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Post by Mr Snow on Jun 30, 2017 8:31:31 GMT
With the aid of the moderators, if popular this will be the first of a series where we explore favourite Composers and Lyricists in some depth.
Part 1
For the next 7 days we will have a Poll to establish the top 10 major works of one of the greatest living (theatre) composers. The poll will close at 9.30am on Friday 7th July.
We are asking for you to vote for what you think is his greatest work. Just one please. Sometimes this may not be your favourite. It should be the one you feel is the strongest overall, the one you think everyone needs to see and you might want to consider:
Innovation
Historical importance
Overall consistency. I.e. With few longueurs or weak songs.
Plays well.
Of course its subjective but please do not go for the one you feel you can most relate to, but the one you think people will want to see in 100 years. If you haven't seen all of his works we would still like you to vote, just base your choice on what you know.
In order to make it more interesting please post why you chose X over Y and tell us something about the greatest production of it you've seen.
Part 2
Once the poll is closed and a winner is declared we will move into the second part of the poll, more on that later!
Once this thread has run its course, the moderators will be seeing what worked and whether any members would like to use the same format to take on a different composer/Lyricist.
Thanks for reading this and looking forward to reading your replies.
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Post by Mr Snow on Jun 30, 2017 9:26:22 GMT
A Question has been asked whether you should only vote if you’re familiar with all the works?
That’s neither practical nor necessary. If you’ve seen a few and feel that one of the works is his masterpiece, your vote is welcome to.
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19,780 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jun 30, 2017 9:27:01 GMT
He's quite prolific isn't he!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2017 9:34:16 GMT
This is amazing....but also going to destroy my day!!!! This is like Sophies choice!
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jun 30, 2017 9:57:23 GMT
This is amazing....but also going to destroy my day!!!! This is like Sophies choice! Feel free to talk us through your "process"  |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2017 10:02:34 GMT
Sunday... got my vote. It kills me every time and I'm a blubbering mess at the end.
I love Sweeney but seeing it so much, along with Into The Woods, puts me off it from being my favourite.
And someone needs to kill those pesky green finch and linnet birds ASAP!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2017 10:11:33 GMT
I voted for Sweeney. I have my favourites, and the number one rotates on a daily basis, but you asked for best, and I do think it's one of the most brilliantly constructed musicals ever, so it is with apologies to my other favourites that I cast my vote for the Demon Barber.
Shame it's a poll though, I think an AV voting system would throw up more accurate results, but then I suppose you'd have to go through all the individual posts and count up the rankings and trust people to not mess around and change their votes.
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Post by alece10 on Jun 30, 2017 10:23:49 GMT
I've gone for ALNM but if I could vote for 1 act of a musical it would be Sunday as first act is wonderful but 2nd act not so good.
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Post by infofreako on Jun 30, 2017 10:30:59 GMT
Has to be West Side Story for me. Played such a massive role in my musical theatre story.
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Post by ali973 on Jun 30, 2017 10:41:28 GMT
This is problematic. I feel it's wrong to clump his "lyrics only" (a la Gypsy and West Side Story) with his "music and lyrics" shows (Follies, Sunday, Passion).
Therefore, I'm abstaining.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2017 11:28:34 GMT
This is too much of tough desion as I really love many of these shows but for me it has o be Sweeney as that is the show that got me into theatre going and started my love of musicals and all thing about theatre.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2017 12:17:35 GMT
My personal favourites are Pacific Overtures and Assassins, but by the criteria suggested I've gone for A Little Night Music. Difficult to choose though.
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Post by Mr Snow on Jun 30, 2017 12:21:21 GMT
There are very practical reasons for it being a simple poll and it’s nice to see a strong response to the vote. Other systems were considered but they too have their drawbacks. As to what to include, well the two books about Lyrics are essential and we could also have included a film script! Drawing a line under his major contributions to Musicals semed right. Amazing to see him attracting votes for work across a 33 year period.
I was very tempted to vote for Follies (too ‘in joke’) or ALNM with it’s brilliant cast at the National a few years ago impressing the hell out of me.. The first act of Sunday…
In the end I’ve gone with Company. When I saw the Sam Mendes production with Adrian Lester at the Donmar, I realised Musicals could go up to a gear I never knew existed. Technically brilliant and part of a grand tradition, yet completely fresh and …as involving and complex as any straight play. I still can’t work out why but I was able to relate completely to these people who lived in a world I’d never known, in a situation I hadn’t experienced, while at the same time dazzle and entertain me. If there’s one Sondheim show that’s brilliant but doesn’t have even a hint of ‘to clever by half’, then this is the one for me.
