Compare And Contrast: Stephen Sondheim Vs. Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber

Stephen Sondheim V.S. Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber is an interesting debate. According to Geoffrey Block, the author of Enchanted Evenings: The Broadway Musical from 'Show Boat' to Sondheim and Lloyd Webber, Sondheim was a “Critical Success” while Lloyd Webber was “Broadway’s Champion.” Block’s reasoning behind this has to do with popularity versus critical acclaim. Considering the category of popularity, Andrew Lloyd Webber is certainly the winner in that category. While Sondheim’s show's longest Broadway run (A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) was 964 performances, Webber’s show, The Phantom of the Opera, closed after 13,981 performances and ran for over thirty years. That may look like an unbeatable feat, but popularity and critical

This song has a motive that is so similar to an aria in Puccini’s Opera Fancuilla del West that the Puccini Estate filed a lawsuit against Lloyd Webber. While I certainly enjoy many of Webber’s musicals, I cannot deny the many similarities to pre-existing music. And personally, as a writer, I would feel very upset if my work was used without given any recognition. I don’t mind if people make references but according to Johann Mattheson, “borrowing is permissible but one must return the object borrowed with interest.” I truly agree with that statement and I honestly don’t believe Andrew Lloyd Webber has historically done a good job of “paying interest” or giving

The story is about a slave named Pseudolus who works for Sexex, the house owner, and his son Hero. One day, Senex and his wife Domina go on a trip and leave Pseudolus with Hero. Hero convinces Pseudolus to help him win over Philia, the courtesan next door, in exchange for the promise of his freedom. Pseudolus agrees, but he soon finds out that Philia was given to the warrior Miles Gloriosus. Pseudolus manages to get Philia to stay in Senex’s house by making up a story about a plague that would require her to quarantine elsewhere. Pseudolus plans to fake her death and help Hero and Philia to run away together but his plan fails when Senex returns early. To get him out of the way, Pseudolus convinces him to take a bath in the long-abandoned house of Erronius, who is looking for his long-lost children. However, when Erronius returns, Pseudolus has to convince him his house is haunted to keep him from finding Senex in his bathtub and sends him on a faulty mission around Rome to banish the ghost. When Gloriosus and Domina return, antics ensue until Erronius returns and finds out that both Gloriosus and Philia are his children. This makes Philia free from being her brother’s Courtesan and allows her to marry Hero. And because of that, Pseudolus gets his freedom. Honestly, this show sounded interesting to me because I love