Sondheim—it’s a household name. Even if you don’t know who he is, you recognize his name. Sondheim’s work has inspired generations of songwriters, singers, composers, and directors. From West Side Story to Into The Woods, he has given audiences the most touching and gripping music. Unfortunately, on Nov. 26, the curtain closed on Sondheim’s impressive life and career at age 91. 

Stephen Sondheim was born on Mar. 22, 1930. He grew up on the upper west side of Manhattan, NY, with his mother and father. His mother designed dresses, and his father manufactured them.

Sondheim’s childhood was lonely. He was an only child and as a result, emotionally neglected. He attended the Ethical Culture Fieldston School, and in 1940, his mother sent him to the New York Military Academy.

Sondheim “famously despised his mother, Janet Fox (Foxy) Sondheim, whose funeral in 1992 he didn’t bother to attend.” said Frank Rich in Conversations with Sondheim. 

This hatred began when his father left his mother. His mother seemed to aim all her anger at Sondheim, using him as a replacement for his father. She berated him throughout his childhood, even well into his adulthood after he separated himself from her.

“‘My Mother was quite a remarkable character,’ [said] Mr. Sondheim, recalling an incident that occured when he was in his late 40’s.” Michiko Kakutani quoted in Theater; Sondheim’s Passionate ‘Passion’. His mother was going to the hospital to have a pacemaker put in. Since most mothers who have open-heart surgery write their children a letter, Sondheim’s mother decided to do the same. She had the letter hand-delivered to her son. In the letter, “She said, ‘The night before I undergo open heart surgery,’ — underlined three times. Open parenthesis ‘My surgeon’s term.’ Close parenthesis. ‘The only regret I have in life is giving you birth.’”

Sondheim had a close friendship with James Hammerstein, the son of Oscar Hammerstein II. Hammerstein II became his mentor and main influence in the world of musical theater.

From 1942 to 1943, Sondheim attended George School, and wrote his first musical, By George. The musical was a huge success amongst his peers. The play parodied the school’s denizens. Sondheim was proud of his first musical, and asked Oscar Hammerstein to review it “as if it was a musical written by a stranger,” according to his website. Hammerstein “pronounced it the worst thing he had ever read. He said it wasn’t untalented, just bad, and he proceeded to go through the script line by line with Sondheim.” That afternoon, Sondheim learned more about musicals than most people learn in a lifetime. The show was performed at the George School on May 25, 1946.

Hammerstein designed a course for Sondheim to help him construct musicals. Under this curriculum, Sondheim had to write four different musicals with various conditions.

1. Based on a play he admired: he turned Marc Connelly’s Beggar on Horseback  (1924) into All That Glitters (1949)
2. Based on a play he liked, but thought was flawed: he chose Maxwell Anderson’s High Tor (1936)
3. Based on an existing novel not yet dramatized: Bad Tuesday
4. An original: Climb High (circa 1951)

From 1946 to 1950, Sondheim attended Williams College, and won the Hubbard Hutchinson Prize. This would give him a two year fellowship to study music. 

Sondheim broke through around 1954 to 1959. Burt Shevelove invited Sondheim to a party, where he saw Arthur Laurents. Sondheim’s conversation with Laurents landed him an audition as a lyricist. Laurents wanted to make a musical version of Romeo and Juliet with Leonard Berstein. Laurents wasn’t too impressed by Sondheim’s music, so he was hesitant to hire Sondheim. When Sondheim auditioned for Berstein, he said he would let Sondheim know. The final product of this project was West Side Story (1957). 

In 1959, Sondheim was approached by Laurents and Robbins for a musical version of Gypsy Rose Lee’s memoir. The next year, Oscar Hammerstein passed away due to stomach cancer. 

The first musical Sondheim wrote the music and lyrics to was A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. It was a hit, winning six Tony Awards including Best Musical. After writing Do I Hear A Waltz, Sondheim solely wrote music and lyrics for theater. 

In 1970, Sondheim’s work took a different form. He began to work on the concept-musical Company with director Harold Prince. The comedy was nominated for a record-breaking 14 Tony Awards. 

In his 40s, Sondheim came out as gay. He later happily married Jeffrey Scott Romley in 2017; the couple stayed together until Sondheim’s death. 

After his long, successful career, Sondheim decided he wanted to become a mentor. He was inspired to return the favor that Oscar Hammerstein II gave to him. Sondheim first mentored Adam Guettel; it apparently didn’t work out well. He later wrote a letter, apologizing to Guettel for being “not very encouraging.” Sondheim also mentored Jonathan Larson. 

Sondheim even mentored Lin-Manuel Miranda. They first worked together to translate the West Side Story lyrics into Spanish for a Broadway revival. Miranda then approached Sondheim for help with the acclaimed Hamilton. Sondheim reviewed and gave notes on what was called The Hamilton Mixtape. 

When Sondheim passed, he was staying at his home in Roxbury, Connecticut. Though the composer was 91, his attorney F. Richard Pappas described the death as sudden.

“The day before, Mr. Sondheim had celebrated Thanksgiving with dinner with friends in Roxbury,” Pappas said in a written statement. “And he spent all day Wednesday seeing the matinee and evening performances of Dana H and Is This a Room—doing what he most loved to do.” 

Though Sondheim has passed, the 2021 West Side Story film revival proves his legacy will live on. 

“He was an amazing composer. He wrote so many songs for so many different plays, he really revolutionized theater,” said Arcadia High School junior Felicity Panza.

Photograph courtesy of WIKIMEDIA COMMONS