"Merrily We Roll Along" comin to B'Way. — Page 2

Delicate is exactly the right word for it. And yeah, I'd love to hear this score with a big orchestra and absolutely.no.synthesizer.

Wishful thinking?

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I really have to disagree about the Casting older thought. The end, at least for me is all the more powerful and heartbreaking if played by youg people. The rest of the show probably plays better with older casting, but the entire emotional pay off will hurt because of it.

This is the first show I music directed (yeah, talk about getting thrown into the deep end of the pool!). It's a heartbreaker, no doubt, because the score is heavenly and the concept and emotional undercurrents are extremely strong--and the book sucks. (I feel the same way about FOLLIES.) Every time the show is done, they try to "fix" the book, to no avail. It's not just the backwards-in-time structure--it's that the "showbiz sellout" themes have been played to death ("All About Eve", "Valley of the Dolls", et al)--and it'll be incredibly hard to make deserting Broadway for Hollywood look like a soul-destroying sin these days, when there's no one left who can make any kind of living from a solo Broadway career.

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This is great news! I cannot wait to see it.
I also hope for no synthesizers, but I love the score so much I might not even care.
I've seen two productions, and while the show can fail, it also can work and work fantastically.
With the right cast and direction this will be fantastic.

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I feel like Sondheim has a good thing going lately...

Anyone? No one. Ok.

Franklin Shepard: Michael Arden
Mary Flynn: Natalie Joy Johnson
Charly Kringas: John Gallagher Jr.
Beth Spencer: Ceilia Keenan-Bolger
Joe Jospheson: Andy Karl
Gussie: Nikki Snelson

Frank: Michael Arden or (I know people will hate this) Jonathan Groff
Charlie: Daniel Evans or Christopher J. Hanke
Mary: Stephanie D'Abruzzo
Beth: Celia Keenan Bolger or Katie Klaus
Gussie: Jenny Powers (maybe Megan Sikora)

Franklin Shepard: Michael Arden
Mary Flynn: Natalie Joy Johnson
Charly Kringas: John Gallagher Jr.
Beth Spencer: Ceilia Keenan-Bolger
Joe Jospheson: Andy Karl
Gussie: Nikki Snelson

NO NO NO ABSOLUTELY NOT (possibly without the exception Michael Arden)

Am I the only one who enjoys the off-broadway recording? The synthesizers don't bother me. But if you want to hear the score played with a full orchestra and no synthesizers than get the London recording. It's quite good and complete.

I've never been able to get through the MERRILY cast recording, I just dislike the score, even if "Not a Day Goes By" (Bernadette's version can't be beat, though Marin's comes close) and "Good Thing Going" (Jason Danieley's is definite) are some of my favorite showtunes. I'll see this because it's a Sondheim show and I might change my mind if I see it live, but I must confess this is not a show I had any interest in seeing revived. A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC is much more deserving of a revival...though I hope that Roundabout does not pick that one up, after the travesty they did with FOLLIES.

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Marin played Beth twice. First at the La Jolla Playhouse in 1985, which is the first time that Sondheim rewrote parts of the show.

La Jolla cast:

Franklin Shepard - John Rubenstein
Charley Kringas - Chip Zien
Mary Flynn - Heather MacRae
Beth - Marin Mazzie
Gussie - Mary Gordon Murray
Joe Josephson - Merwin Goldsmith
Scotty / TV Newsman - Ralph Bruneau
Terry / Reporter / Audience Member - Joy Franz
Kate / Mrs. Spencer - B. J. Ward
Jerome / Minister - Lawrence Raiken
Dory / Audience Member / Evelyn - Rosalyn Rahn
Ruben / Photographer - Stephen McDonough
Rich Party Guest / George / Mr. Spencer - Dick Decareau
Meg / TV Newswoman - Kathleen Rowe McAllen
Tyler Horton - Ray Gill


Then she played Beth again, with more Sondheim changes, and Becky Ann Baker as Mary, at the Arena Stage in DC:

Franklin Shepard - Victor Garber
Charley Kringas - David Garrison
Mary Flynn - Becky Ann Baker
Gussie - Mary Gordon Murray
Beth Spencer - Marin Mazzie
Joe Josephson - Richard Bauer
Meg - Deanna Wells
Scotty / Maitre D' - Tom Hewitt
Terry / TV Newswoman / Mrs. Spencer / First Auditioner - Ruth Williamson
Tyler - Erick Devine
Jerome - Rufus Bonds, Jr.
K. T. Lewix - Melodee Savage
Dory - Dorothy Yanes
Ruben / Photographer - Thom Sesma
Bunker / TV Newsman / Mr. Spencer - John Deyle
Frank Jr. - George Alexander & Leo Charles or Thomas Fox & Jeffrey Bizub
Ensemble - Rufus Bonds, Jr., Erick Devine, John Deyle, Tom Hewitt,
Melodee Savage, Thom Sesma, Deanna Wells, Ruth Williamson, Dorothy Yanes

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Well hip-hip -hooray. I love this show, saw it twice. The first time was a regional production in Pennsylvania. That local production actually ranked in my top ten "Broadway shows" for several years. Then I saw the Kennedy Center version, with Raul Esparza, Michael Hayden and Emily Skinner. Loved it! Even loved the copy that someone has floating around. To me the show touches me in many ways...the loss of friends and my youthful innocense. Perhaps it's because I've moved 29 times and went to a dozen schools, but when I see or hear this show, I can't help but be moved to tears. I was an utter wreck after each viewing. I have now seen each of Sondheims shows, and this one is my favorite because I identify with it so strongly.