My agent called me and told me that this letter [appeared]. You know, you get certain calls and the phone rings in certain ways, and it just doesn’t sound good. And that was one of those times. I was shocked. I knew how much Steve loves Porgy and Bess. He’s never shied away from how passionate he is about this particular opera. And I think he is a genius; he is one of the great composers of American musical theater. And I respect his passion. But I know how I feel about this opera. I know how I’ve always felt about this opera. And I have never had anything but the greatest love and respect for this opera. So even if that’s how it came across in the piece — or that’s how it came across to Steve in the piece — there’s not one iota of disdain for this opera in my heart. And that’s apparent by my obsession with it over the years.

— Audra McDonald on Stephen Sondheim’s critical letter in The New York Times about the production before it began previews

I’m interested in the theater because I’m interested in communication with audiences. Otherwise I would be in concert music. I’d be in another kind of profession. I love the theater as much as music, and the whole idea of getting across to an audience and making them laugh, making them cry — just making them feel — is paramount to me.

— Happy Birthday Stephen Sondheim! [Sondheim on Fresh Air]

Stephen Sondheim on Leonard Bernstein

Terry Gross: Did you learn anything working with Bernstein and watching him work?
Stephen Sondheim: Oh, sure. A great deal. Yes. Mainly I learned something about courage. I learned – Lenny was never afraid to make big mistakes. He was never afraid to fall off the top rung of the ladder and I learned by implication that the worst thing you can do is fall off a low rung. If you're going to make a mistake, make a huge one.

I’m interested in the theater because I’m interested in communication with audiences. “Otherwise I would be in concert music. I’d be in another kind of profession. I love the theater as much as music, and the whole idea of getting across to an audience and making them laugh, making them cry — just making them feel — is paramount to me.

— Stephen Sondheim, on life, writing, theater.

[With his lyrics,] you expect him to take a right and he takes a left. He does that with melodies as well. And actually, when you’re learning the music — and I’m sure I can speak for every actor who’s learned a Sondheim song — you’re secretly cursing Stephen Sondheim. Because it’s so damn hard to learn his music.

— Danny Burstein on Stephen Sondheim

Danny Burstein on Sondheim: “I know Stephen is one of those writers that writes things for a reason — there is intelligence behind it. And I tried to get it right for him. I really believe, so strongly, in the fact that he’s a genius and that his writing takes care of the actor. So basically every single night, you just try to live up to the brilliant writing.” [complete interview here]

Today: Danny Burstein from the Broadway musical Follies.

Ted Shawn in Cosmic Dance of Siva during Ziegfield Follies T… (by New York Public Library)

Stephen Colbert on performing in Sondheim’s Company: “I tell a lot of young performers, ‘Go get in trouble. Go commit yourself to something you’re not sure you can do. And I followed my own advice. It was something I desperately wanted to do — not as a career — but an invitation I knew I couldn’t refuse and yet had no sense of whether or not I could do it. And that is trouble — but it was all so joyful. I’m very grateful to Mr. Sondheim that he got me in such trouble.” [complete Colbert interview here]

cannibalbuff3t:

Two of my favorite people. <3

Tomorrow: Stephen Colbert. Before: NPH on FA.

Tomorrow’s going to be fun, Internet. Guest: Stephen Colbert.

Background: Jon Stewart. Stephen Sondheim.

f—-yeahstephensondheim:

More fun with SoundCloud. This appears to be a remix of one of Sondheim’s appearances on Fresh Air.

Sondheim: The Remix. Sondheim: The Original.

Steve is wonderful to collaborate with and he thinks I am, because I say, ‘Go ahead, raid the dialogue.’ For example, the first line of Mr. Goldstone — ‘Have an egg roll, Mr. Goldstone — was taken from the dialogue. But he means really more than that. He is one of the few, too few, lyricists, who knows that each character speaks differently and sings differently. They have a different diction. So he waited, in the case of Gypsy, so I could write the characters. He would see how they would speak. That affected what lyrics he wrote for them.

— Arthur Laurents, on working with Stephen Sondheim. Laurents died on Thursday at the age of 93.

Fresh Air remembers playwright Arthur Laurents (center) who died on Thursday. Laurents wrote the books for Gypsy and West Side Story. In 1990, he explained to Terry Gross how the original pitch for West Side Story was a bit…different: “It was about a Jewish girl and a Catholic boy in New York over Easter and Passover. And I wanted no part of it. And then several years passed and I happened to be in California and Lenny Bernstein was in California. By that time, juvenile delinquent gangs had come into being … That’s where the idea came from — the front page. And then Lenny and I called Jerry and said, ‘We’re ready to go.’”

Tune in today as we continue our look back at the most entertaining interviews of 2010 with Stephen Sondheim. The legendary composer celebrated his 80th birthday this year.

Can’t wait to hear it? This should hold you over: Sondheim recently sat down with another Stephen to chat about his new book, a collection of lyrics titled Finishing the Hat. Check him out on the Colbert Report before you tune in to us. 

Also on the program today, journalist Matt Richtel talks to Terry about the impact technology is having on our lives and our brains. 

— braiker

We’re kind of big Stephen and Stephen fans here at Fresh Air so we were very excited to see both Stephens together last night on Colbert.