Stephen Sondheim, the great musical theater composer and lyricist, is widely recognized as a genius, but during his lifetime he had a bumpy track record at the box office, with many of his shows losing money.
In death, however, his shows flourished.
The revival of “Merrily We Roll Along” — so unpopular when it debuted in 1981 that it closed 12 days after opening — is now Broadway’s hottest ticket. A lavish revival of “Sweeney Todd” that opened in March is already making money, and at a time when almost everything new on Broadway fails.
Meanwhile, Sondheim’s unfinished and existentialist final work, “Here We Are,” is now the longest-running show in the short history of the Shed, a performing arts center at Hudson Yards on Manhattan’s West Side, where luminaries such as of Steven Spielberg and Lin- Manuel Miranda signed up as producers to ensure no expense was spared on the Sondheim send-off.
“There seems to be a limitless appetite for him,” says Alex Poots, the Shed’s artistic director.
The posthumous Sondheim bump appears to have resulted from a combination of factors.
The big Broadway revivals feature fan-favorite talent — “Merrily” stars Daniel Radcliffe of “Harry Potter” fame, while “Sweeney” is led by renowned baritone Josh Groban — that reflects the desire of top entertainers to champion, and tackle, Sondheim’s tricky but rewarding work.
Also: The outpouring of praise for Sondheim in his death, when he was hailed as a transformational creative force, seems to have spurred renewed interest in his work. And his shows, some of which felt challenging when they first appeared, are now more familiar, thanks to decades of stage productions and film adaptations. Plus, according to most critics, the current revivals are good.
“Sondheim became a sure bet, like you do ‘A Christmas Carol,'” said Danny Feldman, the producing artistic director of the Pasadena Playhouse, a Southern California nonprofit that won this year’s Regional Theater Tony. award The playhouse dedicated the first half of 2023 to Sondheim: A production of “Sunday in the Park With George,” a show once seen as esoteric, became one of its best-selling musicals ever, and a production of “A Little Night Music” is not far behind. “The interest is surprising,” Feldman said.
A side effect of his popularity: Ticket prices are high. “Merrily” faced strong demand from Sondheim enthusiasts and Radcliffe fans, but its capacity was limited; it plays in a theater with only 966 seats. That made it the most expensive ticket on Broadway, with an average ticket price of $250 and a top ticket price of $649 for the week ending Dec. 17. “Sweeney” was also popular, with tickets for the same week with an average of $175 and topping out at $399. (Both shows offer lower ticket prices, especially after the holidays.)
“We shouldn’t be criticized for being a hit and paying investors who got a big punt in New York,” said “Merrily” lead producer, Sonia Friedman. “Most of the shows right now don’t work, and therefore when something does, we return the money to the investors.”
In life, Sondheim was often seen as more of an artistic achievement than a commercial success — a critical darling with a passionate but limited fan base, leading to short runs for many of the shows whose scores were he composed, especially in their first productions. Some shows, particularly “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” were early hits, but several musicals are now viewed as masterpieces, including “Sweeney Todd” and “Sunday in the Park With George,” was done. cannot recover their costs during their original production.
“He did not fall out of favor and was rediscovered. He’s always been respected and admired and appreciated by everyone who loves theater, but we also have to recognize that some of his shows, when they first aired, were misunderstood and not embraced,” said Jordan Roth, the producer who brought the “Here. the Woods” returns to Broadway in the summer of 2022, seven months after Sondheim’s death. Now, Roth said, “It seems like the grip on our hearts has tightened.”
“Into the Woods,” a small production, featured pop singer Sara Bareilles and a troupe of Broadway stars. It recouped the costs and then had a five-month national tour.
In February, seven weeks after “Into the Woods” ended on Broadway, “Sweeney Todd” began previews. It’s a bigger production — big cast, big orchestra — capitalized up to $14.5 million. It has sold strongly since the beginning (in the week ending December 10, it took in $1.8 million) and has recouped its capitalization costs.
“I’m sorry I can’t call him and tell him to look at these grosses. Sure he has a sarcastic statement in response, but he secretly likes it,” said the show’s lead producer Jeffrey Seller. “Who doesn’t want to be affirmed by the audience?”
Groban and his co-star Annaleigh Ashford will end their run on the show on January 14; the show’s success prompted producers to extend the run, with Aaron Tveit and Sutton Foster taking over the lead roles in Feb.
“It’s morphed into being under the umbrella of a massive and worthy celebration of Sondheim’s work and legacy and life,” Groban said. “Suddenly there was sadness, and wanting to make him proud, and what Steve would do.”
“Merrily,” which began previews in September, was the biggest turnabout, as its original production was one of Broadway’s most storied flops. The current revival, capitalized at up to $13 million, is already sold out.
“Of all the things he wanted, he wanted as many people as possible to be in the theater watching the shows, and he just missed it,” said Maria Friedman, the director of the “Merrily” re-run. revivalist and a longtime Sondheim collaborator.
In November, 10 members of the company of the original ill-fated “Merrily” attended the revival and marveled at the reversal of fortunes.
“It’s great to see the show come to an end,” said Gary Stevens, who was 18 in the original “Merrily” group, now 60 and working as an executive at a Florida chauffeuring company. “I would be remiss if I didn’t say there was bittersweetness. We look at the success of this revival as, in some ways, our success, because the day after the closing, no matter how tired we were and how sad we were, we recorded a kick-ass album that kept in that show that was alive, so that it became a legendary flop and cult classic that continues, and now it is.”
Another member of the original “Merrily” cast, actress and singer Liz Callaway, was nominated this year for a Grammy Award for a live album of Sondheim songs, one of two collections of Sondheim songs nominated in the 2024 Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album category. . “I think a new generation has fallen in love with Sondheim now,” he said.
“Here We Are” is a little different. It was not expected to recoup its costs, or transfer to Broadway, but both Shed management and the commercial producer who raised the money to finance the production declared it a success.
“It’s always been about honoring Steve’s legacy,” says producer Tom Kirdahy. “And we hope it has another life, in London or on the road.”
In London, there are also two Sondheim shows running. “Old Friends,” a revue of Sondheim songs with a cast led by Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga, is in the West End. And at the Menier Chocolate Factory, a revival of Sondheim’s rarely performed “Pacific Overtures” opened earlier this month at critical acclaim.
“For those of us who wanted to do right by him, it was a year I’ll never forget,” Groban said. “I just hope she’s smiling.”
