Writing

Stephen Sondheim

Born March 22, 1930 · New York City, New York, USA

Died November 26, 2021 · aged 91

Stephen Joshua Sondheim (/ˈsɒndhaɪm/; March 22, 1930 – November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. Regarded as one of the most important figures in 20th-century musical theatre, he is credited with reinventing the American musical. With his frequent collaborators Harold Prince and James Lapine, Sondheim's Broadway musicals tackled unexpected themes beyond the genre's traditional subj…

Known For

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery · 2022

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

MovieComedyCrime

World-famous detective Benoit Blanc heads to Greece to peel back the layers of a mystery surrounding a tech billionaire and his eclectic crew of friends.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street · 2007

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

MovieDramaHorror

The infamous story of Benjamin Barker, a.k.a Sweeney Todd, who sets up a barber shop down in London which is the basis for a sinister partnership with his fellow tenant, Mrs. Lovett. Based on the hit Broadway musical.

Into the Woods

Into the Woods · 2014

MovieFantasyComedy

In a woods filled with magic and fairy tale characters, a baker and his wife set out to end the curse put on them by their neighbor, a spiteful witch.

West Side Story

West Side Story · 2021

West Side Story

MovieDramaRomance

Two youngsters from rival New York City gangs fall in love, but tensions between their respective friends build toward tragedy.

West Side Story

West Side Story · 1961

West Side Story

MovieCrimeDrama

In Manhattan’s Upper West Side, rival gangs of Polish-Americans and newly arrived Puerto Ricans clash for control of the neighborhood, even as two young members from opposite sides fall dangerously in love.

Dick Tracy

Dick Tracy · 1990

MovieAdventureComedy

The comic strip detective finds his life vastly complicated when Breathless Mahoney makes advances towards him while he is trying to battle Big Boy Caprice's united mob.

tick, tick... BOOM!

tick, tick... BOOM! · 2021

tick, tick... BOOM!

MovieDramaMusic

On the brink of turning 30, a promising theater composer navigates love, friendship and the pressure to create something great before time runs out.

Merrily We Roll Along

Merrily We Roll Along · 2025

Merrily We Roll Along

MovieComedyMusic

Franklin Shepard is a talented Broadway composer who abandons his theater career and all his friends in New York in order to produce films in Los Angeles. The story begins at the height of his Hollywood fame and moves backwards in time, showing snapshots of the most important moments in Frank’s life that shaped the man he is today. A live recording of the 2024 Tony Award-winning Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth's musical, filmed at the Hudson Theatre in New York City.

Filmography

Sort

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery · 2022

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

MovieComedyCrime

World-famous detective Benoit Blanc heads to Greece to peel back the layers of a mystery surrounding a tech billionaire and his eclectic crew of friends.

In Memory Of

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street · 2007

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

MovieDramaHorror

The infamous story of Benjamin Barker, a.k.a Sweeney Todd, who sets up a barber shop down in London which is the basis for a sinister partnership with his fellow tenant, Mrs. Lovett. Based on the hit Broadway musical.

Musical

Into the Woods

Into the Woods · 2014

MovieFantasyComedy

In a woods filled with magic and fairy tale characters, a baker and his wife set out to end the curse put on them by their neighbor, a spiteful witch.

Songs

West Side Story

West Side Story · 2021

West Side Story

MovieDramaRomance

Two youngsters from rival New York City gangs fall in love, but tensions between their respective friends build toward tragedy.

Thanks

West Side Story

West Side Story · 1961

West Side Story

MovieCrimeDrama

In Manhattan’s Upper West Side, rival gangs of Polish-Americans and newly arrived Puerto Ricans clash for control of the neighborhood, even as two young members from opposite sides fall dangerously in love.

Lyricist

Dick Tracy

Dick Tracy · 1990

MovieAdventureComedy

The comic strip detective finds his life vastly complicated when Breathless Mahoney makes advances towards him while he is trying to battle Big Boy Caprice's united mob.

Original Music Composer

tick, tick... BOOM!

tick, tick... BOOM! · 2021

tick, tick... BOOM!

MovieDramaMusic

On the brink of turning 30, a promising theater composer navigates love, friendship and the pressure to create something great before time runs out.

Stephen Sondheim (voice on phone) (uncredited)

Merrily We Roll Along

Merrily We Roll Along · 2025

Merrily We Roll Along

MovieComedyMusic

Franklin Shepard is a talented Broadway composer who abandons his theater career and all his friends in New York in order to produce films in Los Angeles. The story begins at the height of his Hollywood fame and moves backwards in time, showing snapshots of the most important moments in Frank’s life that shaped the man he is today. A live recording of the 2024 Tony Award-winning Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth's musical, filmed at the Hudson Theatre in New York City.

Music

Mostly Sondheim

Mostly Sondheim · 2003

Mostly Sondheim

Experience a truly memorable musical event as Broadway legend Barbara Cook, known for her starring roles in "The Music Man" and "She Loves Me," performs songs written and enjoyed by renowned composer Stephen Sondheim. In addition to singing Sondheim classics like "Everybody Says Don't" and "Send in the Clowns," Cook pays tribute to tunes Sondheim wished he had written, such as "I Got Lost in His Arms" and "The Trolley Song."

Songs

Reds

MovieDramaHistory

An account of the revolutionary years of the legendary American journalist John Reed, who shared his adventurous professional life with his radical commitment to the socialist revolution in Russia, his dream of spreading its principles among the members of the American working class, and his troubled romantic relationship with the writer Louise Bryant.

Original Music Composer

Gypsy

MovieComedyDrama

Gypsy's mother Rose dreams of a life in show business for her daughters, but Louise becomes a huge burlesque star. Stage musical loosely based on the memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee.

