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Stephen Sondheim

Stephen Sondheim Quotes

Composer

Stephen Sondheim, an American composer, was born on March 22, 1930. Renowned for his exceptional contributions to the musical theater genre, Sondheim's works are characterized by complex melodies, profound lyrics, and innovative narrative structures. His musicals, including 'West Side Story,' 'Company,' 'Follies,' and 'Sweeney Todd,' have had a profound impact not only in the United States but also globally.

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Famous Stephen Sondheim Quotes

“If you told me to write a love song tonight, I'd have a lot of trouble. But if you tell me to write a love song about a girl with a red dress who goes into a bar and is on her fifth martini and is falling off her chair, that's a lot easier, and it makes me free to say anything I want.”

Ifs Want Writing Song Fall Girl Trouble Easier Red Dresses Bars Chairs Tonight Say Anything Fifth Martini Falling Off

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“If I got involved with the chat rooms and Facebook and everything - I would probably never leave. That's why I don't do it. I literally don't do it. At all.”

Ifs Rooms Involved

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“I love computers. I love writing on them. I love gadgetry. The thing is: I am a slow reader. So, if I am going to get my work done, I read, like, a newspaper and that's it. If I got into websites and the internet, I wouldn't get any work done.”

Ifs Writing Done Reader Internet Computer Newspapers Website Work Done

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“If the end is right, it justifies the beans!”

Ifs Ends Justify Beans

Book:Into the Woods

Source: Into the Woods

“He came from a rock band and even though he was not a lead singer, I knew he was musical just from that. I also knew that he was intelligent enough from talking to him, that he would not play this part unless he could handle it vocally. I knew he was not about to get up there and have to have his voice dubbed or come off croaking. So Johnny Depp casted Johnny Depp. I trusted him entirely. I knew that he was no fool and he would only do it if he felt he could handle it. I told him to listen to the score carefully and if you can handle it, fine by me, and I was right.”

Ifs Enough Play Felt Voice Talking Rocks Fine Fool Band Intelligent Musical Singers Handle Get Up Score Trusted Rock Bands Talking To Him

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“Everyone would like to be on Broadway, cause if a show works, you make a great deal of money and it allows you to write other shows.”

Ifs Writing Shows Causes Deals Broadway

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“For anyone approaching any one of the cast albums, if they don't like what they hear, it's not the performer's fault.”

Ifs Faults Casts Albums Performers

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“Sometimes I'll ask the book writer to write a monologue, not to be performed, just as if they were notes for the character.”

Ifs Writing Book Sometimes Character Asks Notes Monologues

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“Take a play that you like but you think is flawed, and see if you can improve it and turn it into a musical. [...] Then make up your own story.”

Ifs Thinking Play Stories Turns Musical Flawed

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“If people have split views about your work, I think it's flattering. I'd rather have them feel something about it than dismiss it.”

People Ifs Thinking Feels Views Splits Flattering

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“If you're dealing with a musical in which you're trying to tell a story, it's got to sound like speech. At the same time it's got to be a song.”

Ifs Trying Stories Song Sound Speech Musical

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“The worst thing you can do is censor yourself as the pencil hits the paper. You must not edit until you get it all on paper. If you can put everything down, stream-of-consciousness, you'll do yourself a service.”

Ifs Writing Can Do Consciousness Worst Paper Streams Worst Things Pencils Edits Stream Of Consciousness

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“If I cannot fly, let me sing.”

Ifs Singing Let Me

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“Oh if life were made of moments Even now and then a bad one--! But if life were only moments, Then you'd never know you had one.”

Ifs Knows Made Moments Now And Then

Book:Into the Woods

Source: Into the Woods

“Ah, but if you have no expectations, You can never have a disappointment.”

Ifs Expectations Disappointment

Author:Stephen Sondheim

“You have two kinds of shows on Broadway - revivals and the same kind of musicals over and over again, all spectacles. You get your tickets for 'The Lion King' a year in advance, and essentially a family comes as if to a picnic, and they pass on to their children the idea that that's what the theater is - a spectacular musical you see once a year, a stage version of a movie. It has nothing to do with theater at all. It has to do with seeing what is familiar. We live in a recycled culture.”

Ifs Years Kind Children Two Ideas Shows Culture Seeing Stage Kings Theater Musical Theatre Familiar Versions Lions Tickets Broadway Revival Spectacular Picnics Spectacles Recycled Lion King

Author:Stephen Sondheim