“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.”
-William Shakespeare, Romeo & Juliet
Hi Everyone! Lucy here! And I admit, I didn’t know that quote, I had to ask Dad to look it up for me. But I think it’s about time I address one of my most frequently asked questions: “Why are you named Lucy?” Lucy is a very popular doggie name, you know. I have lots of friends named Lucy. Well, there are two reasons that’s my name, really.
So, you all know Dad likes loves theater, right? I think I know it better than anyone, I mean, he walks around singing all day long. (He’s pretty good, I gotta admit). But one of Dad’s favorite theater people is this guy named Sondheim. It’s always, “Sondheim, this. And Sondheim, that.” So, because of Dad’s super nerd-dom fan-dom, he wanted to name me after one of the characters in one of Mr. Sondheim’s musicals. But there are so many, how do you choose? It couldn’t be something too obvious, but still something that could tie in. But how did he come up with Lucy?
At first, Dad thought the name Dot would be nice. Dot is one of the main characters from Mr. Sondheim’s work of genius, Sunday in the Park with George. He thought it would fit because of the white dot on the back of my neck.
But someone then suggested that people would start calling me Dottie. And Dad didn’t like that very much, so he nixed Dot. One of Dad’s friends, knowing his adoration for the thriller musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, suggested that my namesake be a character from that particular Sondheim musical. “Well, what?” Dad asked, “Not Mrs. Lovett!” And Dad’s friend said, “Well, how about Lucy?” Also known as “The Beggar Woman,” Lucy is a small, but pivotal, character in the show – and the perfect name for me!
But I also have a much more obvious namesake, one that leaves me with “not much ‘splainin’ to do!”