Stephen Sondheim's Merrily We Roll Along Will Return to New York

Stephen Sondheim and George Furth's cult-favorite musical Merrily We Roll Along will return to New York City this spring, in a new Astoria Performing Arts Center production. Directed by Artistic Director Dev Bondarin, Merrily will begin performances April 30 at the Good Shepherd United Methodist Church and run through May 23.

Based on the 1934 play of the same title by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart and told in reverse chronology, Merrily We Roll Along examines the friendship of musical theater songwriter Franklin Shepard, his writing partner Charlie Kringas, and aspiring author Mary Flynn. The show begins at the height of Franklin's fame in 1976 and moves backward in time through 1957 to explore how he got to where he is.

Merrily We Roll Along premiered on Broadway in 1981 under the direction of Harold Prince and played a total of 16 performances. That cast was led by Lonny Price, Ann Morrison, and Jim Walton. A revised edition, using changes from regional productions over the course of three decades, played a limited 2012 run at New York City Center Encores!, featuring Lin-Manuel Miranda, Colin Donnell, and Celia Keenan-Bolger.

Casting for the Astoria Performing Arts Center production will be announced in the coming months. In recent years, the company has become known for presenting rarely seen musicals, including Allegro, Blood Brothers, The Secret Garden, and The Human Comedy, among others.

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