What do you say, old friend? Ready for some more Sondheim? The music of Broadway's most revered composer is back on Broadway in Manhattan Theatre Club's (in association with Cameron Mackintosh and Daryl Roth) Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends- a musical that celebrates the master himself, with an ensemble cast led by Tony Award winners Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga.
Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends comes to Broadway from London’s West End, and plays Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles before arriving on Broadway.
Old Friends is a great big Broadway show born out of Cameron Mackintosh and Stephen Sondheim’s lifetime of friendship and collaboration. The two of them came up with the idea during the pandemic, drawing on the many shows that they had done together in collaboration with their good friend Julia McKenzie. Once theatres reopened in London and New York in the fall of 2021, Mackintosh was able to visit Sondheim again and this new show remained something they continued to discuss; but, sadly, shortly after, Sondheim passed away in November 2021.
It fell to Mackintosh to pick up where he and Sondheim left off, collating their notes, and structuring the show that would initially become a spectacular star-studded gala at the Sondheim Theatre in London’s West End in May 2022 to celebrate Sondheim’s life and work, and also raise funds for the newly formed Stephen Sondheim Foundation.
Stephen Sondheim is widely acknowledged as the most innovative, most influential, and most important composer and lyricist in modern Broadway history. He is the winner of an Academy Award, numerous Tony Award, multiple Grammy Awards and a Pulitzer Prize. Some of his other accolades include a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Kennedy Center Honors (1993), the National Medal of Arts (1996), the American Academy of Arts and Letters' Gold Medal for Music (2006) and a special Tony Awards for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre (2008).
Stephen Sondheim wrote the music and lyrics for Road Show (2008), Passion (1994), Assassins (1991), Into the Woods (1987), Sunday in the Park with George (1984), Merrily We Roll Along (1981), Sweeney Todd (1979), Pacific Overtures (1976), The Frogs (1974), A Little Night Music (1973), Follies (1971; revised in London, 1987), Company (1970), Anyone Can Whistle (1964) and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1962), as well as the 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) and Putting It Together (1993/99) are anthologies of his work, as is the new musical Sondheim on Sondheim.
Yet another Stephen Sondheim revue is playing on Broadway. This one is called Old Friends, and it opened Tuesday at MTC’s Samuel J. Friedman Theatre after engagements in London and Los Angeles. This is the sixth Sondheim revue to open on Broadway. In recent decades, legendary composers from George Gershwin to Richard Rodgers have not received this kind of attention. Hands down, the three best moments in Old Friends come when five wonderful singers (Jacob Dickey, Jasmine Forsberg, Kyle Selig, Maria Wirries and Daniel Yearwood) deliver a memorable Tonight Quintet from West Side Story. The two other great moments belong to Lea Salonga, who brings down the house twice, first with Somewhere from West Side Story and then Everything’s Coming Up Roses from Gypsy. Salonga presents a great Rose, and what adds to the excitement is how different Rose is from the roles that made Salonga a star: Kim in Miss Saigon, Fantine in Les Miz and the singing voice of Jasmine in the film Aladdin. If there were any justice, Cameron Mackintosh, who devised this Sondheim revue, would have instructed Matthew Bourne, who directs, to include Rose’s Turn for Salonga to finish off the evening.
Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends, hosted by megawatt stars Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga, is as cozy as a longtime friend’s living room. Best of all, the honeyed orchestrations (originally by Sondheim’s longtime collaborator Jonathan Tunick) and crisp sound mixing in the Old Friends setlist help remind us why the best of composer/lyricist Stephen Sondheim’s repertoire still attracts talented titans.
| 2023 | West End |
West End |
| 2025 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Sound Design of a Musical | Mick Potter |
| 2025 | Drama League Awards | DISTINGUISHED PERFORMANCE | Beth Leavel |
| 2025 | Drama League Awards | DISTINGUISHED PERFORMANCE | Lea Salonga |
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