Company

By Leonard Feigenblatt

Stephen Sondheim’s “Company” first premiered on Broadway in 1970. Bobby is single and celebrating a 35th birthday. His coupled friends want Bobby to meet a mate and marry. This is the fourth Broadway revival of this musical, but director Marianne Elliott has a new twist. This time Bobby is Bobbie – a single women rather than a bachelor man. The three perspective single suitors have been changed to men. The character of Amy, who gets wedding day jitters has been changed to Jaime, and is now a gay marriage. Elliott worked with Sondheim to revise the text, with his blessing. The revival of “Company” finally opened on Dec. 9, 2022 (having been delayed by over a year and a half by the pandemic) less than two weeks after the death of composer Sondheim, at the age of 91.

The cast is among the best ensembles of actors presently on Broadway. It does have one weak lenk (sic) Katrina Lenk who portrays Bobbie. She won a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for brilliantly portraying Dina in “The Band’s Visit.” Her voice is just not suited to Sondheim.

The cast does feature two standout performances. Patti LuPone plays the vodka stinger-soaked Joanne who sings the show stopping number “The Ladies Who Lunch,” and she runs with it. For the most part, she keeps her inner diva in check and be- comes part of the ensemble. It is Matt Doyle’s Jamie, who sings “I’m Not Getting Married Today,” that truly stops the show. It is a star making performance. Both LuPone and Doyle won the 2022 Outer Critics Circle, Drama Desk and Tony awards for Best Featured Actress and Actor in a Musical, for their respective performances.

The glorious score and the brilliant performances make this revival of “Company” a must see. It is stunning! A not to be missed evening at the theatre. “Company” runs until July 31.