Being Alive: Town and Country Players try their hand at Sondheim’s ‘Company’

Robert (Center), the musical’s commitment-phobic protagonist, played by Patrick McGhee.

Town and Country Players, a local community theater group based in Buckingham, will be presenting the musical comedy “Company”  by Stephen Sondheim beginning April 1. One of the composer/lyricist’s most popular shows, it includes such well-known songs as “The Ladies Who Lunch,” “Being Alive,” and “Another Hundred People.”

Based on the book by George Furth, Company premiered in 1970 with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. The play was nominated for a record-shattering 14 Tony Awards, ultimately winning six.

Originally entitled “Threes,” the story line revolves around Bobby (a single man unable to commit fully to a steady relationship), the five married couples who are his best friends, and his three girlfriends. Rather than follow a linear plot trajectory, Company is composed of separate vignettes linked by the celebration of Bobby’s 35th birthday.

Company was among the first musicals to deal with the complexities of adult relationships, and is as socially relevant today as when the show first appeared on Broadway 46 years ago.