Review: MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG at Take Two Productions is an Entertaining Gem

Stephen Peirick is a sensational storyteller. Earlier this year Peirick directed a triumphant production of Matthew Lopez’s THE INHERTIANCE PARTS 1 & 2 at Tesseract Theatre Company. Now, he is following up that directorial effort with another engaging effort. Peirick has found lightning in a bottle again with his community theatre production of Stephen Sondheim’s MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG at Take Two Productions.  

Time constraints prevent regular reviewing of community theater due to the number of professional productions in the St. Louis area. The quality of Peirick’s previous work was the driving force in finding time to see this production. It was a fortunate decision to invest in this fabulously entertaining production of MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG.  

Following the Saturday evening curtain call, Peirick shared that he had seen the recent Tony Award winning production of MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG, but due to publishing rights he was unable to use the rewrites that helped to propel the Broadway revival. Peirick staged George Furth’s original script to create a production that was entertaining, enjoyable, full of wit and melancholic emotion.  

Pierick’s skill at telling a story goes well beyond direction with this production. He is also credited with choreography, lighting, sound, scenic, costume and wig design. His efforts were supported by co-sound designer/mixer John Jauss, and co-costume/wig designer Abby Pastorello. With limited lighting resources and stage space he created effective mood and scene shifts on his static set. His costume design and wig styling effectively reverse aged his cast over two decades from the late 1970s to 1959. 

His collaboration with Music Director Matthew Kauzlarich prepared the cast to deliver top notch vocal performances. Kauzlarich prepared the company of fifteen to nail the challenging melodies and harmonies in the score while managing Sondheim’s intricate and wordy lyrics. His small orchestra played the score well with only a few weak moments. 

Peirick assembled a vocally talented cast with authentic magnetism and chemistry. Ryan Farmer (Franklin), Michael Baird (Charley), Grace Langford (Mary), Brittany Kohl (Beth), Jonathan Hey (Joe & Bunker), and Kristin Meyer (Gussie) worked together brilliantly to tell a story of the complications of career, friendships, marriage, and divorce. Credit Peirick’s casting choices for the companies' natural chemistry. The actors’ ability to inhabit their characters and act through song generated genuine authenticity that connected them to the audience.

Farmer, Baird, and Lankford were fantastic sharing the complexities of Frank, Charley, and Mary’s emotions and how their relationships evolved over decades. Furth’s book is written in reverse chronological order and the transition numbers make the timeline easy to follow. Peirick and his cast found all of the heart and emotion embedded in the script.  

The ensemble included Alan Aguliar, Lachlan Bell, Adam Grun, Lindsey Jones, Aliegha Ramos, Zachary Thompson, Kate Weber, Marlee Wenski, and Jeffrey M. Wright filling multiple roles and expertly singing their parts of the score. Their talent and charisma complimented the narrative, and their vocal skills allowed for outstanding solo work and a robust sound quality when the entire company was singing. 

Take Two Production of MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG far exceeded expectations. Peirick’s leadership, the vocally accomplished cast, and the polished musical direction all come together to create a gem of a show. This production illustrates how, in the hands of the right people, a show of any size can succeed and give an audience a memorable evening in the theatre.  

Take Two Productions’ MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG continues its run at Third Baptist Chruch through October 5th.  Click the link below to purchase tickets.  

PHOTO CREDIT: Florence Flick

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