Broadway's MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG Launches Rooftop Writers Initiative

The Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s Merrily We Roll Along has announced the Rooftop Writers Initiative, in partnership with the Stephen Sondheim Foundation and American Theatre Wing’s Jonathan Larson Grant. The Rooftop Writers Initiative will select 100 young writers to receive two complimentary tickets to a special performance of Merrily We Roll Along on Thursday, February 29, 2024, followed by a talkback with the cast.

In honor of the Rooftop Writers Initiative, a percentage of proceeds from a special Merrily We Roll Along pen sold at the Hudson Theatre merchandise stands and online will be donated directly to the Stephen Sondheim Foundation and American Theatre Wing’s Jonathan Larson Grant.

For more information on the Rooftop Writers Initiative, including contest rules and conditions, and to submit for consideration, please visit https://merrilyonbroadway.com/writers.

Established after his passing, the Stephen Sondheim Foundation is the largest single beneficiary of future royalties from Sondheim’s work. It aims to aid emerging playwrights, composers, and lyricists working in the theatre during the early stages of their careers by assisting financially in the development and advancement of their careers. 

The American Theatre Wing’s Jonathan Larson Grants are awarded annually to exceptional, early-career musical theatre composers, lyricists, and librettists, or writing teams. Recipients are given a platform to amplify stories and free rein in the application of the grant – which serves as pivotal support to take their professional development to the next level and, in many cases, their work from creative concept to stage. The grants regularly serve as an indicator of who will be the next great theater-makers and culture-shapers, and past recipients include such luminaries as Pasek & Paul (Dear Evan Hansen), Michael R. Jackson (A Strange Loop), Shaina Taub (Suffs), Chad Beguelin and Matt Sklar (The Prom, Elf), Amanda Green (Bring it On, Mr. Saturday Night), Nell Benjamin (Mean Girls, Legally Blonde), Matt Gould (Lempicka, Invisible Thread), Laurence O’Keefe (Heathers, Legally Blonde), Dave Malloy (…The Great Comet), Nathan Tysen (Paradise Square), Steven Lutvak (A Gentleman’s Guide …), Glenn Slater (Sister Act, School of Rock), Joe Iconis (Be More Chill), Kait Kerrigan (The Great Gatsby), Bree Lowdermilk (The Mad Ones), and more.

Starring Daniel Radcliffe as Charley Kringas, Jonathan Groff as Franklin Shepard, and Lindsay Mendez as Mary Flynn, Merrily We Roll Along also features Krystal Joy Brown as Gussie Carnegie, Katie Rose Clarke as Beth Shepard, and Reg Rogers as Joe Josephson. The company currently includes Calvin James Davis, Max Rackenberg, Brady Wagner, Sherz Aletaha, Maya Boyd, Leana Rae Concepcion, Morgan Kirner, Ken Krugman, Corey Mach, Talia Simone Robinson, Amanda Rose, Jamila Sabares-Klemm, Brian Sears, Evan Alexander Smith, Christian Strange, Koray Tarhan, Vishal Vaidya, Natalie Wachen, and Jacob Keith Watson.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG is directed by multi-Olivier Award® winner Maria Friedman, features music & lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, a book by George Furth, and is based on the original play by George S. Kaufman & Moss Hart. Merrily We Roll Along officially opened on Tuesday, October 10, 2023.

Spanning three decades in the entertainment business, Merrily We Roll Along charts the turbulent relationship between composer Franklin Shepard and his two lifelong friends — writer Mary and lyricist & playwright Charley. An inventive cult-classic ahead of its time, Merrily We Roll Along features some of Stephen Sondheim’s most celebrated and personal songs.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG features a design and creative team that includes Tim Jackson (choreography), Tony Award Winner Jonathan Tunick (orchestrations), Soutra Gilmour (Scenic & Costume Design), Amith Chandrashaker (Lighting Design), Kai Harada (Sound Design), Cookie Jordan (Hair & Wig Design), Jim Carnahan, CSA(casting), Joel Fram (music direction and additional vocal arrangements), Catherine Jayes (music supervision), Alvin Hough Jr. (associate music supervision), Kristy Norter(music coordination).

Broadway’s Merrily We Roll Along is produced by Sonia Friedman Productions, David Babani, Patrick Catullo, Jeff Romley, Debbie Bisno, Lang Entertainment Group, OHenry Productions, Winkler & Smalberg, Stephanie P. McClelland, Timothy Bloom, Creative Partners Productions, Eastern Standard Time, Fakston Productions, Marc David Levine, No Guarantees, Ted & Mary Jo Shen, Gilad Rogowsky, Playing Field, Key To The City Productions, Richard Batchelder / Trunfio Ryan, FineWomen Productions / Henry R. Muñoz III, Thomas Swayne / Lamar Richardson, Abrams Corr / Mary Maggio, Osh Ashruf / Brenner-Ivey, Craig Balsam / PBL Productions, deRoy DiMauro Productions / Medley Houlihan, Andrew Diamond / Katler-Solomon Productions, Dodge Hall Productions / Carl Moellenberg, Friedman Simpson / Vernon Stuckelman, William Frisbie / J.J. Powell, Robert Greenblatt / Jonathan Littman, Cleveland O’Neal III / Tom Tuft, Roth-Manella Productions / Seaview and New York Theatre Workshop. 

This production was originally produced at the Menier Chocolate Factory in 2012 followed by a West End run produced by Sonia Friedman Productions, the Menier Chocolate Factory, and Neal Street Productions in 2013. It was later produced at New York Theatre Workshop in 2022.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG was originally directed on Broadway by Harold Prince and originally produced on Broadway by Lord Grade, Martin Starger,Robert Fryer, and Harold Prince in association with Ruth Mitchell and Howard Haines.

Tickets are available at MerrilyOnBroadway.com starting at $87. A limited number of $39 tickets will be available for performances of Merrily We Roll Along via digital lottery. The lottery will open for entries on the TodayTix app each Sunday at 12:01 a.m. for the coming week's performances and Will Close at noon on the day before each performance. Winners will be notified by push notification and email between 1-4 PM on the day before their selected show, and will have 30 minutes to purchase their tickets in the app. Entrants may request 1 or 2 tickets, and entry is free and open to all. 

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