I’m sure you all heard about the sad passing of American theater luminary Stephen Sondheim this past week. As we mourn for him, I thought it would be a good opportunity to repost something remarkable that happened last year during the shutdown in connection with his 90th birthday. Enjoy.

4/28/20: On April 26, to celebrate Stephen Sondheim’s 90th birthday, some of his best leading ladies got “together” (not really) to perform the best version of The Ladies Who Lunch from his iconic musical, Company. Meryl Streep, Christine Baranski, and Audra Mcdonald all performed from their homes. The date also marked the 50th anniversary of Company’s opening, so the performances are extra meaningful. The video went viral yesterday, so I imagine some of you may have seen it. Who cares? Let’s watch it again.

The performance was part of a 2.5-hour-long livestream called Take Me to the World. The event included some of my favorite performers of all time (Patty LuPone, Sutton Foster, Kelli O’Hara, Iain Armitage, AND Randy Rainbow? Am I dreaming?). In spite of some technical difficulties (the running chat with the video is hilarious), they eventually got it working, and the full recording is below, courtesy of Broadway.com. The lineup is after the video below, and it’s like something I dreamed up. It’s reminding me of so many Sondheim musicals I had forgotten. I know what I’m streaming this week!

0:18 – Stephen Schwartz – “Prologue” (Follies)
3:28 – Broadway Musicians – “Overture” (Merrily We Roll Along)
8:47 – Sutton Foster – “There Won’t Be Trumpets” (Anyone Can Whistle)
12:47 – Neil Patrick Harris – “The Witch’s Rap” (Into the Woods)
16:26 – Kelli O’Hara – “What More Do I Need?” (Saturday Night)
19:56 – Judy Kuhn – “What Can You Lose?” (Dick Tracy)
23:53 – Katrina Lenk – “Johanna” (Sweeney Todd)
27:11 – Aaron Tveit – “Marry Me a Little” (Company)
30:59 – Iain Armitage (because I can’t resist him and he’s my friend’s son) – “Finishing the Hat” (excerpts)
32:58 – Beanie Feldstein & Ben Platt – “It Takes Two” (Into the Woods)
36:25 – Brandon Uranowitz – “With So Little to Be Sure Of” (Anyone Can Whistle)
41:04 – Melissa Errico – “Children and Art” (Sunday in the Park with George)
46:20 – Randy Rainbow – “By the Sea” (Sweeney Todd)
49:21 – Elizabeth Stanley – “The Miller’s Son” (A Little Night Music)
54:21 – Mandy Pantinkin – “Lesson #8” (Sunday in the Park with George)
59:05 – Maria Friedman – “Broadway Baby” (Follies)
1:02:36 – Lin-Manuel Miranda – “Giants in the Sky” (Into the Woods)
1:05:46 – Lea Salonga – “Loving You” (Passion)
1:08:28 – Laura Benanti – “I Remember” (Evening Primrose)
1:14:06 – Chip Zien – “No More” (Into the Woods)
1:19:27 – Josh Groban – “Children Will Listen/Not While I’m Around” (Into the Woods/Sweeney Todd)
1:25:13 – Brian Stokes Mitchell – “The Flag Song” (Assassins)
1:28:04 – Michael Cerveris – “Finishing the Hat” (Sunday in the Park with George)
1:33:28 – Linda Lavin – “The Boy From…” (The Mad Show)
1:37:10 – Alexander Gemignani – “Buddy’s Blues” (Follies)
1:41:08 – Ann Harada, Austin Ku, Kelvin Moon Loh & Thom Sesma – “Someone in a Tree” (Pacific Overtures)
1:50:59 – Raúl Esparza – “Take Me to the World” (Evening Primrose)
1:53:55 – Donna Murphy – “Send in the Clowns” (A Little Night Music)
1:58:47 – Christine Baranski, Meryl Streep & Audra McDonald – “The Ladies Who Lunch” (Company)
2:03:31 – Annaleigh Ashford & Jake Gyllenhaal – “Move On” (Sunday in the Park with George)
2:08:14 – Patti LuPone – “Anyone Can Whistle” (Anyone Can Whistle)
2:11:46 – Bernadette Peters – “No One Is Alone” (Into the Woods)
2:17:49 – Ensemble – “I’m Still Here” (Follies)