DETROIT – What happens when you’re the only single one in your group of married friends and it’s your 35th birthday?
You get asked a lot of questions.
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Enter COMPANY, Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s groundbreaking musical comedy from 1970 reimagined for modern audiences.
The Tony Award winner for Best Revival of a Musical, COMPANY was one of the last productions Stephen Sondheim saw before his death in 2021. The show, a transfer of the 2018 West End Marianne Elliott production, swapped Bobby, a man, for Bobbie, a woman. Several other characters were also gender swapped bringing a whole new perspective to the classic musical.
Ann Arbor native Britney Coleman, fresh off the Beetlejuice tour, plays Bobbie, a 35-year-old living in New York whose closest friends are all married couples. They’ve gathered in her tiny apartment to surprise her on her special day. In Bobbie’s attempt to blow out the candles on her cake, she begins a dream-like journey about love, life and self.
Rooms appear and disappear, numeric “35″ balloons shrink or fill the room, friends appear out of nowhere. If it sounds like a magic show, it almost is. Bunny Christie’s modern Wonderland-like set design turns Bobbie into a metaphorical Alice who becomes curiouser and curiouser about marriage.
Coleman is a cool, yet quirky Bobbie. Having understudied the role on Broadway, Coleman makes it completely her own with an authenticity that has the audience gravitating towards her. With much of the comedy occurring among her friends, it’s when the stage is bare and it’s just Bobbie and her thoughts that Coleman shines, belting “Marry Me a Little” or “Being Alive,” where you see the anguish and frustration as she navigates all of these personal interrogations, giving little revelations in each song as she soaks in what she’s learned.
But COMPANY is an ensemble show, with most of the cast on stage for much of it. Standouts include Kathryn Allison and James Earl Jones II as couple Sarah and Harry, whose hilarious physical comedy sets the tone for the rest of the show. Judy McLane, who has the honor of the longest-running lead in the hit musical Mamma Mia!, is a deliciously cynical Joanne who delivers a marvelous “Ladies Who Lunch” – all while sitting on a bar stool. And then there’s Matt Rodin’s showstopping “Getting Married Today.” Not only is it one of Sondheim’s toughest songs, it also has one of the best theatrical gags in modern theater.
COMPANY is a bold and imaginative musical filled with magic and heart. It’s a fun-filled visual feast that allows audiences to observe and think about love in their own lives: whether it be with friends, relationships or even within themselves.
COMPANY is now playing at the Fisher Theatre through October 29, 2023. For showtimes and tickets, visit BroadwayinDetroit.com.