Odds & Ends: Eden Espinosa to Lead Maria Friedman's Acclaimed Merrily We Roll Along & More

Eden Espinosa to Appear in Merrily We Roll Along
Wicked veteran Eden Espinosa will play Mary Flynn is the U.S. transfer of the West End's hit Merrily We Roll Along, directed by Maria Friedman. The mounting of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth's cult musical will land at Boston's Huntington Theatre Company for a run from September 8-October 15. Espinosa will appear alongside London stars Mark Umbers as Franklin Shepard and Damian Humbley as Charley Kringas. Merrily will also feature Aimee Doherty as Gussie, Jennifer Ellis as Beth, Christopher Chew as Joe Josephson, Robert Saoud as Mr. Spencer, Amy Barker as Mrs. Spencer and Ceit Zweil as Evelyn. This production began at the Menier Chocolate Factory before opening to acclaim in the West End. With a super talent like Espinosa, we're keeping fingers crossed that this Merrily has its eyes on Broadway.

Cady Huffman, A.J. Shively & More to Perform in Sandy Hook Benefit
A cast of Broadway vets and young stars will come together to lend their voices at a benefit for The Jessica Rekos Foundation, honoring the life of a six-year-old whose life was taken at Sandy Hook School in 2012. The 7:00pm charity event on November 2 at Feinstein's/54 Below will feature performances by Tony winner Cady Huffman along with Broadway's A.J. Shively, Sean McDermott, Lori Hammel and Kristy Cates. They'll be joined onstage by Christiana Cole, Alex Goley, Cali Elizabeth Moore and Annie Watkins.

American Theatre Wing's Andrew Lloyd Webber Initiative Announces Scholarship Recipients
The American Theatre Wing has announced the group of lucky students who will receive scholarships as part of the previously announced Andrew Lloyd Webber Initiative. The talented young folks include Natalia Avila of Houston, TX; Carrli Cooper of Winter Garden, FL; Kaisheem Fowler-Bryant of Bronx, NY; Marcus Gladney of Huntsville, AL; Eugene Bois of Marietta, GA; Destiny Cable of Pacoima, CA; Colette Caspari of Cumming, GA; Quinn Chisenhall of Quinton, VA; Jamia Croft of Louisville, KY; Daelin Elzie of Manvel, TX; Aaron Graham of Riverview, FL; Anijah Lezama of Brooklyn, NY; Sydney Lopes of Smyrna, GA; Kelly Lukito of Flushing, NY; Jhala Martin of Detroit, MI; Dina Perez of Chicago, IL; Haley Prince of Houston, TX; Jennifer Reyes Fernandez of Louisville, KY; Jada Rice of Chicago, IL; Ariana Rodriguez of Bronx, NY; Julia Schick of Kennesaw, GA; Alex Serrano of Fresno, CA; Amara Valerio of Yonkers, NY and Leon Weir III of Grosse Pointe Woods, MI. Congrats to these super talents, who will take part in theater programs across the country!

Grab a Voting Pad & Gear Up for Rob Drummond's Interactive New Play
Acclaimed British playwright Rob Drummond will debut his audience participation–friendly new solo play The Majority with London's National Theatre. The Majority charts Drummond’s journey as he navigates the Scottish Independence Referendum, Brexit and Trump. Each audience member will be given a voting pad in order to vote yes or no on questions posed throughout the play. Every night is expected to be different, depending on the majority. (Get it?) David Overend will direct the work that is set to begin previews on August 11 and open on August 14 for a limited run through August 28.

Guys & Dolls Ignites San Diego with Terence Archie's Pitch-Perfect "Luck Be a Lady" 
San Diego audiences are currently being treated to the Old Globe's delightful production of the musical favorite Guys and Dolls. Packed with New York stage vets including J. Bernard Calloway as Nathan Detroit, Veronica J. Kuehn as Miss Adelaide, Audrey Cardwell as Sarah Brown and Terence Archie as Sky Masterson, Frank Loesser's hit-packed score is being treated with care. Give a watch to the stirring Archie delivering his rendition of "Luck Be a Lady" below and be sure to catch Guys and Dolls at the Old Globe through July 30.