With a format like Reprise’s semi-staged musicals, the emphasis is on performance. The one person who makes sure those performances come alive musically is Music Director Gerald Sternbach. Sternbach both plays and conducts for Reprise. Tonight’s opening of The World Goes ‘Round is no exception. Dawnn Lewis, Valerie Perri, Larry Cedar, Kelley Dorney and Michael Starr perform the songs of John Kander and Fred Ebb in this revue directed by Richard Israel. Performances continue at the Freud Playhouse at UCLA through September 16th.
The World Goes ‘Round replaced the previously announced Victor, Victoria as the second show in this first season of Reprise’s re-launch. Originally created in the early 1990s, The World… celebrates the work of these two songwriters who were responsible for many legendary Broadway musicals as Cabaret, Chicago, Kiss of the Spider Woman and songs from such movies as Funny Lady and New York, New York.
During a break from rehearsals I spoke with Sternbach by phone about the rebirth of Reprise, Kander & Ebb and some changes that have been made to the show.
What makes Kander & Ebb, from your point of view, unique in the canon of musical theatre?
When they started working in the theatre they were an amalgam of popular idiom. They carry on the tradition of musical theatre writers that are a combination of popular things. It wasn’t art songs. It’s not all the Great American songbook. They were not afraid to write great pop songs, but they were also a great team that came up in the middle of everything. They were just past the edge of Irving Berlin, Richard Rodgers and the Gershwins. They started a new trend that got a kick in the butt with Leonard Bernstein integrating American culture instead of trading off of Europe like we had with the other composers I mentioned. Their unique voice hits right in the center of the New York motor that was happening in the early 1950s and 1960s.
I interviewed John Kander and asked him about his use of rising half-steps (as he does in “Maybe This Time” from Cabaret, “But The World Goes ‘Round” from New York, New York and “Funny Honey” from Chicago) in his music. We admitted to realizing it was a habit for him. But isn’t this a signature way of identifying one of their songs?
I do think it’s how you identify their music. Kander & Ebb stuff is piano driven, more than other composers. One of the ways you know it’s their song is it’s driven by piano hooks and a catchy introduction. I can identify that song in one vamp!
John Kander once said, “I guess I think of a musical as something in which the music is sort of like the engine of the piece – whether it is in the theatre or in film.” When a show like this is the music and lyrics, as it is here, what is your responsibility as Music Director to make sure that the engine fires on all cylinders?
As Music Director I believe in the true name of my title. I’m a musical director. I’m not just a pianist. I do accompany, but I’m a collaborator with the director and choreographer. It’s all about storytelling. I make sure that the lyrics and music are on equal footing. I serve the people who are working and keep the motor running. We all report back to the director and pay respect and homage to what is being showcased in the show. In this case, it’s the great work of Kander & Ebb.
There appear to have been a couple versions of the show including a change of orchestrations and the architecture of the show as well. What version will Reprise be doing?
There’s only one that was licensed. However, Richard Israel made some cuts. We have cut three numbers and rearranged the show to the show’s advantage. The show moves like lightning. We are showcasing the talented people involved and the humor that is really at the core of what a lot of Fred Ebb’s lyrics are.
The relaunch of Reprise as announced was very ambitious. The original show planed for this spot was Victor, Victoria. Replacing that show with this one means you have a show that has been done in and around equity waiver and community theatre for years and is a much less ambitious project. What makes The World Goes ‘Round an equally valid choice for that second spot?
I think that we chose five stellar performers. We’re bringing our A-game to this production. The fact that it is a smaller show we felt was necessary to do at this time. There is nothing that I would have any reservation about this being a diminishing of quality for the second offering. It’s about the logistics, contracts and money and we do live in different times. We hit the ground running with Sweet Charity and we’ll be back in the saddle soon with Grand Hotel. I’m glad we’re making the choice to keep running.
Lin-Manuel Miranda apparently wrote “The Room Where It Happens” from Hamilton as a love letter to Kander & Ebb. What do songwriters who came up in the shadow of these two owe them?
Oh wow. I’m also a composer and I have two musicals. All of us writers who aspire to work in musical theatre, the great writers have inspired us to communicate and touch people. There’s nothing that replaces a good song. They wrote songs to tell stories; to communicate and to communicate emotion. All of us, whether you are Jason Robert Brown or Lin-Manuel Miranda or the new talents of the 21st century, we’re all following all these people who are great storytellers who didn’t shy away from being true to their craft. With this show you will walk away knowing what great craftsmen they were. There’s not a stinker in the show. I’m very excited about the work.
Unless otherwise noted, all photographs by Tom Drucker