By Harry Forbes
That ubiquitous genre, the Stephen Sondheim revue -- one which had its genesis in Ned Sherrin and David Kernan’s “Side by Side by Sondheim” back in 1976 -- has provided us with numberless such tributes over the years, each one worthy in its own way. And this latest, derived from the one night only all-star gala at London’s Drury Lane in 2022, is no exception. (Fittingly, original “Side by Side” star Julia McKenzie serves as Artistic Director here.)
The evening was planned in its early stages by Sondhem himself in tandem with his British producer/colleague Cameron MacIntosh who, after Sondheim’s death, followed through with shaping the project.
After the gala, the show was reworked for a regular West End run with different cast members. Now, on Broadway, only Bernadette Peters and Bonnie Langford remain from the festive one night occasion, but Peters is joined above-the-title with Lea Salonga, along with a classy roster of West End and Broadway talent, including Kate Jennings Grant, Gavin Lee, Joanna Riding, Beth Leavel, and Kevin Earley.
Unlike Broadway’s last Sondheim anthology -- “Sondheim by Sondheim” in 2000 -- there’s little narrative here, just number after number. Nearly all the songs will be more than familiar to fans, and if the show has a fault, that may be it. But one can’t argue with the quality of the material. And the audience at the performance I attended was highly enthusiastic throughout.
Though Salonga has not particularly associated with Sondheim, that instantly changes with “Old Friends.” Not only does Salonga offer gorgeous renditions of such lyrical ballads as “Loving You” and “Somewhere,” singing with the same crystalline clarity that brought her to fame in “Miss Saigon” in 1989, but most surprisingly, she takes on the raucous Mrs. Lovett in “Sweeney Todd” and force-of-nature dynamo Rose in “Gypsy.” And she’s quite fabulous in those atypical roles.
As for Peters, the lady remains something of a marvel. She’s retained her classic look to a remarkable degree, and the voice, some occaional strain notwithstanding, is still capable of the purity of old. Given her long and distinguished career with Sondheim, it’s goose-bump time to hear her reprise bits of her original stage roles including “Sunday in the Park with George” and “Into the Woods.” as well as roles she played in revival during the composer’s lifetime, such as “A Little Night Music” and “Follies.” Both “Send in the Clowns” from the former and “Losing My Mind” from the latter are highlights.
The first act gives us clusters of songs from “Company,” “Into the Woods,” and “Sweeney Todd,” along with other items, including a snippet of “Bounce” done by Peters, the rarest selection of the evening. Jeremy Secomb is particularly outstanding as Sweeney Todd, a role he’s played to acclaim. And in the “Into the Woods” sequence, there’s also standout work from Jacob Dickey as the Wolf, Early and Kyle Selig as the lovelorn princes, and Jasmine Forsberg as Cinderella.
The second act includes an amusing riff on Peters’ distinctive version of “Broadway Baby,” and a funny version of “You Gotta Have a Gimmick,” with Peters, Leavel, and Riding as decidedly over-the-hill strippers.
There are many highlights. For starters, Langford delivers one of the very best versions of “I’m Still Here,” propulsively sung with wonderfully firm tone, though one verse has undergone a lyric change to excise dated references. Riding, still fondly remembered for her Julie in Nicholas Hytner’s production of “Carousel” at the National Theatre, delivers the tongue-twisting “Getting Married Today” with aplomb. Lee sings a venomous gender-altered “Could I Leave You?” as Kernan did years ago in “Side by Side”; Leavel makes “The Ladies Who Lunch” her own. The “Tonight Quintet” from “West Side Story” gets a particularly exciting rendition from Dickey, Daniel Yearwood, Selig, Maria Wirries, and Jasmine Forsberg. Grant’s “The Boy from…” is a hoot. And Lee, Jason Pennycooke, and Selig cavort merrily through a riotous “Everybody Ought to Have a Maid.”
The whole is beautifully paced by director Matthew Bourne (with choreography by Stephen Mear). Stephen Brooker’s musical arrangements are excellent, under the musical supervision of Alfonso Casado Trigo. (Annbritt duChateau conducts.)
(The Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, 261 West 47th Street; OldFriendsBroadway.com; through June 15)
Photos by Matthew Murphy:
(Top) - Jacob Dickey and Bernadette Peters perform “Hello, Little Girl”
(Below) - Jeremy Secomb and Lea Salonga perform “The Worst Pies in London”
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