Ep 197: Matching Minds With Sondheim with author Barry Joseph
My guest this week is Barry Joseph, the author of the recent book, Matching Minds with Sondheim.
Since his death, there have been so many books about Stephen Sondheim and various aspects of his life and his career, including an amazing number of really terrific books, and I have had the honor of having many of the authors of those books as guests on this podcast. And Barry Joseph’s book is right up there with the best of them, but it is also a completely unique and original way of looking at Sondheim.
As Barry describes it, Matching Minds with Sondheim is “an exploration into the barely understood, hardly known, side-aspect of who Steven Sondheim was when he was not writing lyrics and composing music. Puzzles and games were a side hobby of his that he had a passion for throughout his life — from when he was very young until he passed away. And throughout those many decades, through parlor games, board games, treasure hunts, word puzzles, mechanical puzzles and video games, his passion, interest and creativity was expressed in a whole other way than we get to see when it's on the stage.”
The book also serves as a sort of “alternate biography” of Sondheim and explores how his life, Broadway career, and gaming hobby were intricately intertwined.
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