Look, I Made a Hat: Collected Lyrics, 1981-2011, With Attendant Comments, Amplifications, Dogmas, Harangues, Digressions, Anecdotes, and Miscellany

The Hat Box #2

by Stephen Sondheim

The second volume of Sondheim's collected lyrics is b oth a remarkable glimpse into the brilliant mind of a legend, and a continuation of the acclaimed and best-selling Finishing the Hat.
 
Picking up where he left off in Finishing the Hat, Sondheim gives us all the lyrics, along with excluded songs and early drafts, of the Pulitzer Prize–winning Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, Assassins and Passion. Here, too, is an in-depth look at the evolution of Wise Guys, which subsequently was transformed into Bounce and eventually became Road Show. Sondheim takes us through his contributions to both television and film, some of which may surprise you, and covers plenty of never-before-seen material from unproduced projects as well. There are abundant anecdotes about his many collaborations, and readers are treated to rare personal material in this volume, as Sondheim includes songs culled from commissions, parodies and personal special occasions—such as a hilarious song for Leonard Bernstein’s seventieth birthday. As he did in the previous volume, Sondheim richly annotates his lyrics with invaluable advice on songwriting, discussions of theater history and the state of the industry today, and exacting dissections of his work, both the successes and the failures.
 
Filled with even more behind-the-scenes photographs and illustrations from Sondheim’s original manuscripts, Look, I Made a Hat is fascinating, devourable and essential reading for any fan of the theater or this great man’s work.

Genres: Theatre, Nonfiction, Music, Memoir, Biography, Poetry, Biography Memoir

453 pages, Hardcover

First published November 22, 2011

About the author

Stephen Joshua Sondheim was an American musical and film composer and lyricist, winner of an Academy Award, multiple Tony Awards (seven, more than any other composer), multiple Grammy Awards, and a Pulitzer Prize. He has been described as the Titan of the American Musical.

His most famous scores include (as composer/lyricist) A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, and Assassins, as well as the lyrics for West Side Story and Gypsy. He was president of the Dramatists Guild from 1973 to 1981.

Reviews

[N · Rating 5 out of 5]

As written in my review for "Finishing the Hat" (Volume I), here's my comments on Volume II.

I loved reading this as Mr. Sondheim is one of my favorite musical theater composers. This is the second of two volumes in which Sondheim writes about the process of how he wrote music and lyrics to some of the most his most innovative theatrical works that have polarized both critics and audiences alike.

Reading the lyrics to some of these iconic shows truly show how much Sondheim wrote from a place of sadness and melancholy, a shift in tone from his more spectacular musicals from the 1960s and the 1970s.

This time, shows such as "Sunday in the Park With George", "Assassins", "Into the Woods", and "Passion" take center stage, and three of these shows were proud collaborations Sondheim had with book writer and director, James Lapine.

I also enjoy reading his peppery and irascible opinions on how he felt about the critics who either praised and hated his shows; and his opinions on certain performers: David Thaxton (from a London revival of "Passion" in 2010; his beloved muse, Bernadette Peters, and her “Sunday in the Park with George” co star, Mandy Patinkin; his praise of Donna Murphy interpreting Fosca from "Passion" were more retrospective and thoughtful in this book.

It was as if Sondheim was writing out of his need to delve into his memories to give an objective glance at his process. I saw a Sondheim that was more cerebral and searching in his process, a man who truly wrote from the heart.

From this volume, I have been privileged to have seen the revivals of "Assassins" (2022); "Into the Woods" (2002, 2014, 2023); "Sunday in the Park With George" (2008, 2017).

Such performers who were in these productions included Steven Pasquale, Denis O'Hare, Will Swenson, Ethan Slater, Vanessa Williams, John McMartin, Laura Benanti, Daniel Evans, Jenna Russell, Jake Gyllenhaal, Annaleigh Ashford, Robert Sean Leonard, Penny Fuller, and Ruthie Ann Miles.

Some interesting postscripts: on seeing three original casts of Sondheim shows, 1994, 2010, 2023.

Seeing “Passion” in 1994:

I feel incredibly privileged as a little kid to have seen the Original Broadway Production of "Passion". It was my first musical, my first Broadway show. It's haunting score and characters have lived in me ever since I saw this in 1994.

Donna Murphy's Tony winning performance set the tone in which all characters should be crafted in musical theater. It was simply one of the glorious experiences in theatergoing I've ever had- Sondheim was my gateway to my love of live theatre. The production also introduced me to the work of the late, great Marin Mazzie, who co-starred in this magnificent production of obsessive love.

“Sondheim on Sondheim” (2010)

I have gone on to see two more original Sondheim productions: "Sondheim on Sondheim" (2010) a wonderful musical revue of all his shows, and Sondheim commenting on the action as a recorded voice. He introduces some of his iconic songs, and gives earthy and delightfully salty musings on them.

