COMPANY • OPÉRA GRAND AVIGNON
★★★★☆☆
Photo: Jean Michel Melina
REVIEW: COMPANY IN AVIGNON – SONDHEIM MUSICAL FOR SINGLES AND SKEPTICS
When musical phenomenon Stephen Sondheim wrote Company in 1970, he could hardly have imagined how well it would capture the spirit of the times 55 years later – in a world where dating TV shows in every conceivable format try to find the one and only for all of us. Because people like us need a partner. Or do we?
Company revolutionized the musical genre by breaking with the classic, linear narrative. Instead, we get a series of snapshots – independent vignettes that explore marriage, friendship, and loneliness. The category of concept musical was born.
With its innovative structure, combined with Sondheim’s originality as a composer and lyricist, Company set a record with 14 Tony nominations and 6 wins.
Opéra Nice Côte d’Azur is behind a current, updated production that visited Nice and Avignon before Christmas and will continue in 2026 to Geneva, Rouen, and Paris, among other places. Musical aficionados can look forward to a lively and successful staging.
Photo: Jean Michel Melina
The performance is directed by James Bonas in a minimalist, colorful, pop art-inspired set design by Barbara de Limburg – accompanied by a full symphony orchestra, which has become rare even on Broadway. Look forward to a luxurious musical experience.
The composition is an advanced mix of deconstructed musical tradition, swing and big band jazz, edgy rhythms, blue harmonies, quirky time signatures and unexpected modulations. All served up in a retro New York sound that was hot in 1970 and still has edge.
Photo: Jean Michel Melina
Pop melancholy meets satire in numbers such as The Ladies Who Lunch, (Not) Getting Married Today, and the signature number Being Alive—the catchy tune that Company unfortunately lacks.
The production is performed with French dialogue and English lyrics. If you read up a little on the story, it’s easy to follow – even if you didn’t pay attention in French class.
Photo: Jean Michel Melina
Bobby is a 35-year-old New York single surrounded by five married couples who want the very best for him: a steady girlfriend and future wife. But little by little, the facades of their social circle begin to crumble, as the marriages turn out to be far from the blissful union their friends want to foist upon their single comrade.
Photo: Jean Michel Melina
Company clearly has the flavor of having been written in the wake of the youth rebellion that questioned everything from hair length to authority and the nuclear family. In a series of lively images, Company paints a sharp portrait of modern adult life and exposes the main character’s growing doubts about the value of intimacy and commitment in a world where relationships are both necessary and frightening.
There will be plenty to talk about on the way home from the theater!
Photo: Jean Michel Melina
Company is above all an ensemble performance with a lively, well-rehearsed cast that delivers at a fast pace, with lots of humor and good musicality. As Bobby, Gaétan Borg sometimes lacks dramatic charisma, but in a way it suits his hesitant character. Best of all is Jasmine Roy as the cynical and biting Joanne – tormented inside by the inevitable pain of adult love.
Four stars from GOT TO SEE THIS for Company, which, along with Sunday in the Park with George, Follies, and Into the Woods, is a must for Sondheim fans.
