David Ives Dishes on Collaborating with the Legendary Stephen Sondheim- 'He Loves to Be Amused'

In a recent interview with the Chicago Tribune, David Ives dished collaborating with Stephen Sondheim on his latest project.

Sondheim and Ives newest project marks the first new work from Sondheim since 2008. The new musical is based on two surrealist movies by Spanish director Luis Bunuel, "The Exterminating Angel" and "The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie." Ives is thrilled to be working with Sondheim in creating this new piece of musical theatre and talked to the Chicago Tribune about the process.

He tells the Chicago Tribune: "It's rather like Verdi or Mozart calling me up at 7:30 each night and I tell Mozart 'sure,' and then he sings to me each night," said Ives of the creative process. "He also keeps apologizing that his hands are not what they used to be."

One of the questions Ives gets asked frequently is what it's like to work with such a legendary composer. Ives says, "you get in a room with a genius like Steve and it's also exactly like working with anyone else. He is really no different from all the other people in the theater. He loves to be amused."

Ives also discussed working on "The Heir Apparent" in Chicago this season. The show begins performances Sunday and opens Dec. 8 starring Nate Burger, Emily Peterson, Paxton Whitehead, Jessie Fisher and Linda Kimbrough.

Check out the full interview with Ives here and get excited about this latest musical from Stephen Sondheim.