Starring the late great Barbara Cook, and an alluring Vanessa Williams- both women really sparkled. If you have a chance, listen to their rendition of combining the iconic torch songs “Losing my Mind” and “Not a Day Goes By”.

“Here We Are” (2023)

Lastly, also saw his unfinished "Here We Are" (2023) in which was a show that shouldn't have been produced because the music was not complete. Nonetheless, it was still a night of interesting theatre, starring Bobby Cannavale and David Hyde Pierce.

Adapted from two films by auteur Luis Buñuel, "The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie" and "The Exterminating Angel"- it was meant to be a cerebral comedy of both manners and satirical horror. But it really left me wanting more.

Also...

I have seen Bernadette Peters in concert three times. Whenever she gets to the second act of her show, she dedicates an entire hour of covering and interpreting the maestro's songs. When she sings any Sondheim song- it is no surprise by combining her acting and singing the song and giving it a story to tell- is why Sondheim loved her above all the rest, why she was his muse.

[ALLEN · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Maestro, Stephen Sondheim, wrote this erudite book (2011), making it literate, engaging and terribly informative. It covers the period from 1981 to 2011 and includes all lyrics. Even sort-of Sondheim enthusiasts should have this book; for the rest of us it's a must. Predecessor volume: Finishing the Hat: Collected Lyrics, 1954-1981, With Attendant Comments, Principles, Heresies, Grudges, Whines, and Anecdotes.

--

Here's a link to an appreciative NEWSWEEK article based on an interview with Sondheim in late 2011, shortly after this book was published:
https://www.newsweek.com/stephen-sond...

Cartoon: Sondheim at age 80: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2Q5MrjGpeC4...

[Eva B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lmao how did I ever give this less than 5 stars? Past me was an idiot.
Also hey, Assassins fans! If you're curious as to what Flag Song would have sounded like (outside of it being reworked for Road Show), Brian Stokes Mitchell has a great cover of it on Spotify and probably other platforms as well!

It is with a heavy heart that I confess that I did not enjoy this nearly as much as I did FINISHING THE HAT, despite it containing the lyrics to Assassins, a show that--if you had your feed flooded with my updates for a week or so ago--is in a constant neck-to-neck race with Bandstand as my favorite. I think what killed this collection for me was my lack of interest in the shows--although I found myself greatly enjoying the section on Passion, I think I'll have to watch or listen to Sunday in the Park With George to really form an opinion on it, and Into the Woods is a show that I have mixed feeling on: it is, from a more objective standpoint, a good show with good music and one I want to revive a love for, but I also can't listen to it without being reminded of the time I spent as an ensemble member to its already ensemble cast and had to listen to middle/high school renditions of its songs for hours on top of an already tiring school day. To me, the most valuable sections in this book were:
1) Learning that one of Sondheim's favorite theatre moments was when (spoiler for Assassins performances post-2004) Lee Harvey Oswald shoots JFK and Hail to the Chief slowly starts to play as the Zapruder film is projected onto his shirt , as that moment gives me chills every time I see it.
2) Learning that Sondheim and I have the same favorite Sondheim show. Since Assassins is criminally underrated, it was oddly comforting to hear that, with the exception of a bit of the Family sequence, Sondheim considered it perfect (and I would be willing to argue against his point about the Family sequence by saying that the assassins starting to speak more "academically", as he put it, because they are effectively being merged into a pressuring force, and also that its haunting thematic value outweighs if it sticks firmly to the character voices)
3) The fact that there were two prior attempts at an Into the Woods movie, one of which would've had Julia Louis-Dreyfus as the Baker's Wife, Neil Patrick Harris as Jack, and Rob Lowe as Cinderella's Prince, and the other would have had Robin Williams as the Baker, Danny DeVito as the Giant and--I'm not kidding--Carrie Fisher as one of the stepsisters. I will also add that reading more about the Into the Woods musical has soured my view of the Disney movie, which I originally really liked. Also, I wish we were in the universe where Carrie Fisher had been in Into the Woods and James Cordon had not. Also Carrie Fisher would have been the best Joanne in the history of Company.
4) The section on Wise Guys/Gold!/Bounce/Road Show (to save time, I'll call it Get Rich Quick, like Sondheim initially intended) and the changes it went through was fascinating to me as a creator, even if as a reader it was a bit repetitive at times. I really wish that Wise Guys had been recorded, because I'd love to listen to the original take on the plot and I loved the vaudeville aspect that got dropped. Also, as a fan of Assassins, learning the cast of Road Show was deeply funny--who knew there'd be a musical about John Wilkes Booth and John Hinckley Jr. going to Alaska, building cities, and scamming people ;)?

