Kerrytown Concert House is honored to bring back the enormously popular lecture series, The Great American Songbook: What Makes it Great? featuring the incomparable Brent Wagner (University of Michigan Emeritus Professor of Musical Theatre) with pianist Tyler Driskill (U-M Asst. Prof of Musical Theatre).

Exploring Stephen Sondheim’s work is a natural ‘sequel’ to the fall Rodgers and Hammerstein presentation, since Oscar Hammerstein was Sondheim’s teacher and mentor. With Sondheim’s passing just 4 years ago, major revivals and reassessments are proliferating, as we all appreciate Sondheim’s monumental achievements anew. He was surely the most impactful and inventive writer since Oscar Hammerstein himself.

Part One highlights Sondheim’s early years, including his work with composers Jule Styne (Gypsy), Leonard Bernstein (West Side Story), and Richard Rodgers (Do I Hear a Waltz?), along with his scores for the madcap farce A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and the zany, eccentric Anyone Can Whistle. All of these were leading to his 1970 landmark, Company.