Music: Stephen Sondheim
Book: James Lapine
Directed by Sam Buntrock
Synopsis:
The Georges Seurat painting, "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jette," is the inspiration for this compelling musical fantasy which celebrates the art of creation and the creation of art. The first half of Sunday in the Park with George, set in 1884, sees the painting and its rich comic tapestry come to life in a world where, for Georges, art comes before love, before everything. In the second half, set in 1980s New York, we see the great grandson of Georges and his search for inspiration amongst the unfolding world of contemporary art.
NYTHEATREREVIEWS.COM:
"I'll gladly be the first to say it. I disliked this production and found it incredibly boring. The two leads, while most likely wonderful in a smaller house, did not have the reach to captivate the size of a Broadway theater. Their performances were...small. And what was innovative about it? The projections? Please. The Wooster group was doing more with projections in the 80's. Just because you put a revival on a different set than it first premiered, does not make it innovative! I'm sure I would've loved the show in a smaller house, but as it stands, the production is a huge disappointment. "
NEW YORK TIMES:
"As a consequence, a familiar show shimmers with a new humanity and clarity that make theatergoers see it with virgin eyes. And while “Sunday” remains a lopsided piece — pairing a near-perfect, self-contained first act with a lumpier, less assured second half — this production goes further than any I’ve seen in justifying the second act’s existence."
Read the whole review HERE.
NEW YORK MAGAZINE:
"Yet technology is less kind to the ear than to the eye in Buntrock’s revival (imported from London by the Roundabout). For all the dazzling visuals, the score has a synthesized quality that sounds like an artifact of the show’s original staging in 1984. Nor, alas, can digital imagery do much for a story that loses steam. "
Read the whole review HERE.
NEW YORK POST:
"Do go and see this unmissably innovative piece of musical staging - but don't blame me if, at the end, you feel you might have done better to leave at the intermission."
Read the whole review HERE.
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS:
"In the ravishing climactic song, "Move On," Dot urges George to "Give us more to see." You'll feel the same way when your time in the park with George ends."
Read the whole review HERE.
NEW YORK SUN:
"Mitigated only somewhat by merely adequate lead performances from Daniel Evans and Jenna Russell, both of whom have accompanied the production from London, this revival locates the rigid architecture as well as the emotional underpinnings of this strange and compelling musical."
Read the whole review HERE.
THEATERMANIA:
"The result is a first-rate presentation of a loved and respected musical, which is further festooned with slick and touching performances by Evans and Russell, the only holdovers from the London staging."
Read the whole review HERE.
VARIETY:
"It's a difficult but infinitely rewarding musical of disparate elements that combine to achieve true harmony, bringing passionate insight to the relationship between art, artists and audience, and to the boundless possibilities of art itself. The clarity and depth of understanding in this revival make it an experience to be savored."
Read the whole review HERE.
NEWSDAY:
"The result is a work of art about the making of art, an intimate piece of effortless musical audacity - and a great bittersweet love story - that remains among the peak theater experiences of my life."
Read the whole review HERE.
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