I still preferred the first installment, but Sondheim's Hat books are a great resource. Rest in peace, Stephen Sondheim. I miss you every day.

[Schmacko · Rating 4 out of 5]

Look, I Made a Hat is only slightly less successful for me than Sondheim’s first book of collected lyrics. I still say Sondheim is the best lyricist the stage has ever seen, and for any stage aficionado, both books are required reading. However, sections of this book are spent on songs that haven’t been recorded, shows that have no music to reference. In that sense, I often had a hard time understanding or loving Sondheim’s work here, struggling to put it in context.

About a third of the book – four chapters – is spent on the show that started out as Wise Guys, became Gold!, then Bounce and Finally Road Show. He’s worked for 17 years on the show. Only recordings of the last two versions exist, but Sondheim includes absolutely everything because he wants to say something about the creation, the incarnations, the permutations of a show, even if the show failed – as, so far, all four iterations have. I only found this moderately interesting; I especially loved his small notes in between the versions of the songs. However, I think he could’ve written one succinct chapter instead of sinking into this sort of minute detail. And he often write of the past here in a way that tries to explain the backstage politic too carefully, being too delicate to step on toes or point blame.

As a note, I believe I understand why Road Show has so far failed. All of these versions seem too old-fashioned, staid, and not unique in that way Sondheim is famous for. He wrote a Grand Guignol horror musical, Sweeney Todd. He wrote a backwards musical, Merrily We Roll Along. He wrote a musical without a plot, Company. He made one about killers and would-be killers, Assassins. He mashed together fairy tales in Into the Woods. He brought a painting to musical life in Sunday in the Park with George. Follies brings the ghosts of old Vaudeville and Broadway back to life. Pacific Overtures is a marriage of kabuki and American musical theatre. In Road Show, he doesn’t do any of this inventiveness. There is no fascinating, overarching structure like his other great works.

I still love the man, and I would take a bullet for him. And perhaps genius when it reaches old age – he turns 82 on March 22, 2012 – is bound to lose its edge. Still, I have this hope that he and author John Weidman will find a structure – a groundbreaking approach – which will breath life into this most recent work. Maybe this time Sondheim will call it Get Rich Quick!, a title he’s always wanted…thought when applied to musical theater, this title seems patently absurd, especially when measured by the gestation of this show.

[Alex Nagler · Rating 5 out of 5]

He's God. I mean the man's a God. He wrote the book to Sweeney Todd with a nod to De Sade.

[Bruce · Rating 3 out of 5]

Look, I Made a Hat completes the publication of Sondheim’s collected lyrics, picking up where Finishing the Hat left off and then backfilling those gaps in the record Sondheim deemed noteworthy: incidental songs from movies, unproduced shows (including selected examples of juvenilia), and ditties he wrote to fete friends at birthday parties, pageants, and salons. As with the earlier book, Sondheim not only annotates and contextualizes his lyrics, but throws in assorted essays on various subjects pertaining to the world and works of music theater. Since I practically wrote a novel on the predecessor to this book, I’ll just add a few additional thoughts to distinguish the books.

Fans of Sondheim’s shows will find here Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, Assassins, Passion, and the big fat mess that evolved from Wise Guys through Bounce, ultimately ending up as Road Show. In fact, more than a quarter of this book is devoted to Road Show. Now, I really didn’t think much of Road Show (as my separate review indicates), so you can imagine I might well be disappointed to have to slog through it in all its variations. Sondheim loves it, but is willing to admit that “perhaps my fondness for it and my pride in it exemplify the parent’s defensive love of the homelier child….” (p. 291) The more than 100 pages lavished on Road Show comes across as the literary equivalent of watching a mastiff worry a thick hunk of gristle. The competence and persistence on display are fascinating, but the slobber renders it all a bit grotesque (hence my 3 1/2 star rating here). Sondheim leavens this slightly via the inclusion of a Playbill-worthy (New Yorker-worthy?) essay on why revivals are essential to theater.

The best lyrical moments in this book – the biggest surprises – arise from the wit displayed in Sondheim’s miscellany. So, from an unfinished collaboration with Leonard Bernstein and Jerome Robbins (working title a la Bernstein: “A Pray by Blecht”), we have this gem that epitomizes the character of a despicable merchant exhorting a frightened servant to ford a river he can’t swim (at the barrel of a gun, of course):

There’s a dream to be won,
There’s a dawn that is breaking.
There are deeds to be done,
There’s a world in the making.
There’s a place in the sun
And it’s yours for the taking!

Get your ass in there.

