After a standout season of bold, acclaimed productions including Cabaret, Amadeus and Who’s Holiday, Footlight Players will close its 94th season with Company, opening April 24 at the Queen Street Playhouse.
On the night of his 35th birthday, lifelong bachelor Bobby finds himself surrounded by a whirlwind of married friends — devoted, dysfunctional and unpredictable. As dinners, drinks and city nights blur together across Manhattan, Bobby begins to confront a question he has long avoided: Is staying single a choice, or simply the easier escape? Told through a series of sharp, humorous and poignant vignettes, Company offers a candid look at modern relationships, connection and the fear of being alone.
Fresh off its Tony Award-winning Broadway revival, the musical comedy by Stephen Sondheim remains as relevant as ever. Footlight’s new production stars Brandon Chinn (Urinetown, The Legend of Georgia McBride) as Bobby, navigating the pressures of commitment while influenced by five opinionated couples and three romantic prospects, each revealing another layer of his reluctance to fully engage.
Directed by Artistic Director Kyle Barnette (Cabaret, Jekyll & Hyde, The Wild Party), Company is considered one of Sondheim’s defining works alongside Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods and Sunday in the Park with George. A pioneering “concept musical,” it breaks from traditional storytelling to present a mosaic of moments capturing the humor, tension and vulnerability of urban life and love.
The production features several of musical theater’s most recognizable songs, including “Being Alive,” “The Ladies Who Lunch,” “Another Hundred People” and “You Could Drive a Person Crazy,” performed by a cast of Footlight Players regulars and Charleston performers.
Company runs April 24 through May 10, with performances at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays.
Tickets and information are available at footlightplayers.net or by calling 843-722-4487. The Queen Street Playhouse is located at 20 Queen St. in downtown Charleston.