Sondheim on audiences

“I do think audiences become more sophisticated. You try something out on them and they say, “Ugh”. You try it a second time and they say, “Oh”. You try it a third time and they say, “Ooh”. You try it a fourth time and they say, “Oh, that’s awfully old hat.”’ He laughs. ‘That’s the history of art, is it not?’”

Brown, Mick. “Still Cutting it at 80: Stephen Sondheim interview”, Telegraph, 27 September 2010.  Click here to view article.


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