Getting Married Today (song)

Getting Married Today
by Stephen Sondheim
Genre	Show tune
Form	Patter song
Published	1970 (1970)

"Getting Married Today" is a patter song from the 1970 musical Company, with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Sung by the manic Amy on her wedding day, the trappings of marriage send her into a panic.[1] The song is among the most difficult for musical theatre performers, with one verse containing 68 words to be sung in roughly 11 seconds: where a successful performance “depends on clear diction, implicit pitch accuracy and breath support alongside imperative comedic timing.”[2][3]

Often incorrectly known as "Not Getting Married Today", the Evening Standard cited stand-out performances by Katie Finneran in a 2011 New York Philharmonic concert production and Jonathan Bailey in Marianne Elliot's 2018 gender-swapped West End production.[3]

Production

"Getting Married Today" was conceived as "Sondheim's psychotic notion of a patter song"[4] to simulate the sensation of having a mental breakdown through verbal diarrhea and constantly changing the subject mid-sentence.

Stephen Sondheim gave a masterclass on some of his songs, including this one, at London's Guildhall School.[5]

The song features operatic interludes described by Edge Boston as "soprano intermezzos",[1] sung by a priest who comically comments on the bride's breakdown and extols the glory of marriage.

Lyrical content

Beth Howland as Amy introduced "Getting Married Today" on Broadway in 1970, while Jonathan Bailey performed the song as Jamie, originating the gender-swapped role in the 2018 West End revival.

In her meltdown, Amy discusses the very nature of a wedding, and how it is not relevant to a modern society:[6]

Wedding, what's a wedding? It's a prehistoric ritual where
Everybody promises fidelity forever, which is
Maybe the most horrifying word I ever heard, and which is
Followed by a honeymoon, where suddenly he'll realize he's
Saddled with a nut and wanna kill me which he should.

Critical reception

It has been described as "one of Sondheim's toughest songs".[7] Journal Sentinel said the song captures "both the crazed humor and darker undertow within this manic bride".[8] White Rhino Report wrote "Amy's frenetic rant about not being ready for marriage is a rapid-fire patter song. Set off against this insanity is the ironic counterpoint of Jenny's operatic aria about the beauty of a wedding day."[1] Commenting on Stephen Sondheim's 'Company' With The New York Philharmonic, The AV Club wrote "it'd be hard for anyone to sing the patter-iffic 'Getting Married Today' as fast as it's meant to be, even with months to work on it".[9] Chichester Observer said Amy is a "jittery bride-to-be" with an "epic breakdown and breakneck teeth-rattling delivery".[10]

The Guardian wrote the show "boasts the most astonishing score of any Stephen Sondheim work, and at the same time a book demonstrating an almost complete lack of commitment to coherent narrative", adding that the show has a "large dollop of irony". It continued by saying: "The result is numbers, such as 'The Little Things You Do Together' and 'Getting Married Today', that are sheer bliss to listen to, but often unexpectedly disappointing and distancing in performance."[11]

Performances

• Jonathan Bailey originated the gender-swapped role of Jamie who performed the song in Marianne Elliott's 2018 West End revival. Bailey, "whose lightning-fast, show-stopping rendition of the song became a must-see West End event" according to Variety, won him the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical in 2019.[12][13]
• The song was covered in the Glee episode, "I Do", where Emma Pillsbury starts to second-guess marrying Will Schuester, before fleeing from the wedding.
• The song was also covered in a performance in the 2019 Broadway Backwards charity event in which Darren Criss sang the role of "Amy".

References

1. "Reviews — Teresa Winner Blume". TeresaWinnerBlume.com. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
2. Libresco, Leah (October 5, 2015). "'Hamilton' Would Last 4 To 6 Hours If It Were Sung At The Pace Of Other Broadway Shows". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
3. Paskett, Zoe (May 22, 2020). "The most difficult musical theatre songs to sing of all time". Evening Standard. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
4. Ouzounian, Richard (June 27, 2014). "Theatre 20's Company a disappointment: review". Toronto Star. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
5. "Sondheim teaches 'Not Getting Married'". RogerBourland.com. January 4, 2008. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
6. "v2n2". The Sondheim Review. Archived from the original on December 9, 2013. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
7. "Theatrical Review: Company by Theatre 20 at the Berkeley Street Theatre". Jeremythinksthings.wordpress.com. June 26, 2014. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
8. Fischer, Mike. "Smart staging makes good 'Company' at Theatre Unchained". Jsonline.com. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
9. Murray, Noel (November 14, 2012). "Stephen Sondheim's Company With The New York Philharmonic". AVclub.com. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
10. Parnell, Sarah (April 14, 2014). "REVIEW: Stephen Sondheim's Company". Chichester Observer. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
11. Gardner, Lyn (December 6, 2011). "Company - review". The Guardian. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
12. Chu, Henry (April 7, 2019). "'Come From Away,' 'Company,' 'The Inheritance' Score at Olivier Awards". Variety. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
13. Wise, Louis. "Jonathan Bailey: brilliant from top to bottom". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved April 15, 2022.