(Note how this both anticipates and undermines the naivete of Merrily… and the pomposity of the Mizner paterfamilias in Road Show.) And anyone with children can sympathize with this bit (from a birthday song celebrating and gently mocking Mary Rodgers):

Nina tore the TV limb from limb
Todd repaired it – good for him!
Turn on Channel 5 – oh, look, there’s Kim!
“Mommy!”
“Later – Mommy’s on the telephone…”

Toddy’s hitting Nina with a sledge.
Kimmy’s on the window ledge.
Where could she have gone? She was on the edge!
“Mommy!”
“Later – Mommy’s on the telephone, please! Children, I’ll be with you in a minute…” (p. 410)

The nice thing about reading a nonfiction sequel is that you can sometimes learn answers to questions raised in the earlier work. So, in the comments of my other review, I wrote, “I find Into the Woods awkward at best... I mean, Sondheim had Bernadette Peters rapping in it. Not the best artistic choice, Steve, for you or her.” As noted, Into the Woods is part of this book, and as you might expect, Sondheim has fairly progressive views about the relationship of rap to Broadway, finding its shared roots in vaudeville and citing Meredith Willson’s brilliant use of rap in the opening number of The Music Man (in which the traveling salesmen’s patter echoes the momentum of a train). Sondheim says he “tried to make it work” in his and Lapine’s grown-up fairytale, but credits Lin-Manuel Miranda (see, e.g., In the Heights and The Hamilton Mixtape) with being “a master of the form, but enough of a traditionalist to know the way he can utilize its theatrical potential.” (See, e.g., p. XXI of the ‘Reintroduction.’) Decide for yourself, but between a rapping Aaron Burr and Bring in Da Noize, Bring in Da Funk, I’m fully on board.

I had also wondered in my other review about Sondheim’s nonstop use of death as a metaphor in every one of his shows, with a string of examples to prove it. Sondheim has nothing to say about this particular idee fixe, but does at p. 30 have much to offer on

my fondness for the word “hat,” which the British critic Michael Ratcliffe pointed out in his program note at London’s Royal National Theatre, when Sunday in the Park with George was produced there in 1990. From “You could say, ‘Hey, here’s your hat’” in Gypsy to “Does anyone still wear a hat?” in Company, through “Hats off!” in Follies and “It’s called a bowler hat” in Pacific Overtures, I seem to be attached to it as an image. Surely some future graduate student in Musical Theater, looking for an obscure subject to write about, will seize on “The Use of Headgear in Sondheim’s Lyrics” and conjure up insightful theories for my persistent attraction to the word, but I can save him the trouble: it’s the jaunty tone and the ease in rhyming that attract me – two sound reasons.”

So there you have it: tone and rhymability. Two poetic attributes to die for.

Sondheim worries that he’s losing his creative vitality. He cites as evidence the facts that (a) for the first time he found himself mining multiple trunk songs for his stillborn Road Show; (b) with the 17?! years he spent researching and annotating the Hat books, he’s been overindulging living in the past, as opposed to creating something new; and (c) he’s now 83 years old. Fortunately, his closing is optimistic: “Time to start another hat.”

I'll drink to that.

[Heidi]

Me: I noticed a couple interesting features in these Sondheim lyrics. Wonder if that was on purpose.

Stephen Sondheim: Writes two books detailing exactly how deliberate he was about every letter of every word he ever set to music.

The answer to, "Did Sondheim mean to do that?" seems to always be an emphatic yes.

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

About half of the stuff in the book were songs I had no musical reference for because I'd never heard them before so I kinda just skipped over them, so that takes away one star. I don't care about Road Show or the songs he wrote for his friends' birthdays. But the section on Sunday in the Park with George is worth the price of admission. I don't think any artist will ever have more of an effect on me than Sondheim.

[Jack Bell]

I desperately need someone to make Singing Out Loud for real.

[Sherrice Mojgani · Rating 4 out of 5]

My interest waned after Into the Woods but still enjoyable

[Jemima Pett · Rating 4 out of 5]

review to follow

[Kennedi · Rating 5 out of 5]

See the review I gave for Finishing the Hat. This one especially stands out for me because it deals with three of my favorite musicals (OF ALL TIME): Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods and Assassins. Seeing how much work is crafted in to every lyric only deepened my (already deep) appreciation for these works of art. I also absolutely loved all of Sondheim’s behind-the-scene stories; he has a wonderfully dry and funny sense of humor. He also endears you with his admissions that he doesn’t get it right all of the time.

The only reason why I took me such a long time to finish is that, being the obsessive nerd that I am, I had to listen and (in some cases) watch every known recording to each show/production mentioned in the book as I went along. And if you are in a position to do it - do it. It adds so much meaning to the lyrics and stories, as you hear how it was meant to be performed. And you’ll find that certain lyrics will make its way to your heart - even more so that you hear the story behind it.

