Denton’s Campus Theatre presents Tony winner Company

by Katherine Grivna of North Texas Daily

Musical theater enthusiasts will gather at the Campus Theatre as tonight marks the beginning of the last weekend of the Music Theatre of Denton's latest presentation, Company by Stephen Sondheim.

Director Bill Kirkley said anyone who has even been married or dated could relate to Company, the story of Bobby, the lead character, "the ultimate third wheel to five married couples. He navigates their relationships as he tries to discover his place in the matrimonial tapestry."

The show embraces love in comic, but occasionally dark matters, Kirkley said. All the actors are volunteers and many are UNT graduates, he said.

The production board of the Music Theatre of Denton considered Company, after the production received a Tony Award in 2007 for "Best Revival of a Musical" and leapt back onto everyone's radar, Kirkley said.

Tyler Donahue, a Spanish graduate student, plays the lead role of Bobby and said their production of Company is from a different angle than others.

"The specific moments are very individual to our production," he said. "All of the actors and the music director really took it from their own perspective. I think that's what makes ours different."

Donahue said UNT students could relate to the production because of the transition between school and the real world. One section in particular, he said, is when many of the characters are asking Bobby why he hasn't gotten married yet.

"I think that college students would really enjoy seeing someone else in that same situation in the same point in their lives," he said.

Donahue said he feels Company is one of the finest examples of musical theater ever written, but with that come challenges.

"Juggling the many aspects of the show, physically, mentally and emotionally have been the most difficult thing," Donahue said.

The opening production was on Feb. 20, and the last performance will be on March 1. Donahue said Company and most productions only run for two weeks because of the high cost for the orchestra, set, and costumes.

Donahue, who began acting in 2002 as a freshman, has played the lead role in several productions such as The Fantasticks, Cabaret, and the Beast in Beauty and the Beast.

He said he was studying musical theatre at UNT until the degree was cancelled, but wants to continue to study theatre. Donahue will be directing the upcoming Campus Theatre production of George & Ira Gershwin's Crazy for You.

Playing the role of Bobby in Company has been one of the most honest experiences he has ever had, he said, and has enjoyed his experience with the cast.

"We've really grown into a family," Donahue said. "Without [the cast], the piece would not be what it is. The credit really goes to them and to the creative team. It's been a fantastic experience."

Company does not have a particular target audience, he said, because of the many different characters that people can relate to.

"If you really look at it as a piece, it can relate to anybody," Donahue said. "They're such human characters. I think that anybody would really come out of the auditorium feeling something from all of the characters."