Schwartz, Stephen

Stephen Schwartz was named an Honorary member of The Lambs in 2019. He was honored by Shepherd Marc Baron at a Shepherd’s luncheon on October 22, 2019.

Stephen, known for writing hit musicals as Godspell, Pippin and Wicked, has been awarded four Grammy Awards, three Academy Awards, a Drama Desk, the 2015 Isabelle Stevenson Award, and a special Tony Award for his commitment to serving artists and new talent. Stephen has led Musical Theater Workshops for the ASCAP Foundation  for over 25 years, and The Lambs Foundation has recently become a supporter of his workshops.

Interviewed by Michael Kerker, Vice President of Musical Theater at ASCAP, as Stephen candidly spoke about his work, his process and musical theater. The full audience was pleasantly surprised when Stephen hit the piano and performed a song form his new show, The Prince of Egypt, was opens in London in February 2020. After the talk, Shepherd Marc Baron awarded Mr. Schwartz Honorary Membership status of The Lambs “…in recognition for his outstanding achievements in musical theater, film, music composition and education in music theater” as decreed by The Lambs’ Council.

Adding to the afternoon festivity was the celebration of the 95th birthday of Lamb Joyce Randolph, best known as Trixie of The Honeymooners. Joyce’s late husband, Richard Charles, was Shepherd 1986-1997. Mr. Schwartz played “Happy Birthday” as the room arose in song.

https://youtu.be/Lq8e5brTzjQ

In 1971, Stephen Schwartz wrote the music and new lyrics for GODSPELL, for which he won two Grammys among other awards. This was followed by the English texts, in collaboration with Leonard Bernstein, for Bernstein’s MASS, which opened the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. The following year, he wrote the music and lyrics for PIPPIN, and two years later, THE MAGIC SHOW. At one point, GODSPELL, PIPPIN and THE MAGIC SHOW were all running on Broadway simultaneously.

He next wrote the music and lyrics for THE BAKER’S WIFE, followed by a musical version of Studs Terkel’s WORKING, to which he contributed four songs and which he also adapted and directed, winning a Drama Desk Award as best director. He also co-directed the television production, which was presented as part of the PBS “American Playhouse” series.

Other work for the musical theatre includes lyrics to RAGS (music by Charles Strouse), music and lyrics for CHILDREN OF EDEN, and two musicals produced overseas, MIT EVENTYR (MY FAIRY TALE) in Denmark and SCHIKANEDER in Austria.  He has also written songs for two musicals for young audiences, CAPTAIN LOUIE and MY SON, PINOCCHIO.  Compilation revues of his work include SNAPSHOTS and, for Princess Cruise Lines, MAGIC TO DO.

For film, he collaborated with composer Alan Menken on the songs for Disney’s POCAHONTAS, for which he received two Academy Awards and another Grammy, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, and ENCHANTED. He also provided songs for DreamWorks’ first animated feature, THE PRINCE OF EGYPT, for which he won another Academy Award for the song “When You Believe.”   THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME and THE PRINCE OF EGYPT have both been adapted for the stage.

Mr. Schwartz’s most recent stage musical, WICKED, opened in the fall of 2003 and is currently running on Broadway and in several other productions around the world. He received another Grammy for the cast recording, and in 2008, WICKED reached its 1900th performance on Broadway, making Mr. Schwartz the only songwriter in Broadway history ever to have three shows run more than 1900 performances.

His first opera, SEANCE ON A WET AFTERNOON, premiered at Opera Santa Barbara in the fall of 2009 and was subsequently produced by New York City Opera.  His frequently-performed choral works include “Testimony”, based on the It Gets Better Project, “Keramos” and part of the “Tyler Clemente Suite.”  He has also released two singer/songwriter CDs, RELUCTANT PILGRIM and UNCHARTED TERRITORY.

Mr. Schwartz has been awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.  In 2015, he received the Isabelle Stevenson Tony Award for his humanitarian and mentorship contributions to the theatre.  A book about his career, “Defying Gravity,” has been released by Applause Books.

Under the auspices of the ASCAP Foundation, he has been the artistic director of musical theatre workshops in New York and Los Angeles for over twenty years, as well as conducting workshops for aspiring musical theatre writers and performers in countries around the world, including Australia, Germany, Latvia and Kenya.  He is also a past President and current Council Member of the Dramatists’ Guild.

Mr Schwartz has 3 Oscars, 4 Grammys, 4 Drama Desk Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and 2 Broadcast Film Critics Awards. He has a star on the Hollywood walk of Fame, has been inducted to the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame, the Theater Hall of Fame, and holds a Isabelle Stevenson Special Tony Award. Read all bout Stephen on his web site: www.StephenSchwartz.com