Press / Reviews

'Wall to Wall Sondheim'
Object Lessons in Song Styling for Actors
Backstage Online
March 29, 2005
By Leonard Jacobs

The reason for attending "Wall to Wall Stephen Sondheim," the monumental 12-hour tribute to the composer-lyricist on the occasion of his 75th birthday, held March 19 at Symphony Space, was not just the 100 or more examples of how his work inspires, dazzles, and fills us with affection and awe. Rather, it offered audiences -- actors, especially -- object lessons in how songs must be acted. Songs live, songs breathe, and an actor has to infuse his interpretation with a bit of himself so that, in the end, the audience has a chance to reflect a bit of itself in return..... Melissa Errico made the first of several appearances with "Sooner or Later," Sondheim's Oscar-winning song from "Dick Tracy," and erased all memories of Madonna's version by slithering atop the piano and lulling us with sensuality and vigor.