REVIEW: Being Alive – The Music of Stephen Sondheim, Hayes Theatre Company


When musical theatre legend Stephen Sondheim turned ninety in 2020, a large-scale celebration was planned for March 22nd – his actual birthday. By then, much of the world was in lockdown and the producers pivoted to streaming the celebration online a month later. With live theatre closed, fans of the composer and lyricist got to celebrate the man from the comfort of their living rooms.

Actors who had been in his shows across the years livestreamed performances from their own homes and another revue of his work was gifted to the world. Collections of songs from his career started popping up in the late 1970s, starting with Side by Side by Sondheim, covering work from the first two decades of his career.

You can see the appeal of putting together a tribute to the man – so many of his songs are like little plays in themselves, with the characters expressing clear wants and goals, even without context of the full show. Productions can put together small casts to take on maybe twenty songs and entertain patrons without the demands of a full show. Because the themes of his work are so rich, a revue can be funny and moving and dramatic and thoughtful. Wildly entertaining from beginning to end.

To celebrate his 80th birthday, Sondheim on Sondheim was created to showcase some of his famous work, highlight some lesser-known material and some songs that never made the final cut. An interview with Sondheim was shown between the live performances, providing insight into his creative process. He even wrote a new song for the review titled “God” about our (possibly, but not really) overinflated worship of him.

There’s even a Sondheim revue on Broadway right now called Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends; performers from across his career revisiting his classics.

It’s no surprise that the Hayes Theatre in Sydney would turn their attention to honouring the master. They have produced a number of his shows, from well-known shows like Gypsy and A Little Night Music to cult classics like Assassins and Merrily We Roll Along. The theatre is intimate and is known for its innovative productions of forgotten works of the musical form and reinventions of classics for their tiny stage.

As a Melburnian, I’ve only seen shows that have made it down here – and their co-production of Into the Woods that was staged at Belvoir in 2023. That one was remarkably innovative; a cabaret-style take on a work with a large cast and potent themes of love and loss. I kept an eye on the theatre from afar, wishing I could see more. Finally, this past weekend, I made it to the Hayes Theatre for the first time to see Being Alive.

Director Sonya Suares (co-founder of Melbourne’s Watch This, Australia’s only Sondheim repertory company) along with Musical Supervisor Luke Byrne have fashioned a beautifully-crafted gift of a show. The theatre has been turned into a rehearsal room. The actors are warming up when the audience enters. One of them is running late and his arrival – running in through the curtains at the back – marks the start of the show proper. We’re already on their side, because it feels comfortable here behind-the-scenes.

One of the rarities this show rolls out is the “Invocations and Instructions to the Audience” song from The Frogs, a show that debuted in the Yale swimming pool in 1974 and didn’t make it to Broadway until 2004. It’s the opening song of Being Alive, of course. It tells us how to behave. It’s the perfect way to begin.

The show slides into “Colour and Light”, showcasing Raphael Wong’s gorgeous vocals. It’s one of Sondheim’s most beautiful songs, about an artist and creating art.

Suares and Byrne shape the show into thematic sections and find ways to string things together, without worrying too much about setting up the songs. We get that “Agony” (from Into the Woods) is about two men lusting after women they can’t have. “Sooner or Later” (from the film Dick Tracy) is a woman setting her sights on the man she wants; Blazey Best’s rendition is silly and sexy.

The show gives us powerful renditions of songs as we expect, but also isn’t shy at messing with medley and orchestration. The disco version of “Losing My Mind” coupled with “You Could Drive a Person Crazy” is deliciously fun. “Send in the Clowns” and “Not While I’m Around” paired together is emotionally wrenching. “The Gun Song” leading into “Witch’s Lament” is powerful stuff.

As with all these things, Blazey Best’s “Send in the Clowns” makes me wish I’d seen her in the Hayes production of A Little Night Music and after seeing his rendition of the “Ballad of Giteau” let Lincoln Elliott be him in Assassins somewhere, please!

Rounding out the cast is Kala Gare, who blew Melbourne audiences away with her leading turn in My Brilliant Career at Melbourne Theatre Company last year. Here she ably supports the rest of the cast, until her leading lady moment as Bobby/Bobbie singing the title song “Being Alive” from Company. If Hayes wants to do the gender-swapped version of that show someday, they’ve already found their lead.

Amy Zhang’s choreography under Lucia Haddad’s lighting makes for numerous striking tableaux throughout the show. The three-piece band of piano, double bass and clarinet is surprisingly versatile.

My first visit to the Hayes Theatre was a delight. The black box theatre invites creative thinking and the bar and balcony lend a real elegance to the experience. Getting to visit this inventive, innovative company to watch a Stephen Sondheim sampler was really magical. I hope to get back there soon!

Being Alive – The Music of Stephen Sondheim is playing at the Hayes Theatre until July 12

Photos: John McRae

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