Jonathan Groff, Lindsay Mendez Join Daniel Radcliffe In 'Merrily' Revival

New York Theatre Workshop (NYTW) (Artistic Director Patricia McGregor and Managing Director Jeremy Blocker) announced today that Jonathan Groff will star as “Franklin” and Lindsay Mendez will star as “Mary” in Merrily We Roll Along, featuring music & lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, a book by George Furth, and based on the original play by George S. Kaufman & Moss Hart. They join the previously announced Daniel Radcliffe, who will star as “Charley”. Additional details, including the full cast of 19 additional performers, will be announced at a later date.

Directed by Olivier Award winner Maria Friedman and choreographed by Tim Jackson, Merrily We Roll Along is presented by special arrangement with Sonia Friedman Productions, the Menier Chocolate Factory (Artistic Director David Babani) and Patrick Catullo.

Merrily We Roll Along will begin previews at New York Theatre Workshop (79 E 4th Street, New York, NY 10003) on November 21, 2022, and is set to open on December 12, 2022, for a limited engagement through January 8, 2023.

The creative team for Merrily We Roll Along will include Catherine Jayes (The Color Purple) as music supervisor and Alvin Hough, Jr. (Tina: The Tina Turner Musical) as music director, with scenic & costume design by Soutra Gilmour (& Juliet), lighting design by Amith Chandrashaker (The Lucky Ones), and sound design by Kai Harada (Mr. Saturday Night). Casting is by Jim Carnahan, CSA & Jason Thinger, CSA, with additional casting by Taylor Williams. Dave Anzuelo (The Great Society) will serve as fight & intimacy director, with Jhanaë K-C Bonnick (Slave Play) as stage manager.

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. Maria Friedman first directed the musical at London’s Menier Chocolate Factory which subsequently transferred to the Harold Pinter Theatre to critical acclaim—the most five-star reviews in West End history—winning the Olivier Award for Best Musical. 

The performance schedule for Merrily We Roll Along is as follows:

November 21 – December 11: Tuesday-Thursday at 7pm; Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 2pm & 8pm; Sunday at 2pm & 8pm. There will be an added performance on Monday November 21 at 7pm. There will be no performance on Thursday November 24. There will be no matinee performance on Saturday November 26. There will be no public performances on Sunday December 11.

December 13 – January 8: Tuesday at 7pm; Wednesday at 1pm & 7pm; Thursday at 7pm; Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 2pm & 8pm; Sunday at 2pm. There will be no performances on Sunday December 18 at 8pm; Saturday December 24; Sunday December 25; Saturday December 31 at 8pm; and Sunday January 1. There will be added performances on Friday December 23 at 2pm; Monday December 26 at 7pm; and Friday December 30 at 2pm.

NYTW is committed to making tickets available to every production via its CHEAPTIX initiative. For Merrily We Roll Along, NYTW will offer all tickets for the first two performances plus a limited number of tickets to all other performances for $25 via a CHEAPTIX Digital Lottery. The lottery is offered in lieu of NYTW’s standard CHEAPTIX and CHEAPTIXRUSH programs to ensure that tickets are guaranteed at every performance. Full information about the lottery will be announced at a later date.

Single tickets for Merrily We Roll Along start at $145 and vary by performance date and time. Standard ticketing fees apply. Tickets go on sale September 21, 2022, at 12pm ET. All non-lottery tickets will be available on a first-come, first-served basis, online at NYTW.org or by phone from the NYTW Box Office at 212-460-5475. There will be no in-person sales on September 21, 2022. NYTW memberships offer priority access to tickets and are on sale now at NYTW.org or by calling 212-460-5475.

In addition to Merrily We Roll Along, the NYTW 2022/23 season will feature american (tele)visions by Tow Playwright-in-Residence Victor I. Cazares (Pinching Pennies with Penny Marshall), directed by NYTW Usual Suspect Rubén Polendo (</remnant>); Anton Chekhov’s Three Sisters, in a new adaptation by Pulitzer Prize finalist Clare Barron (Dance Nation, You Got Older), directed by Tony Award winner and NYTW Usual Suspect Sam Gold (Othello, Fun Home); 2019 winner of the Yale Drama Prize, How to Defend Yourself by Liliana Padilla (Born 1000 Times), co-directed by Tony Award winner and NYTW Usual Suspect Rachel Chavkin (Hadestown), Padilla and Helen Hayes Award winner Steph Paul (The Last Match); and The Half-God of Rainfall by Inua Ellams (Barber Shop Chronicles).