Passion (1994)
Words & Music: Stephen Sondheim
Book: James Lapine
Based on the movie Passione d'Amore (1981, dir. Ettore Scola) and the 1896 novel Fosca by Iginio Ugo Tarchetti.
Premise: Giorgio, a young Italian soldier conducting an affair with the beautiful, married Clara, is transferred to a remote outpost where he meets Fosca, a sickly, socially isolated woman who develops a consuming love for him. As Giorgio’s romantic affair with the beautiful Clara fades under distance and duty, Fosca’s relentless emotional honesty gradually overwhelms the young officer, forcing him to confront whether love is rooted in beauty and comfort, or the willingness to be utterly vulnerable.
Background: Passion originated in Sondheim’s long-standing fascination with unconventional love stories and was adapted with librettist James Lapine from Ettore Scola’s Italian film Passione d’Amore. Developed in the early 1990s, the show stripped away traditional musical-comedy pleasures in favour of near-continuous music and intense psychological focus. Sondheim composed a dense, through-sung score that mirrors Fosca’s obsessive inner life, while Lapine emphasized emotional confrontation over plot momentum.
Directed by Lapine and starring Donna Murphy, Passion opened on Broadway in 1994. Audiences were sharply divided, with some disturbed by its bleakness and others deeply moved by its honesty. Critics largely admired its daring and rigour, even as they debated its emotional effect. The musical ran briefly but won the Tony Award for Best Musical, securing its place as one of Sondheim’s most challenging and uncompromising works.
Major productions/concert performances/recordings:
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1994 Broadway Production
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1996 London Production
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1996 Signature Theatre Production
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1996 Television Production
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1997 London Concert
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2002 Kennedy Center Production
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2003 Ravinia Festival Concerts
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2004 Bridewell Production
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2004 Tenth Anniversary Concert
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2005 Lincoln Center Concerts
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2010 Donmar Warehouse Production
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2013 Off-Broadway Revival
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2016 Théâtre du Châtelet Production
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2018 Signature Theatre Production
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2022 Hope Mill Theatre
Broadway Production (1994)
Plymouth Theatre (now Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre), 236 West 45th Street, New York
Closed Workshop: Clark Studio Theatre
Working title: Passione d'Amore
Opens: 7 October 1993
Closes: 9 October 1993
Plymouth Theatre, New York
Previews: 24 March 1994 (52 previews)
Opens: 9 May 1994
Closes: 7 January 1995
Performances: 280
Director: James Lapine
Musical Director: Paul Gemignani
Set Designer: Adrianne Lobel
Costume Designer: Jane Greenwood
Lighting Designer: Beverly Emmons
Sound Designer: Otts Munderloh
Hair Designer: Phyllis Della
Cast
Clara: Marin Mazzie
Giorgio: Jere Shea
Colonel Ricci: Gregg Edelman
Doctor Tambourri: Tom Aldredge
Lieutenant Torasso: Francis Ruivivar
Sergeant Lombardi: Marcus Olson
Lieutenant Barri: William Parry
Major Rizzolli: Cris Groenendaal
Private Augenti: George Dvorsky
Fosca: Donna Murphy
Fosca’s Mother: Linda Balgord
Fosca’s Father: John Leslie Wolfe
Ludovic: Matthew Porretta
Mistress: Juliet Lambert
Alternates: Gibby Brand, Colleen Fitzpatrick, Frank Lombardi
Musical Numbers
Act one
No titles listed in the programme, so taken from cast recording
Scene One: Giorgio and Clara’s room.
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Happiness [“I’m so happy, I’m afraid I’ll die...”] – Clara and Giorgio
Scene Two: The dining quarters.
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First Letter [“Clara, I cried...”] – Clara and Giorgio
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Second Letter [“Giorgio, I, too, have cried...] – Clara and Giorgio
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Third Letter [“Clara, I’m in hell...”] – Clara, Giorgio, Soldiers
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Fourth Letter [“Yesterday I walked through the park...”] – Clara
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I Read [“I do not read to think...”] – Fosca
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Transition (#1) [“How can I describe her...”] – Giorgio
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“The town— It is remote, isn’t it?” – Soldiers
Scene Three: The castle garden.
