This handsome volume presents 25 favorite Al Hirschfeld portraits drawn from Stephen Sondheim’s musicals. The art prints in this oversize poster book can be easily removed and framed, making it an ideal gift for Sondheim fans. This first volume in a series of deluxe Hirschfeld poster books contains art drawn from life before the opening night of each of Sondheim’s productions. On the reverse side are rare, ancillary images from the archives, as well as an introduction by Bernadette Peters, an essay by Ben Brantley, and text by David Leopold, Hirschfeld’s archivist and creative director of the Al Hirschfeld Foundation. Hirschfeld’s images capture the essence of the performances even better than the photographs of the shows. All of Sondheim’s best-known plays are included—West Side Story, Follies, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Sweeney Todd, Merrily We Roll Along, and Sunday in the Park with George. Al Hirschfeld drew his first Sondheim show in 1957—West Side Story. In his iconic, illustrative style, Hirschfeld captured almost all of Sondheim’s Broadway shows and several films featuring the composer’s songs and scripts. Sondheim was a Hirschfeld collector, acquiring drawings directly from the artist and through his friends and collaborators like Hal Prince. In his last interview just five days before his death on November 26, 2021, the New York Times ran a photo of Sondheim in his home with an image of Hirschfeld’s Putting it Together in the background. All images for this book have been scanned from the archives of the Al Hirschfeld Foundation, ensuring the highest possible quality.
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