An Evening with Sondheim: A Musical Revue with M.F.A. Vocal Pedagogy Students

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Friday / November 12, 2021 / 8:00 p.m.

Saturday / November 13, 2021 / 8:00 p.m.

A stage curtain closed, with a microphone silhouette

Join M.F.A. ’22 and ’23 vocal pedagogy students for a musical evening featuring some of Stephen Sondheim’s greatest works, including songs from Company, Into the Woods, Passion, Pacific Overtures, Assassins, Sweeney Todd, and more!

Corey Everly, music director and creative director

The public is invited to watch the livestream on November 13. The in-person performances in Studio 401 are only open to the Berklee community (students, faculty, staff) and invited guests.

Livestream: November 13 at 8:00 p.m.

Program Information

Musical Numbers

Texts adapted from: George Furth, Geoffrey Colvin, William Shakespeare, M. Scott Peck, Arthur Laurents, T.S. Eliott, Tom Jones, Alice Fogel, James Lapine

ORDER

“Company” from Company

BOBBY – Adam Moxness
SARAH – Alice Jihyun Kim
HARRY – Robert McFletcher–Jones
SUSAN – Elza Ann Manoj
PETER – Curtis Reynolds
JENNY – Karina Stribley
DAVID – Yoosep Im
AMY – Essie Canty Bertain
PAUL – Bryan Chan
JOANNE – Cassi Mikat
LARRY – Evan Rees
MARTA – Kristina Newman
KATHY – April Ball
APRIL – Rose van Dyne
ENSEMBLE

DESIGN

“So Many People/Take Me to the World” from Saturday Night/Evening Primrose
Elza Ann Manoj and William Pazdziora

“Happiness” from Passion
Rose Van Dyne and Yoosep Im

“Poems” from Pacific Overtures
Bryan Chan and Chuhao Hu

“I’m All for You/Green Finch” and Linnet Bird from Saturday Night/Sweeney Todd
Sarah DeYong and Karina Stribley

“What More Do I Need/Talent” from Saturday Night/Road Show
Madeline McCord and Curtis Reynolds

“You’re Gonna Love Tomorrow” from Follies
Essie Canty Bertain and Colin Briskey
Alex Lyons and Sarah DeYong

TENSION

“Johanna/Agony” from Sweeney Todd/Into the Woods
Evan Rees, Jon Gallegos, and Yoosep Im

“Children Will Listen” from Into the Woods
William Pazdziora

“Something Just Broke” from Assassins
HOUSEWIFE – Haley Wawro
CLERK – Robert McFletcher–Jones
GENTLEMAN/FARMER – Jon Gallegos
FACTORY HAND – Curtis Reynolds
SCHOOL TEACHER – Alice Jihyun Kim
STOCKBROKER – Bryan Chan
LADY/SCHOOLGIRL – Kristina Newman
OLD LADY – Ana Beatriz Carrillo
PAWNBROKER/MINISTER – Alex Lyons
WAITRESS – Elza Ann Manoj
POLICEMAN – Colin Briskey
ENSEMBLE

“Ever After” from Into the Woods
NARRATOR – Jon Gallegos
FLORINDA – Alice Jihyun Kim
LUCINDA – Kristina Newman
WITCH – Elza Ann Manoj
ENSEMBLE

BALANCE

“It Takes Two” from Into the Woods
Cassi Mikat and Evan Rees

“Anyone Can Whistle” from Anyone Can Whistle
Carol Smith Sparkman and April Ball

“Move On” from Sunday in the Park with George
Adam Moxness and Meredith Eib

HARMONY

“Sunday” from Sunday in the Park with George
GEORGE – Evan Rees
DOT – Haley Wawro
ENSEMBLE

Director's Note

A lifelong favorite of many performers, Stephen Sondheim’s music and lyrics always provide rich insights into the more nuanced aspects of living, loving, and what it means to be an artist. Our exploration of these works revealed many new layers, but we felt throughout the process that it was important to explore what it means to be a community and how we respond to community trauma through our togetherness. For this reason, we’ve chosen to focus on mainly duets, trios, quartets, and ensembles.

The segments of our show come from Stephen Sondheim’s 1984 masterpiece Sunday in the Park with George. George chants the words “order, design, tension, balance” and finally, “harmony” as a sort of mantra. We have used these words to organize our show, attempting to find “order” where there are many voices, “design”–ing our ideal life, relationship, or job, encountering “tension” and conflict, and ultimately finding “balance” and “harmony.”

We’ve made this a revue in every sense of the word—you will notice texts and scenes from Sondheim and Sondheim adjacent musicals. We’ve also incorporated poetry from some of the world’s most lauded poets, in celebration of Sondheim’s affinity for verse and being a true wordsmith.

It is our hope that through these clever pairings and narration that you experience the music and lyrics of Sondheim through a new lens, one that illuminates the timeless, enduring contribution to our craft: musical theatre.

—Corey Everly, Music Director and Creative Director

Ensemble

All students are M.F.A. vocal pedagogy

April Ball
Ana Beatriz Carrillo
Colin Briskey
Essie Canty Bertain
Bryan Chan
Sarah DeYong
Meredith Eib
Jonathan Gallegos
Chuhao Hu
Yoosep Im
Alice Jihyun Kim
Alex Lyons
Elza Ann Manoj
Madeline McCord
Robert McFletcher-Jones
Cassi Mikat
Adam Moxness
Kristina Newman
William Pazdziora
Evan Rees
Curtis Reynolds
Carol Smith Sparkman
Karina Stribley
Rose Van Dyne
Haley Wawro

Creative Team

Corey Everly, Music and Creative director
Evan Rees, Assistant Music Director
William Pazdziora, Choreographer

Music Division and Performance Services Staff

MUSIC DIVISION
Dean of Music  – Michael Shinn
Chair of Voice – Patty Thom
Chair of Instrumental Studies – Matthew Marsit
Chair of Composition, Contemporary Music, and Core Studies – Jonathan Bailey Holland
Chief Ensemble Operations Coordinator – Ryan Fossier
Ensembles Coordinator – Victoria Garcia
Administrative Coordinator – Chantel O'Brien

PERFORMANCE SERVICES
Director of Performance Services – Liz Keller-Tripp
Director of Audio/Visual Services – Richard Malcolm
Audio/Visual Specialist – Phil Roberson
Associate Director of Concert Services – Ryland Bennett

Special thanks to all audience members for viewing this program information online. Viewing this information digitally has saved 200 sheets of paper—that's 21 gallons of water preserved and 18 pounds of CO2-equivalent greenhouse gas emissions eliminated.