NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� The great theater composer loved puzzles, and when he died in 2021, he left one for his good friend, British super-producer He left him an unfinished show.
The two men conceived of a revue of Sondheim's songs during the pandemic and they both began lists of tunes they wanted. But with the death of his friend, it was up to Mackintosh to make the show real.
鈥淚 did say to him, 鈥業 really want to concentrate on the music,鈥欌�� recalls Mackintosh. 鈥淚 want it to be personal, but we never really got that far with the construction of it.鈥�
Sondheim died in November 2021. Between Christmas that year and New Year's, Mackintosh created the skeleton of what would be which has landed on Broadway starring Tony Award-winners and
Old friends create 鈥極ld Friends鈥�
The final rundown has some of Sondheim's most memorable songs, like 鈥淭he Ladies Who Lunch,鈥� 鈥淚鈥檓 Still Here,鈥� 鈥淪end in the Clowns,鈥� 鈥淟osing My Mind,鈥� 鈥淓verything鈥檚 Coming Up Roses鈥� and 鈥淐hildren Will Listen.鈥�
鈥淚 wanted the songs to reflect the fun I鈥檇 had with him,鈥� says Mackintosh. "We鈥檙e both klutzy, we can鈥檛 dance, we can鈥檛 sing, we make terrible puns.
鈥淲e were silly together, and I think we loved being silly, making each other laugh. We never had a conversation in 45 years where we didn鈥檛 make each other laugh even when we were grumpy.鈥�
Mackintosh had produced two Sondheim revues before 鈥� 鈥淪ide by Side鈥� in 1976 and 鈥淧utting It Together鈥� in 1993. He wanted the third to emphasize that Sondheim, who had a reputation for brainy lyrics and complicated melodies, was actually an accessible writer.
鈥淭he great thing with 'Side by Side' is for the first time people saw the songs shorn of the books, and they were all like little playlets. And you realize, 鈥極h my God, they live in their own world鈥� and therefore anyone can understand it. You didn鈥檛 need to have an intellectual passport to enjoy Steve鈥檚 work.鈥�
鈥楶hantom of the Opera鈥� and 鈥楲es Mis茅rables鈥�
鈥淪tephen Sondheim鈥檚 Old Friends鈥� is just one of several projects the tireless Mackintosh is overseeing as one of the last great theater impresarios, one who champions Sondheim as well as Andrew Lloyd Webber.
There's a revitalized, multiyear North American tour starting in November of 鈥淭he Phantom of the Opera鈥� and two tours of 鈥淟es Mis茅rables鈥� 鈥� one and the other a traditional staging
A new production of 鈥淢iss Saigon鈥� will launch a U.K. tour in the fall and there's a fresh revival of 鈥淥liver!鈥� 鈥� The Standard newspaper called it 鈥渆xceptional鈥� 鈥� that opened earlier this year in London, which could end up on Broadway.
Mackintosh has a knack for returning to former triumphs, stripping them down and then building them up again, adding fresh new talent and delighting a new generation.
鈥淢ost of my shows have turned out to be really good shows. They are, then, worth reinventing,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 want it to ever become Madame Tussauds.鈥�
Keeping the shows fresh
Mackintosh, doesn't do gut renovations to his revivals, just makes them more nimble with tweaks. Like the new 鈥淧hantom,鈥� which reduced its orchestra from 27 players to 14. The speed may be quicker, too.
鈥淚f you listen to a cast album of 40 years ago 鈥� for instance 鈥楲es Miz鈥� 鈥� to modern ears, well that sounds a bit slow. We鈥檝e got used to doing materials slightly faster," he says.
鈥淗ave we changed the material? Have we cut it? No, it鈥檚 just treating it as if it鈥檚 brand new. And you go into it with a group of talented people and you create the show in the moment. What happened 10, 20, 30 years ago doesn鈥檛 matter. To keep the shows fresh, you鈥檝e got to create it as it is today.鈥�
Bonnie Langford, who was the original Rumpleteazer in 鈥淐ats,鈥� and has known Mackintosh for decades, recalls seeing him backstage when she appeared in 鈥淥ld Friends鈥� in the West End.
鈥淚 just couldn鈥檛 get over his enthusiasm after all these years. He was still so excited,鈥� she says. 鈥淗e can be like a little boy in a candy shop sometimes. He was having the time of his life, and I found that so endearing for someone who鈥檚 been in the business a long time. He just loves theater and shows.鈥�
鈥極liver!鈥� has a new lease on life, too
Mackintosh has brought 鈥淟es Mis茅rables鈥� to Broadway three times but doesn't plan to bring either current iterations to Broadway. He wants regional theaters to do it, even if that means leaving money on the table.
鈥淚鈥檝e got more than enough money, but the show needs to get back into the capillaries of the entertainment business and be great shows to bring new generations of audiences and actors into the profession.鈥�
If that's the plan for 鈥淟es Miz,鈥� he's plotting the return to New York of his new 鈥淧hantom,鈥� its 35-year Broadway run.
His reimagining of 鈥淥liver!鈥� is a full-circle moment. He was an assistant stage manager 鈥� and understudied 鈥� in a touring company of 鈥淥liver!鈥� in 1965.
This time he worked with noted choreographer to 鈥渃ome up with a modern contemporary spin on it.鈥� Mackintosh even wrote a few scenes to strengthen the connective tissue.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 mind changing it, but you don鈥檛 change it unless it鈥檚 at least as good. And maybe in a few instances you come up with a better idea,鈥� he says. 鈥淚鈥檝e always had a very good instinct. for what鈥檚 missing.鈥�
Mackintosh must be won over first by the dialogue and the plot, not the songs. 鈥淚 have to fall in love with the words 鈥� the characters 鈥� first. I want the music to be great, but if I don鈥檛 love the story and the characters, I don鈥檛 feel I鈥檝e got anything to add to them,鈥� he says.
He loves classic authors, taking work by Charles Dickens, Victor Hugo, Giacomo Puccini, P.L. Travers or Gaston Leroux and putting their stories to soaring scores, luxurious costumes and sets.
鈥淎ll the great musicals were mostly driven by the passion of the authors against the customary wisdom of saying, 鈥業 don鈥檛 think that鈥檒l work. No, no, no.鈥� And then they become the classics,鈥� he says, laughing.
Mark Kennedy, The Associated Press
