Following its sell-out run at the Menier Chocolate Factory, Merrily We Roll Along will play a strictly limited 12 week run in the West End at the Harold Pinter theatre with the original cast rolling in with it.
Mark Umbers, Damian Humbley and Jenna Russell will return to play the leading roles in Stephen Sondheim’s classic musical from 23 April (press night 1 May), with supporting cast members Josefina Gabrielle (Sweet Charity, Menier Chocolate Factory), Glyn Kerslake (Road Show, Menier Chocolate Factory) and Clare Foster (Crazy For You, Regent’s Park Open Air theatre and the West End) joining the trio.
The musical marked the directorial debut of multi Olivier Award-winning actress Maria Friedman when it opened last November and collected a host of four star reviews with the Evening Standard calling her work a “first-rate professional debut as a director”.
Based on the play by Kaufman and Hart, Sondheim and George Furth’s 1981 musical charts the turbulent relationship between three friends – Franklin, Charley and Mary – over three decades. Starting in 1980 and travelling backwards in time, the moving story features Sondheim classics including Good Thing Going, Not A Day Goes By and Old Friends.
Umbers and Russell are no strangers to the Menier Chocolate Factory’s frequent West End success, having starred in critically acclaimed performances of Sweet Charity and Sunday In The Park With George respectively; the latter earning Russell an Olivier Award nomination and subsequent Tony Award nomination when it transferred across the pond.
Alongside their work at the Menier, Umbers has appeared in My Fair Lady and The Browning Version in the West End, while Russell’s numerous theatre credits include Guys And Dolls in the West End, Soho Cinders at the Soho theatre, Into The Woods at the Regent’s Park Open Air theatre and Season’s Greetings at the National Theatre.
Humbley was last seen at the Menier in The Last Five Years and has also appeared in West End productions of The Woman In White and Lend Me A Tenor The Musical.
Completing the cast are ensemble members Matthew Barrow, Martin Callaghan, Amanda Minihan, Kirk Patterson, Amy Ellen Richardson, Ashley Robinson, Robbie Scotcher, Zizi Strallen and Joanna Woodward.
The West End transfer joins a flurry of shows to offer affordable ticketing options with 100 seats available at £25 in the stalls and dress circle for every performance until 1 June.