SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE

'''Sunday in the Park with George''' is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. The musical was inspired by the painting "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte" by Georges Seurat. A complex work revolving around a fictionalized Seurat immersed in singleminded concentration while painting the masterpiece, its Broadway production was greeted with mixed praise by the critics, but it has enjoyed several major revivals. Nominated for ten Tony Awards, it won only two design awards but won numerous Drama Desk Awards and the 1985 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. An upcoming 2008 Broadway revival is to be the UK production first shown at the Menier Chocolate Factory in 2005, and then at the West End's Wyndham's Theatre in 2006.

History

Following the failure and scathing critical reception of ''Merrily We Roll Along'' in 1981 (the show closed after 16 performances), Sondheim announced his intention to leave the musical theatre to write mystery novels. However, he was convinced by Lapine to return to the theatrical world after the two were inspired by "Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte", the masterpiece of the French pointillist painter Georges Seurat. In discussing the painting, Lapine noted that one major figure was missing from the canvas: the artist himself. ^[1] This observation provided the springboard for the creation of "Sunday", and the production evolved into a meditation on art, emotional connection, and community.

Original Broadway production

When the show first opened to subscription audiences at the off-Broadway theater Playwrights Horizons starring Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters in July 1983, only the first act was written, and still with many holes. However, the first act was fleshed out and the second act began development during this time. The second act was performed only during the last three performances. ^[2]After seeing the show at Playwrights, legendary composer Leonard Bernstein wrote to his friend Sondheim, calling the show "brilliant, deeply conceived, canny, magisterial, and by far the most personal statement I've heard from you thus far. Bravo."Brown, Chip. "Sondheim!", ''Smithsonian'', Aug. 2002, 33(5). Following its 25-performance run at Playwrights, the show transferred to the Booth Theatre on Broadway on May 2 1984, but the second act was finished and the show "frozen" only a few days before the opening.
When ''Sunday'' opened on Broadway, it received mixed praise from the critics. The ''New York Times'' theatre critic, Frank Rich, wrote: "I do know... that Mr. Sondheim and Mr. Lapine have created an audacious, haunting and, in its own intensely personal way, touching work. Even when it fails - as it does on occasion - ''Sunday in the Park'' is setting the stage for even more sustained theatrical innovations yet to come."^[3] ''Sunday'' enjoyed a healthy box office, though the show would ultimately lose money; it closed after 604 performances.
It was, however, considered a brilliant artistic achievement for Sondheim and, although ''Sunday'' was nominated for ten Tony Awards, it won only two design awards. The big winner of the night was Jerry Herman's ''La Cage aux Folles'', and in his acceptance speech, Herman announced that the "simple, hummable tune" was still alive on Broadway, a remark some perceived as a swipe at Sondheim's pointillistic score for ''Sunday''. (Herman has since denied that that was his intent.)^[4]
Sondheim tried to incorporate George's concentration in his painting into his score. "Red, red, red, red, red, red-orange, red, red-orange..." etc. Though widely shunned at the Tonys, ''Sunday'' won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Musical, and Sondheim and Lapine were awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, only the sixth time a musical had been so honored.
On May 15, 1994, the original cast of ''Sunday in the Park with George'' returned to Broadway for a tenth anniversary concert.

