EVDOL 28 - Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along

Art Williford
This course will take a deep dive into Stephen Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along, a crushing Broadway failure in 1981, and a massive Broadway hit in 2023. On the surface, Merrily is one of Sondheim’s catchiest and most appealing scores, but all in the service of a wildly complex and ambitious concept: a musical constructed backwards, from exit music to overture, with a story that starts at the end and finds its way to a beginning. Merrily is also a profound meditation on the conflict between art and commercialism, a Broadway musical about Broadway musicals, a celebration of the genre as well as an impassioned critique. The class will trace the fascinating history of the show and its many incarnations, and will explore how Sondheim’s deceptively simple songs are woven together into one of his richest, most comprehensive musical statements.

Biography: Art Williford

One Section Available | 4 Classes Total | Extension Holiday Schedule

Tuesdays and Thursdays 5:30–7:30pm ET

June 16–June 25

Online Only

$340

Register by Phone: (212) 799-5000 ext. 273

Our phone line is open Monday–Friday (excluding holidays), 9:00 am–5:00 pm ET.

*Please note our offices will be closed on Fridays after Memorial Day.