All in all, I recommend this to any true lover of theatre in general. Sondheim is a master of his art, and I’m so glad to have it in printed form to keep forever.

[Juan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Si hay algo que me deslumbra es la inteligencia sabia. Esa que logra sobrevolar al ego, al anisa de reconocimiento sin dejar de necesitarlo (algo, para mí, dificilísimo) y retratarse a sí misma con una intensidad única y un desapasionamiento feroz. Stephen Sondheim es un hombre que posee esa cualidad, y en sus dos libros de memorias artísticas (no, no es un libro de recuerdos, si no de análisis de su labor como letrista de teatro musical de Broadway) brilla sereno y, por lo mismo, atrapa.

En Finishing the Hat y en Look, I Made a Hat, las letras de todas sus composiciones artísticas están presentes. Todas. En orden cronológico de estreno, dejando hacia el final aquellas que no han visto la luz por cualquier motivo, no siendo su propio criterio uno de los más débiles. Para alguien como yo, que desconozco profundamente el universo del teatro musical anglosajón (confieso que mis lagunas culturales son realmente sonrojantes), encontrarlo ha tenido ese efecto de descubrimiento de un mundo nuevo, o al menos de comprensión de un mundo ajeno del que apenas conocía aspectos superficiales. He oído muchas veces canciones que ha compuesto sin saberlo y, por supuesto, sin ser capaz de asociarlo a los musicales a los que pertenecen. De la película Dick Tracy, Madonna cantaba sus canciones, e incluso la hermosa y tenue canción de amor de Reds lleva su sello. ¿Cómo ignorarlo?

Todo esto se encuentra en sus dos libros. Que no son de memorias. O al menos no memorias al uso. Es decir, son como sus musicales. Un compendio de inteligencia llevada al máximo, de brillantez interpretativa y lleno de secretos encantadores. A medida que leía, intentaba encontrar las canciones que los componían para apreciarlas mejor. En general, con los actores primigenios de los elencos originales. Simplemente para disfrutar de aquello que espectadores más afortunados pudieron gozar una vez en vivo…

Saber que él fue el letrista de West Side Story o de Gipsy, y el compositor de canciones maravillosas como I’m Still Here o Send in the Clowns, me ha dejado maravillado. Y el acercamiento hacia su propio trabajo, es decir hacia sí mismo en estos libros, no ha hecho si no afianzar mi admiración por su talento.


Stephen Sondheim sabe que la edad nos hace venerables, para el público en general, para los premios y para los reconocimientos (don Camilo José Cela decía, por ejemplo, que el premio Nobel no es más que un reconocimiento a la supervivencia de un autor, y no le faltaba razón al cascarrabias de Iria Flavia). Revelándose más tímido de lo que se pudiese pensar a primera vista, conoce el relativo valor de ese aprecio (aunque lo agradece) puesto que ha vivido toda su vida navegando en aguas tempestuosas, entre acusaciones de frialdad cuando en realidad sólo es inteligencia aplicada a la música, observación detallada del ser humano y perfección obsesiva de música, letra, intención y, sobre todo, del retrato de unos personajes con los que intenta pintar al ciudadano de a pie, lleno de matices, desnudo de juicios y cargado de ironía.

Sondheim es irónico; juega con ese matiz tan apreciado por los ingleses (quizá por eso es idolatrado en el Reino Unido) y que es un arma de doble filo como todo lo que nos puede llevar a extremos (el humor muy irónico se hace cargante así como el humor muy absurdo, ridículo) de los cuales ha sabido salir, quizá por intuición o quizá por simple casualidad, bastante indemne en su largo periplo profesional. Esta cualidad hace que la revisión de su trabajo se parezca más a una disección minuciosa que a un conjunto de justificaciones (de hecho, no hay ninguna en los dos tomos que nos ocupan). Y su lenguaje, muy rico, nos permite sin embargo a los neófitos musicales entender el origen de una canción y de saborear su composición y sus retoques.

Resulta curioso saber que, por ejemplo, su sinceridad es proverbial; no juega esa baza de la edad que muchos esgrimen. Si bien lo hace con un respeto que nos permite vislumbrar la persona que hay detrás del artista, o, mejor dicho, la persona de la que está hecha el artista. Es obsesivo, detallista, constante, cabezota, a veces ácido y a veces tierno y encantador: creo que hubiese sido un profesor maravilloso, de esos que de tan auténticos, los recordamos de por vida.

Aunque su música, sus letras, lo hacen ya por él.

