last call

The spirit of Sondheim rises as his last work-in-progress heads Off-Broadway

By
Composer Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Sondheim during the Dramatists Guild Fund Gala ‘Great Writers Thank Their Lucky Stars: The Presidential Edition’ presentation at Gotham Hall on November 7, 2016, in New York City. Photo by Walter McBride/Getty Images


Sondheim fans aren’t short on revivals. Into the Woods, which just completed a limited Broadway run, is now on tour; Sweeney Todd opens on March 26 (with Josh Groban as the Demon Barber of Fleet Street); and the composer’s most famous flop Merrily We Roll Along, starring Knock at the Cabin’s Jonathan Groff returns to Broadway this fall.

But Sondheim had another show in the works before his 2021 passing, and it’s finally going to have its moment in the spotlight this fall. Here We Are, based on two Luis Buñuel films, will premiere Off-Broadway at the Shed, a multidisciplinary arts venue in the towering Hudson Yards.

Sondheim spoke cryptically of the project for years, first mentioning it in 2014 and occasionally since, including in intimate conversations with journalist D.T. Max, which appear in Finale (named one of Queerty’s best LGBTQ+ books of 2022), a collection of conversation published posthumously.

Sondheim told the New York Times before his death, “I don’t know if I should give the so-called plot away, but the first act is a group of people trying to find a place to have dinner, and they run into all kinds of strange and surreal things, and in the second act, they find a place to have dinner, but they can’t get out.”

Nathan Lane and Bernadette Peters were previously associated with the project, but there’s been no further word on this incarnation yet. The musical will feature a book by David Ives and directed by Joe Mantello (the OG director of Broadway’s Wicked).

Who’s ready for a musical dinner party? Apparently, plenty of Sondheim fans.

Related:

Donna Murphy masters a madwoman’s attempt to save humanity in this Jerry Herman musical

New York City Center Encores! delivers a worthy revival that hasn’t been on Broadway since its original 1969 production.

Don't forget to share:

Help make sure LGBTQ+ stories are being told...

We can't rely on mainstream media to tell our stories. That's why we don't lock Queerty articles behind a paywall. Will you support our mission with a contribution today?

Once Monthly Annually

Cancel anytime · Proudly LGBTQ+ owned and operated