Porchlight's 2022 CHICAGO SINGS Concert Honors The Legendary Stephen Sondheim, May 23

Porchlight Music Theatre has announced Chicago Sings Stephen Sondheim, its annual fundraising concert, Monday, May 23, 2022 at the Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Ave. Chicago Sings Stephen Sondheim will be a celebration of the life and art of the great composer/lyricist who changed the world of American music theatre.

The concert includes live performances of Sondheim classics performed by Chicago music theatre's best loved artists and the presentation of the 2022 Guy Adkins Award for Excellence in the Advancement of Music Theatre in Chicago. Chicago Sings Stephen Sondheim is directed by Porchlight Music Theatre Artistic Director Michael Weber. Tickets will be available for purchase beginning Monday, March 1 at 12 p.m. CST at PorchlightMusicTheatre.org.

"We were in the final stages of planning our 2022 Chicago Sings concert, when we heard the heartbreaking news about the passing of Stephen Sondheim," said Executive Director Jeannie Lukow. "We knew immediately that Chicago Sings would now have to be in honor of this extraordinary American artist. Porchlight has a long history with Stephen Sondheim's work, producing nearly 20 of his works in our 27 year history, and we felt this was an opportunity to share his life and his career with our audiences who love him so much."

"Stephen Sondheim, without a doubt, has been one of the main influences and creative geniuses of modern music theatre," added Artistic Director Weber. "Chicago Sings Stephen Sondheim will salute this recipient of Tony, Academy, Olivier and Grammy awards, as well as a Pulitzer Prize and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. His passing has been felt by people around the world and our commemoration of Sondheim will be both a time to reflect on his artistry and celebrate all that he has given to us."

Each year, Porchlight Music Theatre celebrates an individual who has made an exceptional and lasting contribution to the state of the art of Chicago music theatre, with the prestigious Guy Adkins Award. Guy Adkins was an award-winning Chicago actor who passed away in 2010. Among his significant stage credits were Oklahoma! Windy City and A Funny Thing Happened...at Marriott Theatre; The Taming of the Shrew at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre; Pericles, Twelfth Night, The Invention of Love and the title role in Hamlet at Court Theatre; The Time of Your Life at Steppenwolf and the world premieres of the musicals The Return of Martin Guerre and The Visit, both at The Goodman Theatre. The Chicago Sun-Times called Adkins, "...a smart and invariably graceful actor" and The New York Times called him "outrageously talented" for his turn at "Puck" in A Midsummer Night's Dream at the McCarter Theatre in New Jersey. Porchlight commemorates Adkins' spirit and life with this annual award and celebrates the many gifts he shared with our theatre community and the world.

Stephen Sondheim wrote the music and lyrics for Saturday Night (1954), A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum (1962), Anyone Can Whistle (1964), Follies (1972), A Little Night Music (1973), The Frogs (1974), Pacific Overtures (1976), Sweeney Todd (1979), Merrily We Roll Along (1981), Sunday in the Park with George (1984), Into The Woods (1987), Assassins(1991), Passion (1994) and Road Show (2008), as well as lyrics for West Side Story (1957), Gypsy (1959), Do I Hear A Waltz? (1965) and additional lyrics for Candide (1973). Side By Side By Sondheim (1976), Marry Me A Little (1981), You're Gonna Love Tomorrow (1983), Putting It Together (1993/99), Moving On (2001), and Sondheim On Sondheim (2010) are anthologies of his work as composer and lyricist. For film, he composed the score of "Stavisky" (1974), co-composed the score for "Reds" (1981), and wrote songs for "Dick Tracy" (1990). He wrote songs for the television production "Evening Primrose" (1966), co-authored the film The Last of Sheila (1973), and the play Getting Away With Murder (1996), and provided incidental music for the plays The Girls Of Summer (1956), Invitation To A March (1961), Twigs (1971), and The Enclave (1973). His collected lyrics with attendant essays have been published in two volumes: "Finishing the Hat" (2010) and "Look, I Made A Hat" (2011). In 2010, the Broadway theater formerly known as Henry Miller's Theatre was renamed The Stephen Sondheim Theatre in his honor. Stephen Sondheim died November 21, 2021.

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