A new Broadway revival of Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along just opened to thundering applause. What was once a great Broadway flop has been transformed into a palpable hit thanks to Maria Friedman’s direction, and effervescently stunning turns by Lindsay Mendez, Jonathan Groff, and Daniel Radcliffe. Moving and earning every bit of acclaim, this revival truly has a “good thing going.”
New York Times Review of Merrily We Roll Along
But with the opening of its first Broadway revival, after 42 years in the wilderness and the death of Sondheim in 2021, “Merrily” is no longer lost. Maria Friedman’s unsparing direction and a thrillingly fierce central performance by Jonathan Groff have given the show the hard shell it lacked. Now heartbreaking in the poignant sense only, “Merrily” has been found in the dark. … Radcliffe’s wit and modesty, combined with Mendez’s zing and luster, provide perfect settings for what is now (as it has never been previously) the inarguably central performance. Groff, always a compelling actor, here steps up to an unmissable one. With his immense charisma turned in on itself, he seems to sweat emotion: ambition, disappointment and, most frighteningly, a terrible frozen disgust.
Deadline Review of Merrily We Roll Along
Opening tonight, the musical is drawing rapturous audience responses, no doubt in large part because of the splendid performances by three very appealing stars – Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez. But even if we could, for the sake of argument, put the talents of this delightful trio singing some of Sondheim’s loveliest songs, aside for a moment, the undeniable charm of this production has to be credited to a sort of relief – the relief of knowing that, for the most part, Friedman and her excellent creative team have ensured that we onlookers needn’t spend our Merrily time picking over the faults and fumbles that Furth and Sondheim could never quite eradicate. … You’d be hard-pressed to imagine a better Merrily We Roll Along. … Sondheim’s greatest troubled musical, has finally gotten the ending it deserves, with just the barest chance and hope of escaping fate.
The Daily Beast Review of Merrily We Roll Along
Mendez, Radcliffe and Groff share a terrific collective chemistry that roots and animates the show. That does not mean the transfer of this Sonia Friedman-directed show from New York Theatre Workshop is issue- or problem-free; oddly, it has sprouted unwelcome oddities in its upsizing. But it’s mainly still just as terrific it was in its luminous downtown incarnation. Even its newly spawned dents can’t shatter the whole, because the performances—not just the leads, the whole company—zing throughout. … Sondheim’s music and lyrics and George Furth’s book based on George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart’s original play are all performed with precision and deft comprehension. It is strange to think of it as the notorious flop it was when first on Broadway 40-plus years ago when you see it done so well.
Vulture Review of Merrily We Roll Along
Now a starry new version of this hot-take-magnet of a musical rolls along, and I find myself facing the mirror, reconsidering. Perhaps Merrily is not exactly as I thought before. The hype around Maria Friedman’s production…has involved a lot of excited language about solving or saving the play. I don’t know about that — the chatter feels a bit flat and final to me — but I do know this: Friedman and her ensemble render the show exquisite. … A central trio as sensitive and superb as this one doesn’t just make Merrily more moving; it makes it much more fun. It even adds a faint glimmer of something resembling hope. If Frank can reconsider, then he may yet change. Or he may not. But either way, an actor must show us, as Groff does, a true encounter with the mirror. With their irresistible energy and chemistry, Mendez, Groff, and Radcliffe lift Merrily up, yet keep it grounded with real, apparent affection and emotional heft. They are the ones reviving the play, by revealing and jump-starting its heart.
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