#stephen-sondheim

#stephen-sondheim

This year, Maltby, who was first hired by the Harper's editor emeritus Lewis H. Lapham, celebrates fifty years writing the magazine's monthly cryptic crossword. (To mark the occasion, I've included a cryptic clue below.) Maltby describes the puzzle as a "little universe on the back page," like a god estranged from his own intelligent design. It is "kind of lonely," he told me. But for his many loyal solvers, Maltby has always made this universe feel lively and large.

While maybe not as famous as his other musicals, Stephen Sondheim has said that Company was his most biographical. The story follows Bobby, a single New Yorker surrounded by married and engaged couples, who contemplates his future on the brink of his 35th birthday. After it debuted in 1970, the show went through several revivals, including 2021's feminist, gender-swapping version in which an actress played the lead role.

This autumn, the Grand Opera House will shimmer with sequins and sorrow as Northern Ireland Opera stages Stephen Sondheim's Follies. This landmark production marks the first time the musical has ever been performed in Northern Ireland. Running from 13 to 20 September, it is set to be one of the most ambitious projects the company has ever undertaken, combining a 32-strong cast with a 35-piece orchestra in a show famed for its scale, spectacle, and emotional depth.