Stephen Schwartz thought he’d have it easy.
More than 20 years ago, David Stern, who writes books for musicals, approached Schwartz, the man behind “Wicked,” “Pippin,” “Godspell” and a slew of other musicals.
He had an idea for a new play, a musical using songs from Schwartz’s extensive music catalog. That idea became “Snapshots,” which Arizona Theatre Company opens in previews this weekend.
Schwartz expected about all he would have to do is sit back as Stern selected songs.
Things are never quite that simple.
“It just started out to be a revue,” recalls Schwartz, speaking from his Connecticut home. “As it evolved, it became more and more of a hybrid, with characters and stories. As so often happens, the lyrics stopped making sense in the story.”
That didn’t sit well with Schwartz, who has an impressive reputation based on his musicals and for his music written for television and film.
“I wanted the songs to be more appropriate for the story, so I started writing new lyrics — songs that were originally intended for other works were revised to fit into this one.”
“Snapshots” centers on a universal activity — visiting memories sparked by looking at old photos.
It begins as Sue decides to leave her husband, with whom she has been long married but no longer feels connected to. She climbs into the attic to get a suitcase, and Dan, who has come home early from work, finds her there. Together they go through snapshots of their life together.
Among the Schwartz tunes are “I’m Not That Girl” from “Wicked,” “No Time at All” from “Pippin,” and “All For the Best,” from “Godspell.” A few tunes have the same lyrics, but most have been adjusted to fit the story.
Stern combed over hundreds of songs, even coming up with a few gems that never made their way into the musicals they were written for.
Schwartz and Stern are both puzzle fans, and loved the challenge of fitting pieces together.
“It began to be a fun puzzle,” said Schwartz. “Many of the songs (in the play) have stood alone taken out of context. Here, there was a completely new context, and the specifics had to be right.”
What the two have created is not a jukebox musical, not a music revue, but a genre that is so new there is no name for it.
“Because it’s a hybrid, this show is unique in its form,” he says. “We didn’t have other shows to fall back on so we could see how others did it. We had to figure out how to do it ourselves.”
The play has had productions going back to the early part of this century. But it never stopped evolving, though Schwartz thinks it’s finally at the point that satisfies both him and Stern. And audiences, he adds.
“I think ultimately it’s touching and our experience is that it really speaks to audiences,” he says.
But don’t expect another Stephen Schwartz hybrid.
“I don’t know if I’d do this again, but I’m very happy with how this turned out,” he says. “It’s been a satisfying, fun destination to reach after a long journey.”
