Character guide
Benjamin Stone
from Follies
Benjamin Stone is Phyllis's husband in Follies, Stephen Sondheim's 1971 musical, a successful but emotionally distant diplomat who once loved Sally.
- Show
- Follies
- Broadway premiere
- 1971
- Role
- Lead
- Music by
- Stephen Sondheim
Who is Benjamin Stone?
Ben is outwardly the most accomplished of the show's four central characters, a polished diplomat and businessman, but the reunion forces him to confront how hollow that success has left him, and how his old feelings for Sally never fully resolved. His composed public face begins to crack as the evening continues.
Where Sally clings to fantasy, Ben is undone by the opposite problem, an inability to feel anything as deeply as he once did, and his unraveling becomes one of the show's central tragedies.
Ben's role in Follies
Ben is a lead role that builds toward a manic breakdown sequence, Live, Laugh, Love, staged as a nightmarish, collapsing follies number in which his carefully maintained control disintegrates on stage. The part requires an actor who can shift convincingly from suave self-possession to genuine psychological unraveling.
The role was originated by John McMartin in the 1971 Broadway production, and his performance helped define Ben as one of the more psychologically complex leading men in the Sondheim repertoire.
Benjamin Stone: frequently asked questions
What show is Benjamin Stone from?
Benjamin Stone is a lead character in Follies, which opened on Broadway in 1971.
Is Benjamin Stone a lead or supporting role?
Ben is a lead role and one of the show's two central men.
Who wrote the music for Follies?
Stephen Sondheim composed the music and lyrics for Follies.
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