Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Sondheim
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Stephen Joshua Sondheim (March 22, 1930 – November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. Among the most important figures in 20th-century musical theater, Sondheim was praised for having "reinvented the American musical" with shows that tackled "unexpected themes that range far beyond the [genre's] traditional subjects" with "music and lyrics of unprecedented complexity and sophistication". His shows addressed "darker, more harrowing elements of the human experience" with songs often tinged with "ambivalence" about various aspects of life. Sondheim started his theatre career by writing the lyrics for West Side Story (1957) and Gypsy (1959) before becoming a composer and lyricist. Sondheim's best-known works include A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1962), Company (1970), Follies (1971), A Little Night Music (1973), Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1979), Merrily We Roll Along (1981), Sunday in the Park with George (1984), and Into the Woods (1987). Sondheim's accolades include eight Tony Awards (including a Lifetime Achievement Tony in 2008), an Academy Award, eight Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize, a Laurence Olivier Award, and a 2015 Presidential Medal of Freedom. He has a theater named for him both on Broadway and in the West End of London. Sondheim wrote film music, contributing "Goodbye for Now" for Warren Beatty's Reds (1981). He wrote five songs for 1990's Dick Tracy, including "Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)", sung in the film by Madonna, which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Film adaptations of Sondheim's work include West Side Story (1961), Gypsy (1962), A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966), A Little Night Music (1977), Gypsy (1993), Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007), Into the Woods (2014), West Side Story (2021), and Merrily We Roll Along (TBD).
Known For Writing
Popularity 3.013
Birthday 1930-03-22
Place of Birth New York City, New York, USA
Also Known As
tick, tick... BOOM!
2021

tick, tick... BOOM!

Into the Woods: A Conversationpiece
1990

Into the Woods: A Conversationpiece

Assassins: A Conversationpiece
1991

Assassins: A Conversationpiece

Cameron Mackintosh - The First 50 Years
2021

Cameron Mackintosh - The First 50 Years

On Broadway
2019

On Broadway

Something's Coming: West Side Story
2021

Something's Coming: West Side Story

Original Cast Album: Company
1970

Original Cast Album: Company

Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There
2003

Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There

The Stories of West Side Story
2022

The Stories of West Side Story

A Place for Us: West Side Story's Legacy
2011

A Place for Us: West Side Story's Legacy

Hey, Mr. Producer! The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh
1998

Hey, Mr. Producer! The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh

Keeping Company with Sondheim
2022

Keeping Company with Sondheim

Sondheim: A Musical Tribute
1973

Sondheim: A Musical Tribute

Six by Sondheim
2013

Six by Sondheim

The Making of Sweeney Todd at the San Francisco Symphony
2002

The Making of Sweeney Todd at the San Francisco Symphony

Sondheim: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall
1992

Sondheim: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall

Sunday in the Park with... Stephen
1990

Sunday in the Park with... Stephen

The Last of Sheila Featurette
1973

The Last of Sheila Featurette

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
2022

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Best Worst Thing That Ever Could Have Happened...
2016

Best Worst Thing That Ever Could Have Happened...

West Side Stories: The Making of a Classic
2016

West Side Stories: The Making of a Classic

Putting it Together: The Making of the Broadway Album
1986

Putting it Together: The Making of the Broadway Album

Harold Prince: The Director's Life
2018

Harold Prince: The Director's Life

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street - Burton + Carter + Depp = Todd
2008

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street - Burton + Carter + Depp = Todd

West Side Memories
2003

West Side Memories

June Moon
1974

June Moon

Follies: In Concert
1986

Follies: In Concert

Sweeney Todd: Scenes from the Making of a Musical
1980

Sweeney Todd: Scenes from the Making of a Musical

Camp
2003

Camp

Sondheim! The Birthday Concert
2010

Sondheim! The Birthday Concert

Witness to 'Reds'
2006

Witness to 'Reds'

Inside the Actors Studio
1994

Inside the Actors Studio

The Simpsons
1989

The Simpsons

The Merv Griffin Show
1962

The Merv Griffin Show

The Colbert Report
2005

The Colbert Report

Pebble Mill
1991

Pebble Mill

The Kennedy Center Honors
1978

The Kennedy Center Honors

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
2015

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

The Oscars
1953

The Oscars

Tony Awards
1956

Tony Awards

Previn and the Pittsburgh
1977

Previn and the Pittsburgh

Broadway: The American Musical
2004

Broadway: The American Musical

Live from Lincoln Center
1976

Live from Lincoln Center

Great Performances
1971

Great Performances

Great Performances
1971

Great Performances