Any Broadway aficionado can tell you what fairy tales, presidential assassinations and gang warfare on Manhattan's West Side have in common.
All, of course, have been brought to the musical stage through the poetry and song of the incomparable Stephen Sondheim, the composer and lyricist whose work includes "Into the Woods," "Assassins" and the immortal "West Side Story."
This weekend, the Annapolis Summer Garden Theatre inaugurates its 31st season with "Side by Side by Sondheim," a snappy, fast-paced revue that pays tribute to this genius of the American musical stage.
Billed as "an evening of musical insight, romance and relationships," "Side by Side" showcases numbers from such Sondheim masterpieces as "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," "Company," "Follies," "A Little Night Music," "Gypsy" and "West Side Story."
The diversity of the offerings is extraordinary: from the breathtaking pathos of Maria and Anita's "I Have a Love" from "West Side," to the madcap, ham-it-up, vintage show biz shtick of "You Gotta Get a Gimmick" from "Gypsy."
Add the poignant, bittersweet "Send in the Clowns," "I Feel Pretty," "Comedy Tonight," "Maria," "Another Hundred People" and "Gee Officer Krupke" and you have only some of the three dozen songs that make up this remarkable anthology.
Performing in ASGT's "Side by Side" will be such talented performers as Jill Sharpe Compton, Eloise Ullman, Nori Morton, Sally Gilles, Katy McAllister, George Wall and Eric Peterson.
Opening night tonight will mark director Fay Jacobs' 20th season as a Summer Garden mainstay. "Side by Side" will be the 15th ASGT production she has brought to life in her distinguished career.
To celebrate this milestone, the theater is offering two tickets for the price of one this weekend.
"Side by Side" will run Thursdays through Sundays through July 6. All shows begin at 8: 30 p.m. For information, call 268-9212.
Pub Date: 5/24/96