Later I saw a concert version done for Radio 2 at the Hackney Empire that (Someone in a Tree pointed out to me) had Julian Ovendon in the lead and it didn’t disappoint, even as a one off. The big theatrical event for me this year is seeing the promised version with a female Bobbie – any news of tickets?
(If I have reservations it is how the score will sound in 100 years, it does sound very 70s).
I would also say about 5 years ago I saw a shortened but quite brilliant Assassins at the Ed Fringe by the (amateur) Princeton University Theatre group that allowed the shocking subject to slap you in the face. It was 100% better than the much lauded Menier version. I hope his musicals are revived for years and years and welcome a fresh approach to them each time.
Still keen to hear more about productions that showed how great a score is.
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Post by ali973 on Jun 30, 2017 12:35:58 GMT
PS-
Isn't Bounce and Road Show the same thing but with different titles?
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jun 30, 2017 14:09:12 GMT
You can change your vote as the discussions continue if you change your mind.
Just uncheck the box, and check your new choice.
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Post by vabbian on Jun 30, 2017 17:42:13 GMT
ooo three favourites
Gypsy 1993 - Bette Midler
Sweeney Todd 2015 - Emma Thompson
Into The Woods 1989 - Bernadette Peters
overall voted Into The Woods
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Post by notmymuse on Jul 1, 2017 7:44:31 GMT
This is tricky. Sweeney is probably the most accessible and popular, but Assassins is, for me, stronger. And I have a soft spot for Anyone Can Whistle... I find Sondheim so Marmite though - some of his I love, done I find really dull (like Pacific Overtures and Saturday Night and Passion).
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Post by Deleted on Jul 1, 2017 7:53:17 GMT
Definitely Company - it totally changed my idea of what musical theatre should be. Up until then it had been the likes of Rodgers and Hammerstein and Lerner and Loewe. Company opened the gates to depth and meaning that I hadn't seen in musicals before. I saw the original London run 10 times with both the American and Brit cast. God bless Julia McKenzie.
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Post by orchestrator on Jul 1, 2017 11:11:58 GMT
Interesting diversion from real life :-)
I voted for Assassins because it is such an audacious political subject and is musically and lyrically so strong; also the book contains moments of genius. My second choice would be SITPWG because it moves me (as a whole piece, not just act 1). Third place for Follies. Can’t believe that means I’m relegating Sweeney, ALNM, ITW, Merrily, WSS and Gypsy to “also-rans”. If there were any doubts about Sondheim’s place in the Pantheon (the best!) a quick read through this list should dispel them.
No votes yet for Passion.
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Post by horton on Jul 1, 2017 12:21:24 GMT
Sunday makes me cry EVERY time
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Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2017 20:01:08 GMT
No 'Evening Primrose' amongst the options? I'd be surprised if it were anyone's favourite show, but 'If You Can Find me I'm Here' is killer.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2017 20:08:37 GMT
Merrily > Company > Todd > Sunday > Woods > All the others.
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Post by Mr Snow on Jul 2, 2017 21:07:30 GMT
Half way through the voting period and it will be great if we can get 100 votes. Does anyone know of a method or a website where we can compile nos of performances to determine his most popular works today? Opera base does this for Opera's old and new. But they don't consider him an Opera composer. This is technically correct even if I think several of his works will be adopted by that community. operabase.com/view.cgi?lang=en&rare=1617 |
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Post by andrew on Jul 3, 2017 2:12:14 GMT
I've posted before about my feelings for Sunday and have voted for this today. It's interesting to see so many votes for Sweeney Todd when I so often here people just talking about how much they hate it. It would be between the two of them for me, but reflecting the monkeys lovely thought about carrying lines from it in your heart, Sunday in the Park with George fits this bill for me.
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Post by haz23 on Jul 3, 2017 12:41:03 GMT
This has been very difficult, like asking a parent who their favourite child is!
My three favourites are Sweeney, Into The Woods and Company. I've been fortunate enough to be in amateur productions of all three and the experiences changed my perception on musical theatre entirely, I've never seen any of them done professionally so they're on my bucket list! There are so many other bits of Sondheim from his other works that I love - Sunday, Merrily We Roll Along, Anyone Can Whistle etc. I adore Gypsy and West Side Story but since he only did the lyrics for those I won't count them on this occasion.
I've voted for Into The Woods.
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