Show Synopsis:
This revue compiled songs cut from different musicals composed by Stephen Sondheim, or from little-known projects he worked on, that focus on the themes of relationships, love, and marriage.
Fun Facts:
1. This song was originally composed by Stephen Sondheim's first-ever musical Saturday Night and only made it into the revue in the Off-Broadway 1987 York Theater Company production.
2. In the context of the original musical, this song was sung by Gene, bidding goodbye to his friends and his neighborhood as he prepares to go to jail for a short time.
"Once I hated this city,
Now it can't get me down!
Slushy, humid and gritty -
What a pretty town!
What, thought I, could be duller,
More depressing, less gay?
Now my favorite color
Is gray.
A wall of rain as it turns to sleep,
The lack of sun on a one-way street,
I love the grime all the time
And what more do I need?
My window pane has a lovely view -
An inch of sky and a fly or two.
Why I can see half a tree -
And what more do I need?
The dusk is thick and it's galling.
It simply can't be excused.
In winter even the falling snow looks
Used.
My window pane may not give much light
But I see you, so the view is bright
If I can love you, I'll pay the dirt no heed
With your love what more do I need?
Someone shouting for quiet,
Someone starting a brawl.
Down the block there's a riot,
And I'll buy it all.
Listen now, I'm ecstatic.
Hold me close and be still.
Hear the lovely pneumatic
Drill.
A subway train thunders through the Bronx,
A taxi horn on the corner honks,
But I adore every roar
And what more do I need?
I hear a crane making street repairs,
A two ton child running wild upstairs,
Steam pipes bang, sirens clang
And what more do I need?
The neighbors yell in the summer,
The landlord yells in the fall
So loud I can't hear the plumber
Pound the wall.
An aeroplane roars across the bay,
But I can hear you as clear as day.
You said you loved me
Above the sound and speed.
With your love what more do I need?"