Welcome to a new Wildcard Wednesday… on a Tuesday, bumped up so we can pay tribute to musical theatre icon Stephen Sondheim, the most influential Broadway composer from the latter half of the twentieth century. He passed away last week at the age of 91, and while I know I don’t need to eulogize him to this crowd, I couldn’t pass up the chance to celebrate his work, just as we have with Company (1970), Sunday In The Park With George (1984), etc.

So, in honor of this unparalleled genius, I want to share — with subscribers who comment below to alert me of their educational, private, non-commercial interest — access to three rare audio recordings from productions of one of my favorite Sondheim scores: A Little Night Music (1973). The first, of course, is from opening night of the Original Broadway Production. Here’s Glynis Johns with Len Cariou in “You Must Meet My Wife.”

The second recording comes from the first national tour, which starred Jean Simmons and included Margaret Hamilton as Madame Armfeldt. Here’s the witch herself with “Liaisons.”

And, lastly, I have an untracked audio from the most recent major production — the 2009 Broadway revival. This comes from a few performances in fall 2010, when Bernadette Peters and Elaine Stritch had replaced Catherine Zeta-Jones and Angela Lansbury, respectively. Here’s Peters with one of Sondheim’s most well-known songs, “Send In The Clowns.”

Thank you for everything, Stephen Sondheim! 

Come back next week for another Wildcard! And stay tuned tomorrow for Family Ties!