Sondheim & Film A missed opportunity The original movie musical Singing Out Loud never went before the cameras the wake of the 1990 film Dick Tracy, which uding the Osearsvinning “Sooner or see p. 9 for an article about that film) mmposer was asked to eollaborate on that st unusual type of Hollywood produet — an While Sing n¢ Out Loud never went before the eameras, the sursiving songs reveal a cinematic use of musie J Iyries rarely seen in contemporary movies. Sondheim was approached co work on the movie musical by sercenwriter William Goldman irector Rob Reiner, fresh off the successes The Princess Bride (1987) and Misery (1990) Sondheim had eollaborated with Goldman's James, on Follies and the TV sowright broth ssical Bvening Primrose, and he had contrib the song “No, Mary Ann” to an unproduced film adaptation of William's novel The 7 Reiner had directed the heavy-metal spoof This Is Spinal Tap (1984), which Sondheim sts as one of his favorite movies. (See p. S for pre.) Subritled “A Musical Movie About a Movie sical That's in Trouble,” Sp akes place during the filmin; ng ut Loud ts temperamental female star, Charlie Lake. requests directorial help from her ex-lover Gaifith Bean and musical assistanee from young, songwriter Jed Lazenby. Complications ensue when Charlie and Griffith rekindle their affair while Jed develops a erush on Charlie After the unsuccessful movie adaptations of A Funny Thing Happened on the Wig to the Forum nnd A Lite Night Music, Sondheim saw oppor. tunities in writing an original sereen musical As he said during the 1990s, “Film musicals, that fascinates me, heeause film is a reportorial medium and theatre is a poetic medium.” As such, one of the sereenplay’s lengthier musieal {s not an extroverted produc ely rhythmie dialogue (and that dialogue largely through voieeover) matter tdon number but la sEfactly delivered at a Hollywood restaurant table In Look, I Macle « Hat, Sondheim wrote that he wanted Singing Out Loud to display the ere tive process, The sereenplay opens with Charlie cutting back and Jatelub settin singing Sondheim's "Sand, ‘campy, musicxideo desert set with backup singers. And Goldman's screenplay would have “Dawn, presented the evolution of the sor with quick cuts of Charlie singing different lyr Jos and orchestrations. at least four After a year of discussions ng Out Loud ‘Bill and 1 had a couple of our own brainstorming ses- sercenplay drafts, work on Si abruptly stopped. Sondheim wrote, sions with Rob Reiner, but each one sputtered out and it gradually beeame elear to us that he and his producers were losing interest. Ever the realists, we faded away.” Goldman said that Reiner backed away after another Hollywood musical of the era failed (which might have been a reference to James L. Brooks's Ill Do Any thing, which, following di released in 1994 with all its musical numbers removed). This was surely a missed opportunity Reiner's use of rock musie in Spinal Tap and Great American Songbook stan dards in When Harry Met Salty (1989) su he might have made an excellent musical director Goldman's sereen: play played to his the movie industry promulgated in his memoir Adven tures in the Screen Trade (where he wrote “Nobody knows anything”) Rob Reiner’s heavy metal spoof, This Is Spinal Tap, is one of Sond- heim’s favorite films. Reiner and Sondheim considered collaborat- ing on Singing Out Loud in the Fortunately several of the Singing Out Loud garty 1990s, but the project never songs emenged to have an outside life. Liza moved forward. Minnelli, accompanied on the piano by Billy And the film's sardonic attitude toward showbiz would also appear to be in Sondheim's wheel pouse, calling ¢o mind Merrily We Roll long and his youthful project Climb High (1953), Stritch, introduced “Water Under the Bridge” at A Celebration at Carnegie Hail concert, and Debbie Shapiro ( the 1992 Sondheim: it om the 1993 Unsung Sondheim album. The 1997 Sondheim at the Movies recording includes Dawn” (by Jolie Jenkins, Bryan Bate, Danny Burstein and James Hindman) and “Sand (Christiane Noll) These things never completely dic, and it nay be resurrected,” Reiner told Sondheim bi ographer Meryle Secrest several years after work For a film that wasn't made, it was one of the greatest ercative ‘on Singing Out Loud ended experiences I ever had.” Given the international suceess of the 2014 Hollywood adaptation of Sondheim's Into the Woods, perhaps an adven: uurous studio will allow chis ambitious project to t loud at last. [FSR 2015 « The Sondheim Review 17