NEW YORK — Stephen Sondheim, the American music and lyrics virtuoso who wrote such memorable masterpieces as “West Side Story,” “Company” and “Sweeney Todd,” has died. He was 91.
His partner, James Lapine, announced his death Wednesday. The cause was complications from multiple sclerosis, Lapine said.
Sondheim also wrote such critically acclaimed musicals as “Sunday in the Park With George,” “Sweeney Todd” and “Into the Woods.”
In his celebrated books of playwriting, which were written in collaboration with Lapine, Sondheim examined the human condition in his portrayal of the essentials: love, friendship, family and death.
He was equally lauded for such oeuvre as “Sweeney Todd” and “Company.” Sondheim’s more contemporary masterpieces include “A Little Night Music,” “Sunday in the Park With George” and “Into the Woods.”