London productions

"Sunday" received its UK premiere at London's Royal National Theatre on March 15 1990 and ran for 117 performances, with a cast headed by Philip Quast (George), who received the Olivier Award for his performance, and Maria Friedman (Dot/Marie).
In 2005, the musical made its second appearance on the London stage at the Menier Chocolate Factory, where the score was afforded new orchestrations by Jason Carr. This revival, starring Olivier Award-winner Daniel Evans and Anna Jane Casey, and directed by Sam Buntrock, won unanimously glowing reviews. The production transferred to historic Wyndham's Theatre in London's West End in May 2006 and ended its run in September 2006. Jenna Russell replaced the unavailable Casey. At the Olivier Awards, the production won in five of the six categories in which it was nominated - including Outstanding Musical Production, Best Actor and Best Actress - only losing out on the Director trophy. (The show's competition included Wicked, Spamalot, Avenue Q, Evita, Porgy and Bess and The Sound of Music, all of which went away with nothing.)
The London cast, nearly all experienced Sondheim performers, are preserved on a recording by PS Classics. This 2-disc album is the most complete recording of the score, and contains a bonus track: the original, full version of "The One on the Left" (of which only a fraction survives in the final show) performed by Christopher Colley, Sarah French Ellis and Kaisa Hammarlund.

2008 Broadway revival

The 2005/6 West End Menier Chocolate Factory production of ''Sunday in the Park with George'' is scheduled to be presented by the Roundabout Theatre Company at Studio 54 in 2008. This will be a limited engagement, with previews starting January 18 2008 and opening date February 21, 2008. It has been reported^[5] that Daniel Evans and Jenna Russell, who played George and Dot in the 2005-2006 London production, will reprise their roles on Broadway, with Sam Buntrock directing. Daniel Evans and Jenna Russell are appearing with the permission of Actors’ Equity Association.

Synopsis

;Act I
In 1884, a fictional Georges Seurat is painting what is considered by many to be his (Seurat's) masterpiece, "Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte." His longtime mistress and model, Dot, sings of the frustrations of her vocation ("Sunday In The Park With George"). Meanwhile, an Old Lady and her Nurse discuss the changes being made to Paris to make way for the upcoming construction of 'a tower'. In an art gallery, where Seurat's first painting is on display, Jules, another, more successful artist and a friend of George's, and his wife Yvonne discuss the flaws with Georges' 'mechanical' work ("No Life"). Jules and Yvonne depart, taking their coachman Franz with them, interrupting Franz' rendezvous with the Nurse.
In the studio, Dot powders her face as Georges paints the "dots" on his current work, using the same rhythm as Dot powders ("Color And Light"). Georges tells Dot that he can't take her to the Follies as he has to continue work on his painting, his obsession being made even more clear through his cold dismissal. In the park, George sketches a grumpy Boatman. Dot enters on the arm of Louis, a baker. Two chatting shopgirls, both named Celeste, notice Dot with a new man, and comment in "Gossip", joined by the Boatman, and the Old Lady and her Nurse. Georges paints a dog, soon taking the voice of two dogs in thinking what the dogs might enjoy ("The Day Off"), and is joined by others in the park. Jules and Yvonne enter during the song and mock the unconventional nature of George's art, before protesting against the new initiative to have his work included in the next group show. The two Celestes try to attract the attention of a handsome Soldier and his companion; Franz and his wife Frieda argue with Jules and Yvonne's daughter, Louise; Jules returns to further lecture Georges on his shortcomings as an artist. The Boatman returns and laments the condescending attitude of artists. Georges leaves the park just as Dot and Louis enter, as Dot explains about Georges's replacement ("Everybody Loves Louis"). The two Celestes and the Soldier sing a short trio, as the shopgirls fight over the more handsome of the military pair ("The One On The Left"). As the park empties for the evening, Georges returns and tells of missing Dot, and laments that his art has alienated him from those important to him ("Finishing The Hat"). Dot reveals that she is pregnant and tells Georges that she and Louis are getting married and leaving for America with a young couple they have met, "Mr." and "Mrs.". She asks for the painting of her that he once made, but he refuses. Jules and Yvonne come to the studio, and while Yvonne and Dot talk apart about the alienating nature of artists, Jules and Georges discuss Georges's painting in progress, with Jules heatedly telling Georges that his methods are wrong. They leave, and Dot and Georges examine their failed relationship ("We Do Not Belong Together").
