University at Buffalo - The State University of New York

Published: March 23, 2006

By JESSICA KELTZ
Reporter Contributor

It's not often that student performers get the chance to learn from someone with inside knowledge of the work being produced.

Marcia Milgrom Dodge, guest director for the Department of Theatre and Dance’s production of "Merrily We Roll Along," has not only previously worked on the musical, but did so with its creator, composer and lyricist, Stephen Sondheim. The production will run from March 30-April 2 and April 6-9.
PHOTO: NANCY J. PARISI

But this spring, UB theater students who are performing in the musical "Merrily We Roll Along" will have just such an opportunity. The production's renowned guest director, Marcia Milgrom Dodge, has not only previously worked on the musical, but did so with its creator, composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim.

Moreover, the show's music director, Nathan Matthews, also has a connection to Sondheim: Matthews was music associate for "Children and Art," Broadway's gala celebration of Sondheim's 75th birthday last March.

"It's always fun to revisit something," Dodge, who also serves as the show's choreographer, told the Reporter during a recent interview. "This is my third production of it, and there's always something new to mine and discover."

Matthews, director of music theatre and assistant professor in the Department of Theatre and Dance, said that Dodge is the first "special guest artist" in what's expected to be a recurring appointment in the theatre department. UB plans to bring in other guest artists to work on future shows to give students a chance to work with seasoned professionals, he said.

"The new wave is to give students the experience of working with someone with professional credits," said Matthews, whose own r�sum� chronicles 25 years in New York City working as a music director and conductor before joining the UB faculty three years ago. He continues to return to the city to work on shows.

Dodge first took part in a production of "Merrily We Roll Along" in 1991 for Arena Stage in Washington, D.C., serving as the show's choreographer. She worked directly with Sondheim, who wrote the musical for a 1981 opening.

"We had a very lovely working relationship," Dodge recalled. "I'm happy to say that as much as I was in awe of him, I wasn't intimidated by him."

She called Sondheim, who's also known for such works as "Into the Woods," "A Little Night Music" and "Sweeney Todd," a "generous collaborative soul and an expert. I learned a lot from him."

While the show has gone through several rewrites since its Broadway debut, the theme remains the same, she explained. "Merrily" is the musical adaptation of a play by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart, which, in turn, came from a book by George Furth. Dodge said that although the play and the musical differ substantially, the one thing they have in common is that the story begins at the end, in 1976, and moves backward in time to 1957, ending when the Soviets launched the Sputnik satellite.

"It's the story of a very successful producer/composer whose life choices are called into question by his conscience and his two best friends," she said. "In the journey, he gets back to what led him to write music in the first place."

She described the Arena Stage production as being "not the success we had hoped it would be," saying that this was due to the "circumstances surrounding the director's injury during rehearsals, and the difficulty in telling the story with adult actors, rather than younger performers."

With an older cast, she said, the beginning of the play worked, but the end, where the principle characters are still young and idealistic, did not. Since then, she has staged the show at New York University, this time with a student cast. The UB production will be her third.

"The story being told by young actors, I think, softens the cynical edge at the beginning of the play and galvanizes the youthful optimism at the end," she said. "It becomes a cautionary tale."

She said the play's themes can be appreciated by both student cast members and by members of their parents' generation, who will appreciate the historical references throughout. The show, she said, is about reflecting on one's life, but also about vowing not to sell out.

"It really is Sondheim and Furth's exploration of 'What price fame,'" she said.

Matthews, who will conduct the UB production's orchestra onstage at the piano, recalled that Sondheim's 75th birthday celebration was presented by former President Bill Clinton and singer Barbra Streisand as a benefit for Young Playwrights Inc., which works to launch playwrights who are high school students or younger. The event, he said, was held in the New Amsterdam Theatre on Broadway—home to the "Lion King"—and featured a host of stage celebrities.

"He came on stage at the end," Matthews said of Sondheim. "It was one of those all-star Broadway nights."

He noted that very few artists reach the position that Sondheim enjoys, where events celebrating their body of work, like the 75th birthday gala, occur.

"So, not many of us have the opportunity to see, observe and work with those we admire in this way," he said. "Just standing beside him (Sondheim) and watching his face while his music was performed in rehearsal was thrilling."

The Department of Theatre and Dance will present "Merrily We Roll Along" March 30-April 2 and April 6-9 in the Drama Theatre in the Center for the Arts, North Campus. Performances will take place at 8 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and at 2 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets are $16 for general admission and $8 for students and are available in the CFA box office from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and at all Ticketmaster locations, including Ticketmaster.com.