Merrily We Roll Along — Page 2

I heard that "That Frank" was used to replace another song. I like "That Frank" though.

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I performed in the show at a regional theatre in Philadelphia some years back. I personally think Mary is the more exciting role. Beth requires a nice belt for Not Day Goes By, not exactly Ethel Merman, but strong none the less. It's a great score, and I believe one of Sondheim's under produced works.

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Gov,

"That Frank" replaced "Rich and Happy" for a very specific reason. Although they share much of the same melody, they're polar opposites, thematically.

"Rich and Happy" is Frank singing about how fabulous his life is, while everyone around him is backstabbing him. It's an ironic comment, which establishes Frank as a bad guy in the first song.

"That Frank" takes a different attitude about him, and the people singing about him have respect for him. It shows Frank in a more positive light, by singing about his qualities instead of his faults. I think it was a conscious attempt on Sondheim's part to deal with the anti-hero factor of Franklin Shephard.

Updated On: 1/23/05 at 06:52 PM

I had been meaning to buy this cd forever. I know very little about the show, but had performed some of the music in choirs. Our Time is probably one of the greatest songs for a choral group. Anyways, I bought the revival cd about a week ago, and I'm almost wishing I had went for the original. I want to see a good production of this show, it's definately up the as one of my favorite Sondheim shows because the musical is absolutely beautiful.

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