Tonight, tonight, won't be just any night. Tonight there will be no morning star.
Stephen SondheimRead
I'm very opinionated about movie musicals when they're adapted from live shows. You'll sit still for a three-minute song in a theater. But in movies, a glance from someone's eyes will tell you the whole story in a few seconds.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Sondheim emphasizes the differences in storytelling between live theater and film, highlighting how visual mediums can convey emotions quickly.
In this quote, Stephen Sondheim reflects on the distinct experiences of watching live musicals versus movie adaptations. He suggests that while audiences in theaters are accustomed to extended performances, films have the unique ability to communicate complex emotions and narratives through subtle visual cues, such as a single glance. This distinction showcases the power of film as a medium that can deliver profound storytelling in a condensed format, challenging traditional expectations of musical theater.
Themes
MusicalsFilmTheaterStorytellingEmotion
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion on adaptations, you might quote Sondheim to emphasize how film needs to rely on visual storytelling.
More from Stephen Sondheim
All quotes →After the Rodgers and Hammerstein revolution, songs became part of the story, as opposed to just entertainments in between comedy scenes.
Stephen SondheimRead
Musical comedies aren't written, they are rewritten.
Stephen SondheimRead
Let Pirelli's / Miracle Elixir / Activate your roots, sir... Keep it off your boots, sir- / Eats right through. Yes, get Pirelli's! / Use a bottle of it! / Ladies seem to love it... Flies do, too!
Stephen SondheimRead
Art, in itself, is an attempt to bring order out of chaos.
Stephen SondheimRead
Careful the spell you cast, not just on children. Sometimes the spell may last Past what you can see And turn against you... Careful the tale you tell. That is the spell.
Stephen SondheimRead
Similar quotes
Music and love are the only accomplishments of humanity which do not, in an absolute sense, have to be called attempts with unsuitable means.
Georg SimmelRead
When I began making electronic music, the only thing I was thinking about was creating music that I really liked. I didn't think about what effect it would have; I was busy doing it.
Jean Michel JarreRead
It was my 16th birthday-my mom and dad gave me my Goya classical guitar that day. I sat down, wrote this song, and I just knew that that was the only thing I could ever really do-write songs and sing them to people. [...] Everything on this record is what I really wanted to say, and I'm back to being the poet I always thought I was.
Stevie NicksRead
I dedicate this novel to Gala, who was constantly by my side while I was writing it, who was the good fairy of my equilibrium, who banished the salamanders of my doubts and strengthened the lions of certainties.
Salvador DaliRead
When you dance, your body just wants to find its natural weight. I'm naturally a lot more Tommy Tune than I am Wolverine.
Hugh JackmanRead
About no subject are poets tempted to lie so much as about their own lives.
Margaret AtwoodRead