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MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG Earns Five League of Cincinnati Theatres Awards for Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park 

The cast of MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG presented by Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. Photo by Sandy Underwood.

(CINCINNATI, MARCH 13, 2012)– Panelists from the League of Cincinnati Theatres (LCT) have recognized Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park’s production of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG with five awards for its ensemble, set design, musical direction and orchestrations.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG is directed by John Doyle, using the same actor-musician technique he employed in the Playhouse’s Tony Award-winning production of Company. The show, a musical fable of friendship and the price of success, moves backward in time, tracing the relationships of a jaded composer and his two closest friends from their estranged ending to idealistic beginnings. The following awards were given:

• Outstanding Ensemble, described by one LCT panelist as “full of remarkably talented individuals who could sing, move, act AND play musical instruments — extraordinary.” The cast of Broadway veterans includes Becky Ann Baker, Matt Castle, Matthew Deming, Ben Diskant, David Garry, Malcolm Gets, Lee Harrington, Daniel Jenkins, Jane Pfitsch, Leenya Rideout, Fred Rose, Bruce Sabath and Jessica Tyler Wright;
• Becky Ann Baker, as featured actress, for her “nuanced and very real” performance as Mary Flynn;
• Scott Paskfor his scenic design. As one panelist stated, “The use of sheet music and manuscripts, the elements that started and held together the friendship of the three main characters, was incredibly inventive”;
• Matt Castlefor “coaxing this great vocal and instrumental performance from this cast” through his musical direction; and
• Mary-Mitchell Campbell for her new orchestrations of the score, which “made it possible for a full sound to be derived from a group that are primarily actors and singers.”

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG continues through March 31. Tickets are available at www.cincyplay.com.

The League of Cincinnati Theatres was founded in 1999 to strengthen, nurture and promote Cincinnati’s theatre community. LCT provides its member companies and individual members with education, resources and services to enhance the quality and exposure of the theatre community in Cincinnati and increase community awareness, attendance and involvement. More information about the League can be found at www.leagueofcincytheatres.info.