Merrily We Roll Along: Broadway and Friendship Through the Ages

In 1981, the first production of Merrily We Roll Along premiered on Broadway featuring music and lyrics by renowned composer Stephen Sondheim and an adapted story by librettist George Furth based on the original 1934 play by writers George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. After a poorly-received premiere and several off-Broadway revivals, the show finally found mainstream success over four decades later in its 2023 Broadway revival directed by British actress (and former Mary Flynn) Maria Friedman.

The show follows Franklin Shepard (Jonathan Groff)—a talented Broadway composer turned Hollywood sellout—who reflects on his tumultuous past with his once-best friends, outshone lyricist Charley Kringas (Daniel Radcliffe) and friend-zoned writer Mary Flynn (Lindsay Mendez). A four-time Tony Award-winning revival, Merrily We Roll Along was recorded live in June of 2024 at the Hudson Theatre in New York City and is set for a limited theatrical release by Sony Pictures Classics.

Three people make a pinky handshake in Merrily We Roll Along. — (L-R) Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff, and Lindsay Mendez in *Merrily We Roll Along*. Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

For starters, the show features three absolutely incredible lead performances. Broadway veterans Groff and Mendez begin the show as old friends in the midst of a falling-out at a party of Hollywood elites in 1977. Friedman’s close-up direction immediately allows viewers at home to experience the emotion-riddled song “That Frank” and powerful subsequent acts to come.

Merrily We Roll Along is famous for its innovative reverse chronological structure. After the opener, the audience is transported to 1973, where Radcliffe begins his biggest (and, arguably, best) on-stage performance as frustrated Charley Kringas. At his wits’ end with Frank’s desertion of his artistic roots, Charley publicly chastises his former partner in “Frank Shepard, Inc.,” a comedic, yet scathing criticism of his once-closest friend that dramatically ends the pair’s relationship forever.

A man in glasses and a sweater vest laughs on stage. — Daniel Radcliffe in Merrily We Roll Along. Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

The show continues to unpeel the life of Frank Shepard, sliding backwards through time as Frank cheats on his trusting wife Beth (Katie Rose Clarke) with his hit show’s charming star Gussie Carnegie (Krystal Joy Brown) in the mid 1960s. Each act is filled to the brim with electric performances, catchy songs, and a heartfelt storyline that questions the meaning of success in the face of moral bankruptcy.

Merrily We Roll Along is lovingly shot by American cinematographer Sam Levy—best known for his work on Lady Bird, Frances Ha, and His Three Daughters—his bold lighting beautifully accentuating the devastated expressions that pepper the show’s star performances. Similarly, Friedman’s up close and personal direction seeks to spotlight the leads and their passionate portrayals of the storied friend group. However, Friedman’s apparent hesitation to showcase the entire stage the leads stand on creates a claustrophobic atmosphere that often takes away from the show’s sparse, yet effective set decoration and fun, dynamic choreography.

A woman looks longingly at a man in Merrily We Roll Along — (L-R) Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez in *Merrily We Roll Along*. Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

While the 2023 revival of Merrily We Roll Along is an impressively shot emotional rollercoaster that features some of the best theatrical performances on Broadway today, there are some glaring flaws with the production’s story itself. For instance, award-winning Mendez excels as Mary, a loyal friend turned bitter alcoholic who still harbors feelings for the perpetually unavailable Frank; however, her character is often, and disappointingly, sidelined as mere comedic relief.

While Charley soberly demolishes Frank’s behavior, Mary is never offered the same opportunity to say her piece, save for her drunken rant in the show’s opener. This lack of screentime from perspectives other than Frank’s causes the show to lose the attention of its audience as viewers are left moved, yet unsatisfied by an ending entrenched so far in the past, it’s impossible to glean the characters’ futures beyond the story’s sprawling, yet frustratingly narrow parameters.

With this said, Merrily We Roll Along is undoubtedly an ode to Broadway, friendship, and artistic integrity that will only continue to flourish in the years to come, especially as prolific American filmmaker Richard Linklater continues production on his ambitious decades-in-the-making film adaptation starring Paul Mescal, Ben Platt, and Beanie Feldstein, coming to a screen near you…in 2040.