Today is the birthday of Stephen Sondheim, perhaps the musical theater’s greatest composer and lyricist who has ever lived. Sondheim is responsible for the lyrics of the Broadway musicals “Gypsy” and “West Side Story,” and the music and lyrics of “Sweeney Todd,” “Into The Woods,” “Sunday In The Park With George,” “A Funny Thing Happened…
(JTA) — Bradley Cooper will direct, produce and star in a Netflix film about the late Jewish composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein. The untitled film is expected to begin production early next year and will be released in theaters before the film premieres on Netflix, Deadline first reported. The movie will span more than 30…
Reflecting On Dad, His Legacy, Eccentricities And How He Lives On Growing up with Leonard Bernstein wasn’t always easy. The conductor and composer was brilliant and loving, but also controlling, inappropriate and so much larger than life that his presence could be suffocating. Jamie Bernstein, 66, his eldest daughter, gave powerful voice to the experience…
With August 25 marking his centenary, Massachusetts-born Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990) remains the 20th century’s most famous Jewish musician. His Symphony No. 1 Jeremiah and Symphony No. 3 (Kaddish), among other works, are lasting contributions to the orchestral repertoire, as memoirs by musical associates, including Jack Gottlieb and John Mauceri attest. Bernstein’s Yiddishkeit was essential to…
The following is an excerpt from “Famous Father Girl,” by Jamie Bernstein. Copyright © 2018 by Jamie Bernstein. Reprinted courtesy of Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. In February of 1964, halfway through my sixth-grade year, the Beatles came to America. By coincidence, Aunt Shirley was returning from a trip to England on the same…
My best memories of summer are of the arts: Catching a B.B. King concert in a Denver August downpour; waiting in the humid heat for a free ticket to “My Fair Lady” at the Muny in St. Louis; spreading a jacket on the beach at Coney Island and watching the riveting and under-recognized “Crown Heights”…
You know you are at a gala in New York if most every woman in attendance, yourself included, is wearing black. In another city, on another occasion, the solemn palette might register as funerary. At a gala celebrating the centenary of Leonard Bernstein, composer, conductor and reigning doyen of a certain era of New York…
There’s much to celebrate this weekend: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s royal wedding! Shavuot! The return of allergy season! Ok, maybe not that last one. For the first two items, the Forward has your needs covered: Check out our complete guide to Shavuot, including a surprising number of entries about the holiday’s connection to marijuana,…
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