--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's great when it all comes together in…" description: "\"It's great when it all comes together in a great musical like 'Sweeney Todd,' when Stephen Sondheim writes songs from heaven, the book is good and the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63d/dennis-deyoung-5112_actor_it-s-great-when-it-all-comes-together-in_2871082.jpg" --- # It's great when it all comes together in a great musical… ![“It's great when it all comes together in a great musical like 'Sweeney Todd,' when Stephen Sondheim writes songs from heaven, the book is good and the staging is good. But it's very rare when that happens.” quote by Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63d/dennis-deyoung-5112_actor_it-s-great-when-it-all-comes-together-in_2871082.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63d/dennis-deyoung-5112_actor_it-s-great-when-it-all-comes-together-in_2871082.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63d/dennis-deyoung-5112_actor_it-s-great-when-it-all-comes-together-in_2871082.jpg) > “It's great when it all comes together in a great musical like 'Sweeney Todd,' when Stephen Sondheim writes songs from heaven, the book is good and the staging is good. But it's very rare when that happens.” [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A perfect musical requires exceptional music, script, and staging, which is rare. **In simple terms:** Great productions are rare. Key Takeaway Strive for excellence. Themes art collaboration rarity musical theater Mood appreciative realistic Type critical observational When to use this quote - theatre production - film adaptation - concert planning Key Concepts creative synergy production quality artistic vision Questions to Reflect On - What balances quality and feasibility? - How to foster collaboration? A Different Perspective High standards can stifle creativity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good/) [Good Staging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-staging-864310/) [Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great/) [Great music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-music/) [Great Musical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-musical-1754941/) [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Rare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rare/) [Sondheim Writes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sondheim-writes-492906/) [Stephen Sondheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stephen-sondheim/) [Sweeney todd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sweeney-todd/) [Together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/together/) ## Related quotes > [I saw Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd, which I thought was a masterpiece. Not that long ago, I listened to Blackstar by David Bowie and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-bush/i-saw-stephen-sondheim-s-sweeney-todd-which-i-thought-was-a/) [Kate Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-bush/) > [Musically, I'm a huge fan of Stephen Sondheim, and I love, love 'Sweeney Todd.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keala-settle/musically-i-m-a-huge-fan-of-stephen-sondheim-and-i-love-love-sweeney/) [Keala Settle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keala-settle/) > [That's the only show where, if anyone says to me, 'Is there a role you want to play?', I say, yeah, I want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ball/that-s-the-only-show-where-if-anyone-says-to-me-is-there-a-role-you/) [Michael Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ball/) > [I couldn't live without the genius of Stephen Sondheim, be it not just West Side Story,but Follies,Company,Sweeney Todd,Passion.You can go on and on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/i-couldn-t-live-without-the-genius-of-stephen-sondheim-be-it-not-just/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [I know how to make it a great musical. I've got to. It's like I've got to see it on stage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/i-know-how-to-make-it-a-great-musical-i-ve-got-to-it-s-like-i-ve-got/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [Being in a different band always brings great musical experiences to be able to draw on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-nash/being-in-a-different-band-always-brings-great-musical-experiences-to/) [Graham Nash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-nash/) > [The fact is that great musical pieces take and hold the stage because they provide great emotional experiences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/the-fact-is-that-great-musical-pieces-take-and-hold-the-stage-because/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [Wouldn't Ponochio II be a great musical, now that he has to face the real world and get a wife... job. Now he wants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rufus-wainwright/wouldn-t-ponochio-ii-be-a-great-musical-now-that-he-has-to-face-the/) [Rufus Wainwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rufus-wainwright/) > [As the book writer for one big smash and one big smelly flop, I always wondered if anyone knows just what goes into making…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-fierstein/as-the-book-writer-for-one-big-smash-and-one-big-smelly-flop-i-always/) [Harvey Fierstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-fierstein/) > [Sondheim writes the music and lyrics, and because he's so smart and goes so deep with his feelings, there's a lot to explore, get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernadette-peters/sondheim-writes-the-music-and-lyrics-and-because-he-s-so-smart-and/) [Bernadette Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernadette-peters/) > [I always considered myself being an organizer. I'm very good at teaching singers, I'm very good at staging a show, to entertain people. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ike-turner/i-always-considered-myself-being-an-organizer-i-m-very-good-at/) [Ike Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ike-turner/) > [ \[I watch\] Fincher, Spielberg, Cameron, McTiernan. Just people who are good at staging action. I like to know where I am. I don't like… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-soderbergh/i-watch-fincher-spielberg-cameron-mctiernan-just-people-who-are-good/) [Steven Soderbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-soderbergh/) > [I think 'Glee' has been great for musical theater and for kids who are interested in musical theater and singing because it has made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-schwartz/i-think-glee-has-been-great-for-musical-theater-and-for-kids-who-are/) [Stephen Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-schwartz/) > [My view is that musicals are love stories with great final scenes. It's just that simple. Musicals are also conflicts between two worlds. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsha-norman/my-view-is-that-musicals-are-love-stories-with-great-final-scenes-it/) [Marsha Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsha-norman/) > [“They all deserve to die. Tell you why, Mrs. Lovett, tell you why. Because in all of the whole human race Mrs Lovett, there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-sondheim/they-all-deserve-to-die-tell-you-why-mrs-lovett-tell-you-why-because/) [Stephen Sondheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-sondheim/) ## More by Dennis DeYoung > [I'm proud of the body of work I was part of and I want people to enjoy it as long as they choose to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/i-m-proud-of-the-body-of-work-i-was-part-of-and-i-want-people-to/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [Winners are losers who got up and gave it one more try.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/winners-are-losers-who-got-up-and-gave-it-one-more-try/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [Many musicals you can take and throw in the garbage can because no one took the time to write a song you can care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/many-musicals-you-can-take-and-throw-in-the-garbage-can-because-no/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [If you're in rock 'n' roll, you're not supposed to admit to liking theatre stuff, but I'm a big theatregoer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/if-you-re-in-rock-n-roll-you-re-not-supposed-to-admit-to-liking/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [I'm very proud of it. 'Hunchback' contains some of my favorite music I've ever written in my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/i-m-very-proud-of-it-hunchback-contains-some-of-my-favorite-music-i/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [I was damn lucky to choose this profession. I had no idea when I started out that I was really an illusionist and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/i-was-damn-lucky-to-choose-this-profession-i-had-no-idea-when-i/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [If you think marriage is gonna be easy, don't do it because when there are children involved, you screw up the rest of society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/if-you-think-marriage-is-gonna-be-easy-don-t-do-it-because-when-there/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [I just believed in 1979 that prog rock was finished. I just saw the handwriting on the wall. And I believed that if we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/i-just-believed-in-1979-that-prog-rock-was-finished-i-just-saw-the/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [To be successful in your life, you have to be convinced in your own mind that you have the ability to accomplish your goals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/to-be-successful-in-your-life-you-have-to-be-convinced-in-your-own/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [How lucky am I? I'll go to Naperville and people will come up to me and thank me for coming to Naperville. That's how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/how-lucky-am-i-i-ll-go-to-naperville-and-people-will-come-up-to-me/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [Technology has made music ultimately more democratic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/technology-has-made-music-ultimately-more-democratic/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [If you pretend to be somebody that you're not when you write songs - and I did that on some of the early Styx…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/if-you-pretend-to-be-somebody-that-you-re-not-when-you-write-songs/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [Nobody can figure out why it does what it does to human beings. But there is no other art form greater than music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/nobody-can-figure-out-why-it-does-what-it-does-to-human-beings-but/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [I love Styx as much as I could love anything in my life. I started playing in the band when I was 14 years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/i-love-styx-as-much-as-i-could-love-anything-in-my-life-i-started/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) > [I think the music business is as crass and as unrewarding as it has ever been.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-deyoung/i-think-the-music-business-is-as-crass-and-as-unrewarding-as-it-has/) [Dennis DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) [Explore all 103 Dennis DeYoung quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-deyoung/) ## More Actor quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I once told someone I could act. They totally bought it. I've been getting away with it ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akshay-kumar/i-once-told-someone-i-could-act-they-totally-bought-it-i-ve-been/) [Akshay Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akshay-kumar/) > [There has got to be a way for me to have a role on TV or in film that is just as normal as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adeel-akhtar/there-has-got-to-be-a-way-for-me-to-have-a-role-on-tv-or-in-film-that/) [Adeel Akhtar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adeel-akhtar/) > [I love casting against type and doing things you wouldn't expect, because I think you get more interesting performances that way. Hollywood loves to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-s-goyer/i-love-casting-against-type-and-doing-things-you-wouldn-t-expect/) [David S. Goyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-s-goyer/) > [I'm an actor, so I'm never going to feel like I've done enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italia-ricci/i-m-an-actor-so-i-m-never-going-to-feel-like-i-ve-done-enough/) [Italia Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italia-ricci/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [When I was 13, I auditioned for the theater school, and I was there for four years. In the meantime, I did my first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-de-armas/when-i-was-13-i-auditioned-for-the-theater-school-and-i-was-there-for/) [Ana de Armas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-de-armas/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) > [Actors don't hate acting. Most people don't hate acting! Whether you're a child mucking around with your friends or a grown up being paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-hewson/actors-don-t-hate-acting-most-people-don-t-hate-acting-whether-you-re/) [Liv Hewson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-hewson/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [I never planned to do female roles. It just happened. I was typecast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divine/i-never-planned-to-do-female-roles-it-just-happened-i-was-typecast/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divine/) > [Once I committed to acting, this has been it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-hudson/once-i-committed-to-acting-this-has-been-it/) [Ernie Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-hudson/) [Browse all 21,590 Actor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's great when it all comes together in a great musical like 'Sweeney Todd,' when Stephen Sondheim writes songs from heaven, the book is good and the staging is good. 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