UMW Theatre will continue its 2018-19 season with Merrily We Roll Along, music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by George Furth. Performances will be Nov. 1-3, Nov. 8-10, and Nov. 14-17 at 7:30 p.m., and Nov. 4, 10, 11, 17, and 18 at 2:00 p.m. in Klein Theatre, duPont Hall at the University of Mary Washington.
AfterWords, a post-show talkback with the cast, will take place after the matinee performance on Nov. 4. Tickets are $25 for standard admission, $20 for students, senior citizens, alumni, and military.
Featuring a cast of UMW students from around the country, the story follows the careers, lives, and loves of three old friends: Frank, Charley, and Mary. In this musical, time moves backwards, beginning in the present and following these characters’ lives in reverse, from adulthood to their optimistic beginnings.
Merrily We Roll Along is based on a play by the same name, written by George Kaufman and Moss Hart. The show opened on Broadway in 1981 for only sixteen performances before it closed with negative reviews. The process of the original production has been recorded in a documentary titled Best Worst Thing That Ever Could Have Happened. By 1992, the show had been heavily edited and was very successful in London. It opened off-Broadway in 1994 and made its West End debut in 2000. Since then, Merrily We Roll Along has been very successful being performed both in concert and in full.
Merrily We Roll Along is directed by Gregg Stull, professor and chair of the Department of Theatre & Dance with musical direction by David Landrum and choreography by Samantha L. Reynolds. Scenic design is by assistant professor Michael Benson and costume design is by associate professor Kevin McCluskey. Lighting and sound designs are by guest designers Jason Arnold and Tony Angelini, respectively.
For further information, call the Klein Theatre Box Office at 540-654-1111 or visit www.FredTix.com.
