Greetings,
I'm pretty sure that somebody once mentioned that there is no recipe for success. Sometimes things work out; sometimes they don't. Really, no matter what you throw into your routine, you are not promised the outcome you want or are expecting. And nowhere is this more evident than in the entertainment industry. I mean, how many times have you heard about movies coming out with acclaimed everything, from directors to craft service people, and then, they fail miserably, either commercially or critically or both. You just never can tell what will make people love something. Such was the case of the story that is told in the 2016 documentary, Best Worst Thing That Could Have Happened.
So, back in 1981, a little musical made its Broadway debut, entitled, Merrily We Roll Along. It was based on a 1934 play of the same name, with the book written by George Furth, the songs written by Stephen Sondheim and all of it directed by Hal Prince. No way could this thing fail. Right? Anyway, it's about this guy who works in Hollywood, but he used to write songs for Broadway. And it goes backwards. And he's got these friends. And...Yeah, I really couldn't follow the narrative of this thing. I don't think other people could either. That could be one of the reasons why this production didn't exactly hit the stratosphere. But there were also a few others.
Yes, as it turned out, despite having some players with amazing pedigree, Merrily We Roll Along closed after a mere sixteen performances. It's probably one of the most well-known musicals that didn't do so well. But in subsequent years, other productions have been presented and there is more of an appreciation for what was done with the show. In fact, it's kind of known as a classic now.
As with most documentaries of this nature, it is full of interviews with a lot of the people who were involved. In fact, this film was directed by Lonny Price, who was a member of the original cast. Although, some of us know him as Ronnie from The Muppets Take Manhattan. Good times, indeed. Anyway, it was interesting to get some insight from the young people who were a part of that first production, especially since so many of them were very young, practically kids in some cases. And talking about how it affected their lives, for better or worse, was clearly an emotional experience for them. Of course, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that one of those interviewees was Jason Alexander. Isn't he just a delight?
In additions to all the interviews, there is tons of footage of rehearsals and auditions. You really do get to see the whole process that they had to go through, and that most shows have to go through on the road to the stage. As someone who enjoys being a behind the scenes voyeur, I found some of it interesting. Although, since I have seen quite a few documentaries like this, such as Every Little Step or Show Business: The Road to Broadway, it was, for me, a bit familiar.
Still, every story is its own story and while the process of putting together a Broadway production can have similarities to all the others, outside occurrences will cause the path to be a little different for each one. And the story of Merrily We Roll Along is unique unto itself in a lot of ways.
So, if you are a Broadway lover and if you're interested in hearing all those tales behind the productions from the people who lived through them and are still affected by them, I say that Best Worst Thing That Ever Could Have Happened might be worth a watch for you.
Love and full moons,
Becky the Writer
