On April 12, 2025, I attended The Theatre Company (TTC) of Bryan-College Station’s production of Merrily We Roll Along. With music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by George Furth, it is based on the 1934 play of the same name by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. The musical had its original Broadway run in 1981, but it was a short run. In 2022, it saw an off-Broadway revival, which then transferred to Broadway in 2023 and ran until mid-2024.
The story follows three friends, working backwards over their 20-year friendship, between 1955 and 1980. The three friends are Frank Shepard, a musical composer turned movie producer; Charley Kringas, Frank’s fellow musical composer and collaborator; and Mary Flynn, a successful writer turned theatre critic. In the opening of the show, you learn that the three friends have had a falling out, but it is unclear why. Throughout the rest of the show, you watch their friendships slowly devolving in reverse, the hardships they faced, and how they first met.
Merrily We Roll Along dives into themes such as the complexities of friendship, how friends can enhance your life, but also be the people you fight with the most. It also looks at what compromises people are willing to make to achieve their dreams and reach success. Once the success has been reached, it explores the potential downsides and the price one pays to achieve it. It also looks at how fame and money can impact a person. The musical asks viewers to reflect on the importance of staying true to oneself and not giving in to outside pressures.
This was my first time seeing this musical and attending a TTC production. I thoroughly enjoyed the musical as well as the experience itself at TTC. It is a small theatre located at the Tejas Center in Bryan. There is no bad seat in the house, and its small size allows for a very intimate viewing. The music was supplied by a live in-house orchestra, elevating the entire event and making it all the more immersive.
The actors and actresses portrayed the characters convincingly and emphatically. Their portrayals kept my attention and had me hooked the whole way through. The set design was interesting and effectively helped to create the mood and setting of each scene. The costumes aided in creating the feeling of the time and environment, as well as showing where the characters were in their journey.
Overall, I really enjoyed my time at TTC, and I am looking forward to attending future productions. I resonated with the themes of Merrily We Roll Along and added a few songs from the soundtrack to my playlists afterwards, particularly “Not a Day Goes By”. As a former community theatre kid, this was the best way I could have spent a free Saturday afternoon. My musical theatre-loving heart was grinning widely the whole performance.