Finishing the Hat y Look, I made a Hat están llenos de maravillas, pero no por las letras en sí mismas ni sus explicaciones, si no por los entresijos entre los que Stephen Sondheim va zurciendo el eco de su vida, colándose por el entramado como la luz vespertina por una celosía. Es un hombre puente, es un hombre constructor; un adelantado a su tiempo; un observador nato y, en la actualidad, un crítico veraz (porque es capaz de hacerlo consigo mismo sin ambages) y un hombre interesado por todo aquello que vale la pena en la vida.

Y aunque la ironía, la inteligencia y la brillantez parece que coronan su labor artística, si la estudiamos bien (y ambos libros nos lo permiten gracias a él mismo) descubrimos en Stephen Sondheim un hombre melancólico, romántico, interesado y amoroso, que consigue ver, y que implica a su audiencia a encontrar, verdadera belleza en todo lo que nos rodea: desde un vodevil intrascendente hasta la historia de un carnicero demente que llora en cada asesinato la pérdida de su hija… Para eso se necesita talento y mucho arte.

Sondheim, Sondheim. Dos veces y para siempre.

Muchas gracias, maestro.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite part of this book was the four chapters talking about his failed musical Road Show. It reads almost like a mystery: can you spot what is wrong with these lyrics? Can you figure out how they're going to fix them, or at least try? What new problems will that cause? It gives (part of) this book something of a plot, and was the only time in either volume I found myself wanting to read the next chapter right away, to find out what happens next.

My other favorite parts are his "commissioned works," many of which were birthday songs, and delightful. They show off his peerless ability at portraiture, or at least at poking good fun. His song God (about him, presumably tongue in cheek) is a highlight of the book.

The rest of the book follows in the footsteps of the first volume, chronicling his lyrics and providing commentary. The more we see this, the more we see a curious teleology to the way he describes his musicals: sometimes there are problems, but each iteration improves things until the end result, which is, with perhaps minor cavils, as good as can be. This rings false to me, more so here -- which includes some of his weaker works -- than in the first volume. That, combined with the lack of his potted commentaries on previous-generation lyricists, keeps this volume at 4 stars to me.

[Michel Siskoid Albert · Rating 4 out of 5]

A follow-up to Finishing the Hat (which I have not read), Look, I Made a Hat is a more-than-complete collection of Stephen Sondheim's lyrics from 1981 to 2011 with his commentary. Essentially, that means the lyrics for Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, Passion, Assassins, and four versions of what became Road Show (very interesting if you want insight on how plays evolve). Then the book goes back in time to the odd and sundry from movies and TV (some of it never produced or included), as well as special commissions and selections from student work. Obviously, while you can get some of the poetics from reading simple lyrics, there's no music (aside from a page of musical notation here and there, these and his scribbled lyrics are pictured throughout, and likely only of interest to true musical theater nerds). What really gives the book value is the commentary, which is lucid, revelatory, honest, and FUNNY. Sondheim understands his place in the theatrical world, and never fails to point out his weaknesses, mistakes, and where the credit actually lies for some of what fans would only attribute to him. I got a lot out of it.

[Wendy Waters · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have just finished reading both of Stephen Sondheim's books of collected lyrics and amusing informative anecdotes and suggest that these two volumes should be mandatory reading for every lyricist.

I learned so much studying the patterns of rhymes, the surprising, at times risky, choices of allegory and the phrasing that falls between poetry and conversational street-speak. That Sondheim is a Master craftsman and artist extraordinaire is indisputable, that he makes almost every other lyricist living or dead pale in comparison is the risk you take reading these two books. I personally believe it a risk worth taking. Many a famous musical theatre writer or pop writer could learn or better still UNLEARN their trite and oh-so-predictable rhymes and rhythms by studying Sondheim.

Reading Stephen's lyrics independent of his music allows a deeper analysis of how genius works. Of course Sondheim disputes his genius in myriad appended passages throughout but take no notice of him. Stephen had a rare humility and a savage discernment and critical ear and eye. His own brilliance occasionally eludes him but it needn't elude us.

A lyricist's bible.

[Stuart · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sondheim's second of the Hat Trick books is a mixed bag, rather like the shows that make up the bulk of its content (i.e. the four major versions of Road Show/Bounce/Gold/Wise Guys). The chapters on Into the Woods and Passion are excellent, and seeing just how long and drawn out the journey to bring Road Show to completion was, is certain edifying, but at some point one starts to feel as lost in the process as Sondheim himself confesses to be. The final chapters, on work for films, television, birthdays, etc. are fun and interesting, but as they are largely preoccupied with minor or unknown work, they lack the same resonance that permeates FINISHING THE HAT. Still, it's an incredible work by an incredible artist, and his final chapter dedicated to encouraging younger artists is both touching and wise, though nothing is as heartbreaking as his epilogue. Of course, he planned it that way. Genius. Asshole. God.

