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In the program note for “Merrily We Roll Along,” the Harvard-Radcliffe Dramatic Club’s recent Loeb mainstage production, Director Benjamin L. C. Arthurs ’27 sprinkled in a puzzling detail: “Before this summer, I never would have guessed I would actually wind up staging ‘Merrily We Roll Along.’”

Indeed, “Merrily” was a last minute turnaround from another production entirely: “Cabaret.”

To produce a show at Harvard, the first step is to submit an enormous application. This includes a fully fleshed out proposal for the theatrical vision (from statements to design plans and resumes), information about the budget, general logistics, and a committed 40-to-50-person production team. After a series of interviews, certain teams receive space in one of the HRDC’s theatrical venues. Finally, the HRDC must request the show’s licensing rights.

Unfortunately for Arthurs and his team, their luck fell short at the last step. Their original plan with “Cabaret” was thwarted by the noncompliance of the license company. Without a show to do, Arthurs had to think very quickly. With less time than expected, the team would have to “start over from scratch:” pick an entirely new musical and prepare new choreography, design plans, and blocking with a month or less.

“I was very lucky that people were really excited about the show and really wanted to buy into it. But obviously, everyone was really excited to do “Cabaret” and it’s not an easy thing to do to convince a team of 50 people to get equally excited about another show,” he said.

With that story in mind, Arthurs’ gratitude for his team certainly jumps out from between the lines of his program note. Yet he, too, deserves commendation for his role in navigating through the challenge, especially since it was only his second time directing for heater.

Arthurs had no intention of directing when he started Harvard. He knew he wanted to continue acting in college, something he did all four years of high school, but he also just wanted to do “as much art as possible.” In addition to acting in HRDC productions, he joined the Harvard Din & Tonics and played tuba in the Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra.

Although he loved acting, he wanted something different out of it.

“I think [acting’s] a lot of fun and I’m really loving doing it. But I felt like I was kind of chasing something more that I wasn’t really getting in terms of artistic fulfillment,” he said.

So, when he felt the urge to direct, he didn’t hesitate to act on it.

“I thought, maybe instead of being the person performing what’s given to me, I’m gonna be the person who makes it,” he said.

For his first directorial role, he settled on “Arcadia,” a time-bending play about physics and attraction. Arthurs thought that the lengthy, straight play would add some diversity to the slate of productions at Harvard, and that students would be interested in the opportunity to do a production of its type. He began polling people’s interest in his idea, including people he knew from the team of “Pippin,” which he was acting in then.

“I’m just like, even if I didn’t know them at all: ‘Hey, you’re working on the show, would you want to work on another show?’” he recalled.

His outreach efforts soon started to see results.

“The more and more the team grew, adding applications, the more real it seemed. You know, it's like, this might actually happen. It was really just kind of an idea at the start,” he said.

“Arcadia” ended up running in Spring of 2025.

To emphasize, directing wasn’t a goal Arthurs had started out with, nor was it clear how his experience would turn out. However, he didn’t question himself as he leapt into directing “cold turkey.”

As a result, he discovered a new artistic outlet that resonated beautifully with his strengths and style, and he was able to take on projects he loved.

“I’ve really liked getting to be sort of the person to put out the vision, shape that vision, get other people to buy into that and see how everybody contributes to it. And it grows a lot over the course of the show. You never really know exactly what it’s going to be until opening night, when everything comes together, and that’s part of the fun of it, too, seeing what you set out to do and how it changes over time,” he said.

In other avenues of his life, Arthurs has never been afraid of trying new things spontaneously. For instance, he never expected to have the experience that he did with the Din & Tonics.

“I never thought I would do a cappella here. I certainly did not think I would join a group that would tour the world a bunch and do all that stuff. That was all really terrifying to me at first, and I almost didn’t do it because of that. That was just one of those things where I auditioned not thinking it would be anything,” he said.

Being in the Dins also presented some musical challenges, since Arthurs didn’t have the most extensive background in a cappella and furthermore had to quickly grasp the Dins’ signature jazzy sound.

“I’ve gotten to the point where I feel like if I were to be singing and doing the dance, I would do a good job with the music and it would come very naturally to me because I know what the sound is and how I'm supposed to fit into it. But that was a two year learning process,” he said.

But these initial obstacles didn’t stop Arthurs from falling in love with the organization and taking on more responsibilities within the Dins. He decided to take on the role of tour manager his freshman year, and became the president of the Dins his sophomore year, which were also roles for which he didn’t quite have the perfect background for, but was willing to learn along the way. Arthurs’ experiences with the Dins are a testament to the running theme in his life — that taking the leap of faith is much more important than thinking of oneself as perfectly prepared for the job.

One could chalk it up to talent, but Arthurs attributes his success to his mindset. His self-assuredness and unwavering love for art have helped him reach for opportunities he literally had never dreamed of.

“I would have never guessed what I’d be doing now two years ago. There’s not one specific thing that I’m like, oh, I really want to do this. But to always be growing myself as an artist, first of all, doing things that challenge me to go to the next level that I haven’t been before. And to make an impact on people. I think that’s a really important part of art.” he said.

When asked about future Harvard productions he would like to direct, Arthurs offered “Cabaret” and “Sweeney Todd” as options — picks that show his ambition hasn’t faltered.

“We can often get really, really great productions, when we challenge ourselves versus easier shows where people are kind of whatever about it. When it’s really, really hard for people and they have to invest a lot into it, that's when you usually get really good results,” he said.

Though “Cabaret” and “Sweeney Todd” are dauntingly big productions, Arthurs knows better. The more you do things, the more real they seem. Thinking that big and fearlessly has brought Arthurs to the directing chair; he applies the same principles to his own directing style to achieve awesome, bold productions like “Merrily,” the first of hopefully many future shows to come.