The Encores concert version (I use the word loosely as it is fully staged) of Sondheim's famous 16 performance Broadway flop MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG has been very well received here and this is a fine production by James Lapine making wonderful use of witty projections to clarify the backward time-travel aspect of the piece which has always been bewildering to the general public. It's the first time I've seen the show since I was in Wayne Harrison's Sydney Theatre Co. production in 1987 and the inherent book problems are still there, much as they are in FOLLIES: the characters just aren't very likeable. And everyone still punishes Franklin Shepherd for selling out to fame and fortune instead of pursuing his vocation as a composer. But if he's such a crash hot composer, why does he only seem to have one tune in him, "Good Thing Going" and variations thereof?
The six leads are terrific: (L-R) Betsy Wolfe as Beth, Lin-Manuel Miranda as Charlie, Colin Donnell as Frank, Celia Keenan-Bolger as Mary, Adam Grupper as Joe (the role I played in Sydney with a great cast including Tom Burlinson, Gina Riley, Greg Stone, Genevieve Lemon & Peta Toppano)
Elizabeth Stanley rounds out the principal cast as Gussie. The limited 15 performance run finishes this weekend. We sat next to Matt Lucas ("Little Britain") and his drop dead handsome Italian boyfriend. Matt is now based in L.A. and heading to Australia next week where he'll be appearing on Shaun Micallef's tv show.
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