Stephen Sondheim Speaks Out Against Paulus' PORGY & BESS

THE GERSHWINS' PORGY AND BESS by George Gershwin, DuBose and Dorothy Heyward, and Ira Gershwin has been re-imagined by A.R.T.'s Artistic Director Diane Paulus, Pulitzer prize-winning writer Suzan-Lori Parks, and two-time Obie winner Diedre Murray, and is heading to Broadway in December. In response to a recent article in the New York Times that explained director Diane Paulus' new vision for the production, theatre legend Stehen Sondheim wrote in to share his thoughts.

Sondheim writes: "The article by Mr. Healy about the coming revival of "Porgy and Bess" is dismaying on many levels. To begin with, the title of the show is now "The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess." I assume that's in case anyone was worried it was the Rodgers and Hart "Porgy and Bess" that was coming to town. But what happened to DuBose Heyward? Most of the lyrics (and all of the good ones) are his alone ("Summertime," "My Man's Gone Now") or co-written with Ira Gershwin ("Bess, You Is My Woman Now"). If this billing is at the insistence of the Gershwin estate, they should be ashamed of themselves. If it's the producers' idea, it's just dumb."

He continues, "I can hear the outraged cries now about stifling creativity and discouraging directors who want to reinterpret plays and musicals in order to bring "fresh perspectives," as they are wont to say, but there is a difference between reinterpretation and wholesale rewriting. Nor am I judging this production in advance, only the attitude of its creators toward the piece and the audience. Perhaps it will be wonderful."

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THE GERSHWINS' PORGY AND BESS begins previews on Saturday, December 17th, 2011 and opens on Thursday, January 12th, 2012 at The Richard Rodgers Theatre (226 West 46th Street, between 8th and Broadway).

 The creative team also includes choreographer Ronald K. Brown, set design is by Riccardo Hernandez (Il Postino at LA Opera, Washington Opera, and Le Chatelet, Paris; numerous productions at A.R.T.), costume design by Project Runway finalist ESosa, lighting design by Christopher Akerlind (Tony Award for The Light in the Piazza; The Seagull, Britannicus and others at A.R.T.), sound by Acme Sound Partners, and casting by Telsey + Company. Orchestration is by William David Brohn and Christopher Jahnke, the Music Supervisor is David Loud, and the conductor is Sheilah Walker.

The Broadway production will star Audra McDonald as Bess, Norm Lewis as Porgy and David Alan Grier as Sportin' Life, reprising their A.R.T. roles. The show will run at A.R.T. August 17th through October 2nd.

THE GERSHWINS' PORGY AND BESS is based on DuBose Heyward's novel "Porgy" and the play of the same name, which he co-wrote with his wife Dorothy Heyward. All three works deal with African American life in the fictitious Catfish Row (based on the real-life Rainbow Row) in Charleston, South Carolina, in the early 1920s. George Gershwin worked on Porgy and Bess in Charleston, SC and drew inspiration from the James Island Gullah community, which he felt had preserved some African musical traditions. The music itself reflects his New York jazz roots, but also draws on southern black traditions. Gershwin modeled the pieces after each type of folk song which the composer knew about; jubilees, blues, praying songs, street cries, work songs, and spirituals are blended with traditional arias and recitatives. This new adaptation of the show has been specifically created for Broadway and will feature a revised book in a musical theatre format and jazz-oriented musical arrangements.

THE GERSHWINS' PORGY AND BESS first premiered at the Colonial Theatre in Boston on September 30, 1935. Broadway performances followed featuring a cast of classically trained African-American singers - a daring and visionary artistic choice at the time.

Photo Credit: Anastasia Korotich