BWW Review: MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG - BACKWARDS, TO UNDERSTAND THE IRONY at The Colony Theatre
Presented by a brand new Production group, 4 Leaf Music Productions, in Association with Golden Performing Arts Center, and based on a 1934 Kaufman and Hart play of the same name, this musical tells the story of three friends, Franklin, Charley, and Mary, and the progressive decadence of their bonds and their dreams. The story is told in reverse. When it begins, in 1980, they're in their 40's: Franklin, is a rich, successful, conceited and confused noted songwriter; Charley, the lyricist in the duo, has cut off ties with his partner after a nervous breakdown and Mary is a lonely alcoholic still secretly in love with Franklin from when they first met, years and years ago. As we move forward in the play but backwards in time, we see how their friendships disintegrate, along with their aspirations and Franklin's many whirlwind marriages. Rewinding through the '70s and '60s, we end up in 1957, when the three of them meet for the first time, on a rooftop in the city, all hopeful young talents per-chance gathering to watch Sputnik go by in the pre-dawn sky. The song they sing, 'Our Time' ('We're the movers, we're the shapers/ the names in tomorrow's papers'), is undercut by some very keen irony, since we've already seen how it all turns out, at the beginning.
Cape Rep Theatre Presents MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG
Cape Rep Theatre is opening its 33rd season with the regional premiere of Merrily We Roll Along, book by George Furth, music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, May 9 through June 3, Tuesdays through Thursdays at 7 pm, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 2 pm; there is no performance on Today, May 23rd. Tickets are $35 and $40. Pay-What-You-Can-Night is the first Friday, May 11th. Group rates & Student Rush tickets also available. Call the box office for details. Cape Rep Indoor Theater. North Side Route 6A E. Brewster. 508.896.1888 or www.caperep.org.