Merrily We Roll Along begins in the present and moves backwards, tracing the lives of wealthy, jaded composer, Franklin Shepard, and his two estranged friends through each milestone of their personal and professional lives (good and bad). The show ends with a touch of rueful irony, as the three best friends at the start of their careers face a bright future: young, talented and enthusiastic about the worlds waiting to be conquered.
Merrily We Roll Along is a modest-sized show that crackles with the wit, humor and intensity that embody the spirit of New York City. With a brilliant “Broadway-style” score and that deep insight one expects from any Sondheim endeavor, Merrily We Roll Along is a spirited and moving cautionary tale for anyone who has ever pursued a dream.
Schedule: . Staging and choreography begins November 22nd-February 20th. Production dates February 21st- march 1st.
Tuition: $525 (44 contact hours) Payment plans available.
Please note some roles we be played by teaching artists and guest artists.
Franklin Shepard
His character ranges from an influential songwriter and film producer to an innocent, bright-eyed optimist in NYC. Talented and handsome but misled, tragic, and tormented.
Gender: Male
Age: 25 to 40
Vocal range top: Bb4
Vocal range bottom: A2
Charley Kringas
A stubborn, intense man with average looks. He ranges from a successful lyricist and Frank’s long-time friend to a bright-eyed optimist creating his own opportunities in NYC.
Gender: Male
Age: 25 to 40
Vocal range top: G#4
Vocal range bottom: A#2
Mary Flynn
A middle-aged theatre critic. Her character arcs to the youthful, gorgeous 20-something living in NYC with best friend Frank. Sardonic, bitter, and witty.
Gender: Female
Age: 30 to 45
Vocal range top: Gb5
Vocal range bottom: G3
Trio
Pasquale, Giuseppe and Ciccio.
Meg Kincaid
Starry-eyed starlet who is naive and ambitious. At the start of the show, she is Frank’s newest fling.
Gender: Female
Age: 18 to 25
Vocal range top: Gb5
Vocal range bottom: D4
Gussie Carnegie
The flamboyant, self-invented actress. Her character begins at the end of her relationship with Frank, but throughout the show we see her grow more and more helplessly in love with him. Greedy and seductive.
Gender: Female
Age: 25 to 35
Vocal range top: C5
Vocal range bottom: G3
Joe Josephson
Big-talking Broadway producer and husband to Gussie. He later becomes pathetic and poor.
Gender: Male
Age: 35 to 50
Vocal range top: F#4
Vocal range bottom: A2
Beth
A naive and insecure middle-American who is the mother of Frank’s son. She arcs from a down-trodden housewife at her wits end to a hopeless romantic at the beginning of her engagement to the man of her dreams.
Gender: Female
Age: 25 to 35
Vocal range top: G5
Vocal range bottom: A3
Ensemble
Party Guests; Artists; Students
