Stephen Sondheim.
Musical theater lovers almost whisper the name he is so revered.
And difficult. Performers will tell you there’s nothing quite as complex as singing a Sondheim tune. But they love it.
Arizona Repertory Theatre takes on an especially challenging Sondheim when the University of Arizona students perform “A Little Night Music,” opening in previews Sunday.
Here’s a primer on the musical:
The story
The 1973 musical was inspired by Ingmar Bergman’s “Smiles of a Summer Night.” It takes place at a country estate in Sweden, where mismatched couples and others gather for a summer weekend in the country. There is:
- Middle-aged Fredrik Egerman, wealthy, widowed, and married to 18-year-old Anne, naïve and virginal. They wed almost a year before, but have yet to consummate the union.
- Henrik Egerman, Fredrik’s son, an academic in love with Anne.
- Desiree Armfeldt, a once-famous actress whose bloom has long faded. Fredrik was once one of her many lovers.
- Count Carl-Magnus Malcolm, a bit of a buffoon and Desiree’s current lover.
- Countess Charlotte Malcom, the count’s wife.
- Fredrika Armfeldt, 13 and Desiree’s daughter. She may be the result of her mother’s liaison with Fredrik Egerman.
- Petra, Anne’s maid, confidant, and a bit of a flirt.
- Madame Armfeldt, Desiree’s mother and the owner of the country estate. She’s had her flings, too, mostly with royalty she says.
- The Quintet, sometimes referred to as Liebeslieders, a sort of Greek chorus. They help move the narration along.
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About that music
All the songs in “A Little Night Music” are composed in ¾ time. Sondheim has said about the choice: “I put everything in some form of triple time so that the whole score would feel vaguely like a long waltz with scherzi (light-hearted movements) in between so that no song would seem to have come from another texture.”
Sondheim’s music is often complex, and his lyrics always eloquent and cerebral. In this piece, you’ll find lots of high notes, meters that challenge and frequent pitch changes — all making it more difficult to perform than a typical musical. “A Little Night Music” includes the composer’s big crossover hit (from musical theater to popular music) “Send In the Clowns.” That tune, as well as the others in the musical, underscore character, reveal thoughts and advance the plot. And, well, they’re Sondheim — they are gorgeous.
It’s got legs
Since its first production in 1973 in New York, “A Little Night Music” has barely had a rest — it premiered in London’s West End in 1975, was revived again in ’95 and 2009. On Broadway, it was also revived in ’09. Every production, with the exception of the ’09 London revival, won awards — Oliviers in London, and Tonys in New York. Opera companies around the world have performed it, and regional theaters, as well as schools such as the UA, have mounted productions. In 1977, Elizabeth Taylor was in the film version of the musical.
Why see it
Well, did we mention Sondheim is the best? He is. And so are many of the performers studying acting at the University of Arizona. This is a chance to see actors before they make it big. And our guess is that many of them will make it big.
