Stephen Sondheim and Frank Rich met yesterday at Barnes & Noble to hold a discussion session that was open to the public. Here are a few gems gleaned from that discussion.
On talking to Ingmar Bergman about A Little Night Music:
When I asked how he liked it, he said, ‘Well, it’s not the same story, Stephen. But we all eat from the same cake. As for that Hermione Gringold, she does tend to fuck the audience doesn’t she?’
On revivals and A Little Night Music:
I always approach it and get involved with it, and like the revivals much more than I ever expected to. A Little Night Music is elegant and funny and it blends well with the songs. I wouldn’t change much. I’m not saying its perfect but I wouldn’t change much.
On Sondheim on Sondheim:
It’s basically me loafing around and looking like a beached whale, murmuring and closing my eyes as I talk. At the moment its about four hours long. We are trying to cut it down: to three and a half.
On his upcoming book:
Basically what it is is every lyric I’ve written since I was 22 years old and corresponding counter-entries. It’s been broken into two volumes. So if you are interested in lyrics then it’s for you.
On the placement of “Gee, Officer Krupke” in West Side Story:
I hated where it was in Act II. I mean, there has just been a murder, and here comes this comic song. I thought it should be “Cool” not “Krupke”. Jerry Robbins promised that if they ever made a movie then they would make the switch. And they did. And you know what? It didn’t work. So there you go.
Musical Cyberspace 
Listen to that RAGTIME
It seems my post on the new minimalist production of Camelot has caused some folks to get a little hot under the collar. To set the record straight – particularly to those individuals who’ve reacted in a way that perhaps has allowed their own agenda to compromise their reading of that post – I didn’t say that the production of Ragtime that closes today was a terrible production. I did, in no uncertain terms, state that I felt that particular aspects of the production didn’t measure up to the original production, but despite its shortcomings in that regard, I think it is wonderful that a show like Ragtime can still be produced on Broadway today, albeit at a complete financial loss to its investors. I am sorry that it couldn’t run longer in the current economic and cultural climate in which the Great White Way finds itself today.