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I actually liked Lady Gaga’s performance at the Oscars this year. She did a musical tribute for the 50th anniversary of The Sound of Music. You could tell that Gaga took it seriously, that she practiced and rehearsed and wanted to get it right. She seemed nervous at first, but she hit all the notes and sounded really good… to me. Shonda Rimes disagreed, and Shonda publicly dissed Gaga on Twitter. But Julie Andrews thought Gaga was wonderful, and if Julie says it’s cool, then it’s cool. But now Stephen Sondheim is chiming in, because I guess we needed to know what he thought of Gaga’s performance? Sure. Well, it sounds like Sondheim just hates Gaga in general.

Lady Gaga’s Sound of Music tribute at the Oscars was not one of Stephen Sondheim’s favorite things. The legendary composer — who’s known for musicals including Into the Woods, Follies, A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, and Company, among others — told the UK’s Times of London recently that he thought the performance was “ridiculous,” and not in a good way.

Sondheim’s partner, Jeff Romley, who is 36 years old to his 84, “would crawl a mile to see” Gaga, he shared with the paper. But the eight-time Tony winner is more difficult to impress.

“On the Academy Awards she was a travesty,” he said. “It was ridiculous, as it would be from any singer who treats that music in semi-operatic style. She had no relationship to what she was singing. What people liked was her versatility.”

[From Us Weekly]

I had to watch the video of Gaga’s performance again (go here to see) because I feel like I’m hallucinating. Nope… Gaga sounded really good. Truly. Did she sound as good as Julie Andrews in the original film soundtrack? No, she didn’t. But that’s a really high bar to set, you know? Gaga sounded better than the overwhelming majority of professional singers attempting that medley. I could see having some quibble about her relationship to the music, or her lyrical interpretation, but Gaga was not a “travesty” by any stretch of the imagination. God, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Team Gaga. Sondheim sounds like such a crotchety jackass here. Oh, and an 84 year old dude has a 36-year-old lover? Yeah, THAT is the travesty.

Photos courtesy of WENN.
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