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THEATRICAL THROWBACK THURSDAY: Richard Rodgers & Stephen Sondheim's DO I HEAR A WALTZ? Turns 50

By: Mar. 19, 2015
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Today we are revisiting the sole collaboration between Richard Rodgers and Stephen Sondheim, DO I HEAR A WALTZ?

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We're Gonna Be All Right

It is certainly not unusual for major Broadway figures to have their musicals or plays premiere in the same season as each other, but for two of the biggest names in all of theatre at any particular time to actually collaborate on a brand new project is a cause celebre, no matter what the era. Case in point, look no further than 1965 Broadway musical DO I HEAR A WALTZ? for a prime example of not two, but three of the most significant names in all of musical theatre converging to create a brand new piece - in this case, legendary composer Richard Rodgers, then-rising lyricist and songwriter Stephen Sondheim along with noted playwright and bookwriter Arthur Laurents. Yet, not all marriages are made in heaven, after all, particularly artistic ones in the theatrical realm, and sometimes the results fail to live up to the impossibly decadent potential of the respective property when it finally exists onstage - and so it goes with DO I HEAR A WALTZ?, which premiered on Broadway this very week back in 1965.

Based on Laurents's own 1952 hit play THE TIME OF THE CUCKOO, which was translated to the well-regarded David Lean film SUMMERTIME, the idea for a musical about a New York City secretary on a voyage to Italy and the various social and romantic interactions she enjoys while vacationing on the Mediterranean appears to be as ripe for musicalization as virtually any number of other sources, if not more so. Nevertheless, DO I HEAR A WALTZ? unfortunately found Rodgers in a low period of his career following the death of his longtime collaborator and famed lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II in 1960, with Sondheim a fledgling songwriter eager to compose music and lyrics following successful lyrical work on the legendary Golden Age musicals WEST SIDE STORY and GYPSY in the years immediately prior, but eventually accepting the project out of regard to his deceased friend and mentor. Despite Rodgers ill health and depressive state, the composer managed to conjure up several lovely melodies anyway, with a few stylistic standouts, though DO I HEAR A WALTZ? is particularly remarkable in regards to Sondheim's dazzling and dexterous lyrics, which veer from ribald comedy to striking character-building moments to rapturous romantic loveliness and beyond. Although it is not one of the great musical theatre scores of all time, there are more pleasures to be enjoyed in it than in many other musicals before or since and it certainly belongs on the shelf alongside the great works by both theatre icons.

Among the highlights of the score, first and foremost is the guffaw-inducing duet "We're Gonna Be All Right", which was subsequently unceremoniously rewritten during rehearsals at the behest of Mrs. Rodgers to be less riotous and more straight-laced, removing its biting, satirical, Cole Porter-esque edge all the while. Furthermore, another cut song, "Everybody Loves Leona" was thankfully reinstated for a vastly rewritten and reworked version of the show that was presented at the George Street Playhouse - and later, Pasadena Playhouse - under the supervision of Laurents and Sondheim at the turn of the new century. Other gems include the Act One closer, "Take The Moment" and the lilting 11 o'clock number "Thank You So Much".

While DO I HEAR A WALTZ? was not the runaway hit of the season, the production did eek out a respectable 220 performances in its original Broadway iteration starring Elizabeth Allen and Sergio Franchi, receiving Tony Award nominations for Best Score, Best Actress In A Musical (Allen) and Best Scenic Design (Beni Montresor). Additionally, as previously stated, the show was significantly revised by Laurents and Sondheim in the late-1990s, with the new version of the musical solving many of the dramatic, thematic and structural problems that plagued the original, and, thankfully, the new version of the musical is what regional theaters and schools now have the option to produce - if they are daring enough to tackle a property as idiosyncratic, tricky and largely delightful as this musical by three of Broadway's biggest and best names, that is.

Now, revisit the original production of DO I HEAR A WALTZ? with this fascinating rehearsal footage.

Also, view this intriguing television special focused on the original production, featuring Laurents and Sondheim.

Lastly, enjoy the original version of one of the score standouts, "We're Gonna Be All Right".

So, why do some musicals work and some do not, despite the best of intentions and the most accomplished of creators doing their damnedest to bring it all together in a cohesive and compelling fashion? Furthermore, what musicals can you think of that function far better in revised versions than in their original form, such as DO I HEAR A WALTZ? undoubtedly does? With a score by Rodgers and Sondheim and a book by Laurents, it is unavoidable that future generations will try their hand at this musical over the course of the next 50 years and beyond - and, who knows, perhaps a particularly enterprising director and cast will answer the titular question with a resounding yes once and for all.





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