Lyricist

The Last of Sheila

The Last of Sheila · 1973

The Last of Sheila

MovieCrimeDrama

A year after Sheila is killed in a hit-and-run, her multimillionaire husband invites a group of friends to spend a week on his yacht playing a scavenger hunt-style mystery game—but the game turns out to be all too real and all too deadly.

Writer

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum · 1966

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum

MovieMusicComedy

A wily slave must unite a virgin courtesan and his young smitten master to earn his freedom.

Songs

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street – Scenes from the Making of a Musical

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street – Scenes from the Making of a Musical · 1980

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street – Scenes from the Making of a Musical

MovieDocumentaryMusic

Opening with the first day of rehearsals of the London production of "Sweeney Todd", this ninety-minute documentary focuses on the rehearsal process with the musical's director, composer and actors.

Music

Assassins

Assassins · 2004

MovieHistoryDrama

This darkly satirical musical reframes American history through the eyes of those who attempted – successfully or not – to kill US presidents. Structured as a surreal carnival sideshow, the piece weaponises American musical traditions – vaudeville, folk ballads, barbershop quartets, patriotic Sousa-style marches and Bacharach pop – to undercut the myth of the “American Dream,” exposing how frustration, alienation and entitlement can curdle into violence.

Music

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street – In Concert with the New York Philharmonic

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street – In Concert with the New York Philharmonic · 2014

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street – In Concert with the New York Philharmonic

MovieMusicDrama

In 1846, Anthony Hope sails into London with the mysterious Sweeney Todd, a once-naive barber whose life and marriage was uprooted by a corrupt justice system. Todd confides in Nellie Lovett, the owner of a local meat pie shop, and the two become partners, as Todd swears revenge on those that have wronged him and decides to take up his old profession. (Filmed live at the Lincoln Center with the New York Philharmonic from March 5–8, 2014.)

Musical

Stavisky...

Stavisky... · 1974

MovieCrimeDrama

Biarritz, 1933. Charm and talent assist small-time swindler Serge Alexandre, alias Stavisky, to bribe his way into the centre of French politics. But when his great scam involving millions is exposed, he brings the government to the verge of collapse and the country to the brink of civil war.

Original Music Composer

Six by Sondheim

Six by Sondheim · 2013

Six by Sondheim

MovieDocumentaryMusic

This intimate documentary explores the life and career of the stage legend Stephen Sondheim through six of his best-known songs.

Songs

Into the Woods

Into the Woods · 1991

MovieDramaMusic

In a woods filled with magic and fairy tale characters, a baker and his wife set out to end the curse put on them by their neighbor, a spiteful witch.

Musical

Pacific Overtures

Pacific Overtures · 1976

Pacific Overtures

In 1853 Japan, the story follows the Westernization of Japan, mainly through the story of Kayama, a samurai, and Manjiro, a fisherman. The lives of both men are radically changed by the coming of American ships to Japan.

Musical

Gypsy

MovieTV MovieComedy

Gypsy's mother Rose dreams of a life in show business for her daughters, but Louise becomes a huge burlesque star. Stage musical loosely based on the memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee.

Lyricist

Evening Primrose

Evening Primrose · 1966

Evening Primrose

MovieDramaMusic

A man becomes part of a secret society of people who live in a department store and quickly falls in love with their leader’s young maid.

Writer

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street · 1995

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

MovieHorrorThriller

In 1846, Anthony Hope sails into London with the mysterious Sweeney Todd, a once-naive barber whose life and marriage was uprooted by a corrupt justice system. Todd confides in Nellie Lovett, the owner of a local meat pie shop, and the two become partners, as Todd swears revenge on those that have wronged him and decides to take up his old profession.

Lyricist

Candide

Candide · 2023

MovieDramaMusic

The innocent Candide discovers that human beings aren't all they are cracked up to be and ultimately focuses on building his own life on his own terms.

Lyricist

The Simpsons

The Simpsons · 1989

SeriesAnimationComedy

Set in Springfield, the average American town, the show focuses on the antics and everyday adventures of the Simpson family; Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie, as well as a virtual cast of thousands. Since the beginning, the series has been a pop culture icon, attracting hundreds of celebrities to guest star. The show has also made name for itself in its fearless satirical take on politics, media and American life in general.

Stephen Sondheim (voice)

American Playhouse

American Playhouse · 1982

American Playhouse

SeriesDramaComedy

American Playhouse is an anthology television series periodically broadcast by Public Broadcasting Service in the United States.

Writer

Great Performances

Great Performances · 1971

Great Performances

SeriesComedyDocumentary

The best in the performing arts from across America and around the world including a diverse programming portfolio of classical music, opera, popular song, musical theater, dance, drama, and performance documentaries.

Maxie Schwartz

Performance

Performance · 1991

An anthology series of various plays and dramatic performances.

Original Music Composer

Live from Lincoln Center

Live from Lincoln Center · 1976

Live from Lincoln Center

Since premiering in 1976, the landmark series has sought to democratize the world of the performing arts by making Lincoln Center's historic concerts and events available for public broadcast across the country. And it continues to push the boundaries, both technical and creative, of what is possible in the realm of stage performance capture.

Writer

All You Need Is Love: The Story of Popular Music

All You Need Is Love: The Story of Popular Music · 1977

All You Need Is Love: The Story of Popular Music

SeriesDocumentary

A 17-part television documentary series on the history of modern pop music covering some of the many different genres that have fallen under the label of "popular music" between the mid-19th century and 1976, including folk, ragtime, Tin Pan Alley, vaudeville and music hall, musical theatre, country, swing, jazz, blues, R&B, rock 'n' roll and others.

Writer