Original Cast Album: “Company”
Original Cast Album: “Company” • 53m
Directed by D. A. Pennebaker • 1970 • United States
Starring Stephen Sondheim, Elaine Stritch, Donna McKechnie
This legendary, long-unavailable documentary from Direct Cinema pioneer D. A. Pennebaker captures the behind-the-scenes drama that went into the making of a classic Broadway recording. When Stephen Sondheim’s groundbreaking concept musical “Company” opened on Broadway in 1970, it was an immediate triumph. Shortly thereafter, the actors, musicians, and Sondheim assembled to record the original cast album in a grueling, nearly nineteen-hour session that tested the talents of all involved—including Elaine Stritch, who pushed herself to the limit to record what would become her iconic version of “The Ladies Who Lunch.” With raw immediacy, Pennebaker and his crew document the explosive energy and creative intensity that go into capturing the lightning-in-a-bottle magic of live performance.
Up Next in Original Cast Album: “Company”
-
ORIGINAL CAST ALBUM: “COMPANY” Commen...
Recorded in 2021, this commentary features composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim.
-
ORIGINAL CAST ALBUM: “COMPANY” Commen...
This commentary, recorded in 2001, features director D. A. Pennebaker; Harold Prince, producer of the original Broadway production; and actor Elaine Stritch.
-
Frank Rich, Stephen Sondheim, and Jon...
A biting satire of modern relationships, the 1970 musical comedy “Company” marked the emergence of Stephen Sondheim as the premier composer-lyricist of his generation, and the beginning of his fruitful collaboration with orchestrator Jonathan Tunick. In the following conversation, Sondheim and Tu...
