Autumn Term Schedule

Written by David Baerwald and Kevin Gilbert, originally intended for the film William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet.

However, it was first heard publicly and is best known as the romantic love theme from Baz Luhrmann's 2001 film Moulin Rouge!, where it is sung by the lead characters Christian and Satine. The song takes its title from a phrase that originates from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night and later Macbeth. 

"Moon River" is a song composed by Henry Mancini with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. It was originally performed by Audrey Hepburn in the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany's, winning an Academy Award for Best Original Song. The song also won the 1962 Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Song of the Year. In 1999, Mancini's recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

 The song was inspired by the Sherman Brothers' father, Al Sherman, who besides being a well-known songwriter in his day was also an amateur kite maker who made kites for neighbourhood children as a weekend hobby. The song was originally written in 4/4 or common time, but Walt Disney felt it was too much like the ending of a Broadway show and wanted a song that was more "breezy", like a waltz. This song is performed at the end of the film when George Banks mends his son's kite and takes his family on a kite-flying outing.

Sondheim received a 1982 Tony Award nomination for Best Original Score. The 2023 revival earned four awards. The show is set in the showbiz world of the 1950s to 1970s, centering on 3 friends: composer Frank Shepard, lyricist/playwright Charley Kringas, and theatre critic Mary Flynn. It follows the disintegration of the trio's bond over 20 years, from when they meet as young, aspiring artists to when Frank has left theatre and his friends behind for a swanky life as a Hollywood producer.

Merrily We Roll Along tells this story in reverse chronological order, starting in 1976 and going back in time to 1957.