Stephen Sondheim 2009 Broadway revival cast of "West Side Story". A ballet was performed by Blaine Hoven and María Noel Riccetto to Sondheim's score for "Reds", and Jonathan Tunick paid tribute to his longtime collaborator. The concert was broadcast on PBS' "Great Performances" show in November, and its DVD was released on November 16. "Sondheim 80", a Roundabout Theatre Company benefit, was held on March 22. The evening included a performance of "Sondheim on Sondheim", dinner and a show at the New York Sheraton. "A very personal star-studded musical tribute" featured new songs by contemporary musical-theatre writers. The composers (who sang their
Stephen Sondheim He later matriculated to Williams College and graduated in 1950. He traces his interest in theatre to "Very Warm for May", a Broadway musical he saw when he was nine. "The curtain went up and revealed a piano," Sondheim recalled. "A butler took a duster and brushed it up, tinkling the keys. I thought that was thrilling." When Sondheim was ten years old, his father (already a distant figure) had left his mother for another woman (Alicia, with whom he had two sons). Herbert sought custody of Stephen but was unsuccessful. Sondheim explained to biographer Secrest that he was "what