[Bruce · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second (and final) volume of Stephen Sondheim's retrospective of his career as a composer and lyricist on Broadway, also with, surprising to me, his work in Hollywood on movie and television productions. Into the Woodsis a favorite musical and it was a delight to follow those lyrics closely and slowly. They highlight again how much a master of words Sondheim is. Sondheim's interspersed comments on each production provide a lot of insight into the effect he was aiming for, as well as things that went right, and wrong. His short essays on topics like the distinction between a critic and a reviewer, the dubious value of awards for the artist (except those that come with cash), and his honest wrestling with aging and its inevitable sapping of creative energy were both enlightening and fun, as Sondheim relates them with a clear passion for his work in theater and his own brand of self-effacing humor. Actual rating: 4.5.

[MH · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sondheim's second collection covers two masterpieces (Sunday in the Park with George and Into the Woods), two shows beloved by Sondheim fans (Assassins and Passion), and the constantly reworked but never truly completed Wise Guys/Bounce/Road Show, as well as a number of songs written for never-staged musicals, television, birthday parties, galas and films - some performed or produced, some not. His first book felt essential, but this feels like a lot of ephemera, especially as his thoughts on writing and opinions on writers are in much shorter supply here (we're even told, often, to consult Finishing the Hat for his thoughts on this subject or that, aspects of his craft or opinions about his fellow composers). For Sondheim completists only, I think.

[bea · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book was definitely my first ever written exposure to musical theater as a really young kid, which says a lot as someone currently pursuing it as a career and whose favorite musical is into the woods. i would use this book as a hard surface to do homework on, i would lug it to school in my backpack to parade it around, and most importantly i would teach myself and my friends the lyrics to my favorite songs. the pink book especially was my favorite because it had my most beloved sondheims in it. i love all of the beautiful pictures especially of the queen herself bernadette peters and my love mandy patinkin. give this book to your children if you want them to be as nerdy as you are, it certainly worked on me.

[Kenneth Bennion · Rating 3 out of 5]

To my high school choir director: I understand now why you made us watch "Sunday in the Park with George"... and why you cried during 'Finishing the Hat' and 'Move On.'

If the only production of "Into the Woods" you've seen is a junior high doing just the first act, go watch the Zien - Gleason - Peters version and then hug your kids.

"Assassins" (1990) was the revelation for me in this volume. It kept me on the edge of my seat and has potent relevance today.

While I appreciate his demonstrating the craft of retooling, instead of reading the last half of minutia I recommend finding a recording of Sondheim's 80th birthday (stage) concert or his 90th birthday (pandemic streaming) celebration - enjoy the sung lyrics!

[Alex Carlson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sondheim's insightful, sassy, and often hilarious recount of his lyrics and the process that went into producing them returns for Volume II, this time including two of my absolute favorites of his - Sunday in the Park with George and Into the Woods. Once again he reveals little about his personal life or his thoughts on the universe outside of musicals and remains very technical in his explanations. However, his insights into the usefulness of directors, the contributions of actors, and the business side of theatre are brilliantly documented and fans of his work will find much to appreciate here.

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found it not as instructive as the first and without as many amusing anecdotes, but it was still enjoyable. I could see how the four different versions of Road Show/Bounce could be interesting for some, but it was difficult to get through.

I very much enjoyed him sort of working backward through his earliest works near the end, and the epilogue was heartbreaking (in a maybe good way?).

[Lizzy · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Music is a foreign language that everyone knows but only musicians can speak. The effect is describable in everyday language; how to achieve it is not." - page xvii

"Of all forms of contemporary pop music, rap is the closest to traditional musical theater (its roots are in vaudeville), both in its vamp-heavy rhythmic drive and in its verbal playfulness...But I was never able to find another appropriate use for the technique, or perhaps I didn't have the imagination to. [Lin Manuel] Miranda does. Rap is a natural language for him and he is a master of the form, but enough of a traditionalist to know the way he can utilize its theatrical potential...["Hamilton"] strikes me as a classic example of the way art moves forward: the blending of two conventional styles into something wholly original...It's one pathway to the future." - page xxi

"I seem to be attached to [hats] as an image. Surely some future graduate student in Musical Theater, looking for an obscure subject to write about, will seize on "The Use of Headgear in Sondheim's Lyrics" and conjure up insightful theories for my persistent attraction to the word, but I can save him the trouble: it's the jaunty tone and the ease in rhyming that attract me-two sound reasons." - page ?

