The opening of the West End’s new Sondheim Theatre may have to wait a bit longer. Page Six reports that Broadway icon and West Side Story composer Stephen Sondheim took a fall that has left him “temporarily incapacitated” according to producer Cameron Mackintosh. “I am very sorry to have to let you know that we have just been informed that Stephen Sondheim suffered a fall a few days ago at his Connecticut home where he tore a ligament which has seriously compromised his immediate mobility. As a consequence, we have had to take the disappointing decision to postpone the official opening of the Sondheim Theatre” Mackintosh said.
Sondheim himself released a statement of his own, letting his fans know that his trademark wit remains fully intact. “As I recover from my tumble, I’m impatient to throw away my cane, grab my hat and head across the Pond as soon as I can to see on which cherub Cameron has tattooed my initials,” he wrote. “I am, to put it mildly, chuffed to have my name on a theatre in the West End I have loved visiting ever since my first trip to London almost seventy years ago.”
Almost a decade ago, Sondheim’s 80th birthday was celebrated at Avery Fisher Hall/Lincoln Center with the New York Philharmonic by a galaxy of Broadway dames, who each took on a Sondheim classic to belt out for a packed crowd, which included Sondheim himself. Elaine Stritch’s growling and stellar rendition of “I’m Still Here” from Follies stands out, especially today.
The West Side Story lyricist is having a bit of a renaissance, as West Side Story itself is being revived on both the Broadway stage and on the silver screen.
Art Courtesy of Stephen Sondheim Masterworks Broadway (Facebook)