A beloved and once-underrated Stephen Sondheim musical is making its way to Ypsilanti as Horizon Performing Arts presents Merrily We Roll Along at the Riverside Arts Center, March 5–8.
With music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by George Furth, Merrily We Roll Along traces the unraveling — and origins — of a decades-long friendship among composer Franklin Shepard and his two closest companions, Mary and Charley. Uniquely, the story unfolds in reverse chronological order, beginning in disillusionment and ending in youthful optimism.
For the director and Artistic Director of Horizon Performing Arts, Connor Thomas Rhoades, the show is both a professional challenge and a personal reflection.
“I’ve always had an affinity for the works of Stephen Sondheim, and Merrily is no exception,” Rhoades said. “The show explores the nature of lifelong relationships and how those relationships evolve throughout one’s adulthood. As a 33-year-old man, I am fortunate to have a handful of enduring friendships from my youth and adolescence. Merrily gives me a chance to reflect on how those relationships have changed over the years, how they have strengthened, and where we may have drifted apart.”
Telling the story backwards
First premiering in 1981 and famously revised over the years, Merrily We Roll Along challenges both performers and audiences with its reverse structure. Characters appear before we understand how they became who they are, requiring clarity in staging and storytelling…