"For me, a good critic is a good writer. A good critic is someone who recognizes and acknowledges the artist's intentions and the work's aspirations, and judges the work by them, not by what his own objectives would have been. A good critic is so impassioned about his subject that he can persuade you to attend something you'd never have imagined you'd want to go to. A good critic is an entertaining read. A good critic is hard to find." - page 41

"A song concentrates on one story, one emotion--it is a distillation. A number is an extension of ideas and/or stories and/or points of view; it involves development...numbers are easier to write than songs, much easier." pages 64-65

"No one in five hundred-plus years has given a plausible explanation of [Cinderella's] indecisiveness until Lapine came along with a startling solution: Cinderella doesn't lose her slipper, she deliberately leaves it behind. She knows she's an imposter and doesn't want willingly to mislead the Prince (and the world). She figures that if the Prince really cares to see her again, he'll follow the clue she has left. She doesn't want an accident of fate to fix her life, she wants to be loved for herself. Viewed in this light, the story makes sense; not only that, it explains the universality of its appeal and why, more than any other fable, it exists in every culture." - page 79

"The thing that puts me off most is that opera composers seem to have little sense of theater. They spend as much time having their characters sing about trivialities as about matters of emotional importance, and they too often resort to recitative to carry the plot along--for my money a tedious and arid solution to a problem easily solved by dialogue." - page 14x

"Revivals are what keep theater alive; reinterpretation is renewal. But actors can reinterpret only so far.
Revivals may keep theater alive, but they have to potential drawbacks...Directors, as I said, can not only revivify a show, they can kill it--or at least, wound it...the problem is that a great many directors, not just the academics or the amateurs, reconceive for the sake of reconception, usually in the name of "relevance" or of "fixing" the show's flaws. They want to be considered creators so desperately that they think nothing of rewriting the authors' work. Good directors shine a new light on the piece; the others shine a light on themselves.
The second drawback revivals can have is a double-edged sword. Sometimes seeing a play afresh is seeing how much staler it is than what was previously thought, the result being that it gets thrown into the scrap heap of plays that should never have been revived. Bad movies are always available; bad shows don't get revived more than once; they die. Mediocre ones and mediocre revivals of good ones, however, have appeared with alarming frequency over the past few years.
Producers...believe a well-known title coupled with a well-known star is a hedge against the increasingly poor odds of having financial success. These productions have nothing to do with a director's fresh approach, and rather than reinvigorating the shows, they turn them into zombies. There is a difference between a rehash and a revival." - page 278

"...taste is as important as talent. If you allow yourself to grow, the more you write the more you will distance yourself from your influences; imitation may be a form of flattery, but it is also a form of criticism. Standing on the shoulders of giants involves recognizing their weaknesses and improving on them; that's what enables you to see farther than they." - page 424

"Awards have three things to offer: cash, confidence, and bric-a-brac.
Awards come in two flavors: competitive...and honorary.
What sours my grapes is the principle of reducing artists to contestants.
Competitive awards have existed since at least the days of ancient Greece, and the need to anoint is apparently so strong that their proliferation is not only guaranteed, it keeps expanding. Nevertheless, they are like reviews--useful only for publicity and, at least int he theater, not as effective. They may be good for the ego, but they don't sell tickets." pages 50-51

[Kellen Blair · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like the first volume, I read a few songs and anecdotes every day for about a year. And like the first volume, I found heaps of inspiration, sound advice, and model craftsmanship. It's just an unfortunate quirk of Sondheim's career path that so much of this second volume is dragged down by the countless rewriting of Wise Guys / Bounce / Road Show (a 110 page section that was a little tough to get through). Still, required reading for anyone serious about musical theater lyric writing!

[Elanymire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Same sentiments as previous book.

Read about how unlikely subjects such as a pointillist painting by Seurat, the people who tried to/succeeded in assassinating US presidents, a collection of fairy tales explored the human condition with all its ambiguity, contradictions, and emotionality.

Recommendation: have a recording of the show at hand, it makes for a much more engaging experience than just reading the lyrics.

[Valerie · Rating 5 out of 5]

An observation- while reading Finishing the Hat I was unfamiliar with the first third of the book since it was earlier works that I had never listened to although I mostly had heard the titles. Look, I Made a Hat is the opposite. I knew the first two thirds of the book but then it hit the last third and I was pretty lost. Still a good read!

[Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent edition of his collected works. I especially loved that he included Evening Primrose- that short score moves me. I think I prefer “Finishing The Hat” due to my love of his earlier shows, but this volume has encouraged me to explore the works I haven’t gotten around to yet. I know they will speak to me as his work so often does.

[Brendan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, I didn't read all the lyrics, but Sondheim's insights about writing, story-telling, and theatre were wonderful. I need to read the first book now, but I think I'm going to make the three maxims he listed a core of my writing. It helps that "Less is More" already is part of them.

[Scott Ableman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read this book cover to cover, and I return to it every time I'm about to see a Sondheim production (which is at least annually). It has enhanced my appreciation for Sondheim's genius, and definitely enhanced the experience of seeing his shows performed live.