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Garden Sequence [“All the while we strolled...”] – Giorgio, Clara, Fosca
Scene Four: The dining quarters.
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Transition (#2) [“All the time I watched from my room...”] – Soldiers
Scene Five: The courtyard.
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Trio [“I am writing to you, signora...”] – Fosca, Giorgio, Clara
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Transition (#3) [“I watched you from my window...”] – Attendants
Scene Six: Fosca’s drawing room.
Scene Six: Interlude.
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“Three weeks...” – Clara*
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“This is hell...” – Soldiers & Attendants*
Scene Six: Doctor Tambourri’s office.
Scene Seven: Fosca’s bedroom.
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“God, you are so beautiful...” – Fosca*
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I Wish I Could Forget You – Fosca
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“How can I describe her...” – Soldiers*
Scene Eight: Billiard room.
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Soldier’s Gossip (#1) [“Did you hear that scream...”] – Soldiers
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Flashback [“As a child, she was lonely...”] – Colonel Ricci, Fosca, Mother, Father, Ludovic, Mistress
Scene Nine: The mountainside, a distance from the outpost.
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Sunrise Letter [“Giorgio, I stand here staring at the sunrise...”] – Clara and Giorgio
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Is This What You Call Love? – Giorgio
Scene Ten: Parade ground.
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Soldiers’ Gossip (#2) [“Both of them were soaked...”] – Soldiers
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Nightmare [“Everywhere I turn, there you are...”] – Group #1 and #2*
Scene Eleven: A train compartment.
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Transition (#4) [“To feel a woman’s touch...”] – Rizzolli
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Forty Days – Clara
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Loving You – Fosca
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Transition (#5) [“How long were we apart...”] – Woman, Man
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Soldiers’ Gossip (#3) [“Forty days!...”] – Soldiers
Scene Twelve: Near the Milan train station.
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“Giorgio, I didn’t tell you in my letter...” – Clara*
Scene Thirteen: The Colonel’s dining room.
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Christmas Carol – Torasso*
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Farewell Letter [“Giorgio, I am writing to you, my angel...”] – Clara
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Just Another Love Story – Giorgio and Clara
Scene Fourteen: Fosca’s bedroom.
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No One Has Ever Loved Me – Giorgio
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“All this happiness...” – Fosca
Scene Fifteen: An open field.
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The Duel*
Scene Sixteen: A hospital.
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Finale – Company
* Not included on the cast recording
Awards
Tony
Best Musical
Best Score (Stephen Sondheim)
Best Book (James Lapine)
Best Actress in a Musical (Donna Murphy)
Drama Desk
Best Musical
Best Music (Stephen Sondheim)
Best Lyrics (Stephen Sondheim)
Best Book for a Musical (James Lapine)
Best Actress in a Musical (Donna Murphy)
Best Orchestrations (Jonathan Tunick)
Recording:
Passion - Original Broadway Cast Recording
Producer: Phil Ramone
Recorded by: Al Scmitt
Mixed by: Frank Filipetti
Recorded: 29 May 1994 at the Hit Factory, New York City
Liner notes: Michiko Kakutani
Lyrics included
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Compact Disc, 1994 [Broadway Angel CDQ 55251] (56:44 minutes)
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Cassette, 1994 [Broadway Angel 4DQ 55251]
Selections: "Happiness" (5:10), "First Letter" (1:11), "Second Letter" (0:33), "Third Letter" (0:49), "Fourth Letter" (0:51), "I Read" (5:26), "Transition" (0:41), "Garden Sequence" (5:13), "Transition" (1:07), "Trio" (2:17), "Transition" (0:36), "I Wish I Could Forget You" (3:14), "Soldiers' Gossip" (1:10), "Flashback" (6:56), "Sunrise Letter" (1:42), "Is This What You Call Love?" (1:33), "Soldiers' Gossip" (0:46), "Transition" (0:37), "Forty Days" (0:44), "Loving You" (2:07), "Transition" (0:34), "Soldiers' Gossip" (0:37), "Farewell Letter" (3:08), "No One Has Ever Loved Me" (4:25), "Finale" (4:57)
Grammy Award winner for Best Musical Show Album
