Little Night Music reference) with at least four major works about The Master set to be released. Promisingly, each takes a different approach to understanding Sondheim's life and work:
• A "puzzling" book. Next spring sees the publication of the Sondheim book I'm most excited for, as a puzzle-lover and occasional cruciverbalist (crossword constructor). That's Matching Minds with Sondheim, a book devoted to Sondheim's love of what author Barry Joseph calls "cryptic crosswords, murder mysteries, treasure hunts, parlor games, and more."
Joseph has done his homework, interviewing dozens of Sondheim's celebrity friends who accepted his challenges and listening to more than 100 hours of interviews just released at Yale University. Matching Minds will also include some of the best Sondheim-constructed puzzles. So get out your pencils...
• A book with an epiphany? Next fall, Sondheim Encyclopedia author Rick Pender plans to release a deep dive into Sweeney Todd, in a book tentatively titled Sweeney Todd: Sondheim's Bloody Musical Masterpiece.
Pender calls the show "Sondheim's consensus masterpiece" and told me he chose it as a topic for book-length treatment because of its "tragic story, a remarkable through-composed score, memorable legendary characters, and multiple revivals."
The book will trace the history of the show from the first appearance of a character named Sweeney Todd in the 19th century through every stage and screen version. And given the brilliance of Pender's previous work, you can count on the new book to be filled with commentary on the score, the lyrics, and the show's cultural impact.
• A Sondheiming handbook? In November, How Sondheim Can Change Your Life by Richard Schoch will be released. Much more than a history or analysis of Sondheim's work, the book is an attempt to help fans incorporate Sondheim-oriented lessons into their lives. The author argues that "Sondheim’s greatness — beyond the clever lyrics and adventurous music — rests in his ability to tell stories that relate to us all."
This meaty hardcover book (304 pages) promises a fresh approach that Sondheim fans will no doubt devour.
• Stephen Sondheim, mensch? Also slated for release next year is a biography by Dan Okrent for the Jewish Lives series published by Yale University Press. Not much has been released about the book's content, but if it’s similar to other books in the series it will look at Sondheim's life through a Jewish lens. A few years ago Okrent told the New York Times that his goal is "not to uncover things that people didn't know [but] to put what people do know into context."
As these diverse books hit the shelves, they will allow readers to experience Sondheim’s genius from new and unexpected angles. Whether you’re a puzzle enthusiast, a fan of musical theater, or someone interested in the broader cultural impact of Sondheim's work, there’s something in these releases for everyone. Together, they will help cement Sondheim's status as a towering figure in the arts and ensure that his legacy continues to inspire future generations.
But yeah, you're going to need to make some room on your Sondheim shelf.
MARQUEE readers with easy access to Manhattan should check out this Sondheim parody show now in previews off-Broadway. Click the announcement to buy tickets!
BROADWAY MAVEN YouTube GEM:
Oscar Hammerstein loved bird imagery, from "chicks and ducks and geese better scurry" (Oklahoma!) to "the sweet silver song of a lark (Carousel) to "wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings" (The Sound of Music). Here are nearly 20 examples of avian metaphors in the lyrics of Rodgers & Hammerstein shows.
BROADWAY BLAST: In Heathers, JD (who reads Baudelaire) describes his father's job as owning a "deconstruction" company. It's a delicious turn of phrase for a musical that deconstructs (as in French modernist philosophy) the stratified nature of high school society, and, in its own way, the very notion of a Broadway show itself. After all, the show dismantles a host of teen archetypes, revealing subtler and more complex realities beneath their polished surfaces. And the dark humor and biting satire of the show challenge traditional Broadway conventions, offering a fresh, subversive take on the musical genre.
GAME: Which Broadway shows are represented by these rebuses? Remember that rebuses are phonetic, not thematic. Answers at the bottom of the newsletter, after the Last Blast.
Fiddler on the Roof explores universal themes of tradition, change, and identity through the lens of a Jewish community in early 20th-century Russia. In this FREE two-part series meeting Monday, September 9 and 16 at Noon and 7 pm ET, we’ll look at the ways the musical poignantly portrays the struggle between preserving cultural heritage and adapting to modern influences, making it relatable across cultures and generations. Its timeless story highlights the resilience of people facing oppression, while its memorable songs and characters have left a lasting impact on both theater and popular culture. Fiddler on the Roof continues to resonate with audiences, offering insights into the complexities of family, faith, and societal change.
HOMEWORK: "Life has a way of confusing us, blessing and bruising us." For your homework for Monday's FREE class on Fiddler on the Roof (first of a two-part series), watch this 10-minute video summary of that classic show and identify the most important theme of the show. Explain your answer in the comments. The best answers will be discussed in class.
Note: Links to register for ALL classes are always available at TheBroadwayMaven.com.
• Monday, September 9 Noon and 7 pm ET Fiddler on the Roof part A (FREE)
• Tuesday, September 10 Noon ET Sondheim Academy (registration closed)
• Monday, September 16 Noon and 7 pm ET Fiddler on the Roof part B (FREE)
• Tuesday, September 17 Noon ET Sondheim Academy (registration closed)
• Monday, September 23 Noon and 7 pm ET Ragtime and Parade (FREE)
• Tuesday, September 24 Noon ET Sondheim Academy (registration closed)
• Monday, September 30 Noon and 7 pm ET Barbra Streisand’s musicals (FREE)
NOTE: As always, ALL-ACCESS Passholders do not have to sign up or pay for anything. Just show up!
LAST BLAST: The penultimate song in Guys and Dolls, the rollicking “Sit Down, You’re Rocking the Boat,” is a satirical call for sinners to repent for their wanton gambling and drinking. But “sit down” can also be seen as foreshadowing of “settling down,” which is precisely what Miss Sarah Brown and Miss Adelaide force their men (Sky Masterson and Nathan Detroit) to do after their duet “Marry the Man Today.” So the end of the show points toward domesticity, uncomfortable though it may be for the “guys” in question.
ANSWERS TO GAME: Beetlejuice (Paul McCartney pouring juice); Kinky Books (key + key + boots); Oliver! (a liver); The Producers (produce-rs); Waitress (weight+dress)
Broadway Maven David Benkof helps students further their appreciation of musical theater through his classes, his YouTube channel, and MARQUEE: the Broadway Maven’s Weekly Blast. Contact him at DavidBenkof@gmail.com.