In the park, Georges and his mother, the Old Lady, sadly reminisce about the changes that are being made to the park ("Beautiful"). The Celestes and the Soldier argue about their recent falling out with their respective companions, while Jules and Frieda enter to have a clandestine affair in the park. Little Louise informs her mother, Yvonne, of her father's infidelity and a fight breaks out between Jules, Yvonne, Franz, and Frieda. While this conflict is developing, the Celestes and the Soldier are also squabbling noisily, as are the Boatman, Dot, and all the other characters of the park; all except the Old Lady, who tells Georges to remember to connect with his art. Georges begins to control the subjects of his painting, moving them gracefully into their positions for the painting, replacing their disagreements with beautiful harmony ("Sunday"). Georges freezes the scene in its perfect position, in a tableau of the characters which perfectly mimics his painting.
;Act II
In the same tableau the characters complain about the torture of being trapped forever in the painting ("It's Hot Up Here"). The characters each deliver short eulogies about Georges's sudden death at the age of 31. When all the characters of the painting have disappeared, the action fast-forwards one hundred years later, to 1984, where Georges and Dot's great-grandson, also named George and also a struggling artist, is unveiling his latest artistic work at an art museum; a color and light machine called 'Chromolume #7', which is an artistic reflection on the painting from the first act. Helping George through the presentation of the piece are his grandmother (George and Dot's daughter) Marie, his technician Dennis, his composer Naomi Eisen, and the museum director Bob Greenberg. Following the presentation various patrons and curators congratulate George on his work, while George moves seamlessly between them, struggling to keep them all happy with the many different sides of his personality. All the characters join together discussing the troubles of creating modern art ("Putting It Together"). After most of the museum's patrons have vacated, Marie contemplates about the significance of leaving a legacy ("Children And Art"). Weeks later, George has been invited by the French government to do a presentation of the Chromolume on the island where the painting was made, and since Marie has passed away, he has brought the grammar book that Dot learned from, handed down from generation to generation, as something to remember her by. He reads the notes in the back of the book, referring to the earlier George, and thinks about the similarities between himself and his great-grandfather (''Lesson #8''). In a surreal moment, a fantasy Dot appears and discusses 'her' book with George. George and this vision of Dot sing together, as she tells him to stop caring about the criticisms leveled at his Chromolumes and continue working for his own benefit ("Move On"). As George continues to read the words that Seurat used to utter so often while working, more and more characters from the original painting fill the stage, until they join together, demonstrating George's longing for harmony, and the artistic memory of his great-grandfather ("Sunday"). Finally, all the characters leave, as George reads the final words of his counterpart, until he sees that Dot too has disappeared, and he is left with simply a blank canvas, and so many possibilities.

Musical numbers

;Act I ★ Sunday In The Park With George - Dot ★ No Life - Jules, Yvonne ★ Color And Light - Dot, Georges ★ Gossip - Celeste #1, Celeste #2, Boatman, Nurse, Old Lady, Jules, Yvonne ★ The Day Off - Company ★ Everybody Loves Louis - Dot ★ The One On The Left - Soldier, Celeste #1, Celeste #2 ★ Finishing The Hat - Georges ★ We Do Not Belong Together - Dot, Georges ★ Beautiful - Old Lady, Georges ★ Sunday - Company	;Act II ★ It's Hot Up Here - Company ★ Putting It Together - Company ★ Children and Art - Marie ★ Lesson #8 - George ★ Move On - George, Dot ★ Sunday - Company

Characters

;Act I ★ 'Georges', an artist ★ 'Dot', his mistress and model ★ 'Jules', another artist ★ 'Yvonne', his wife ★ an 'Old Lady', George's mother ★ her 'Nurse' ★ 'Celeste #1', a shop girl ★ 'Celeste #2', another shop girl ★ a 'Soldier' ★ a 'Boatman' ★ 'Franz', coachman to Jules and Yvonne ★ 'Frieda', cook for Jules and Yvonne and wife to Franz ★ 'Louise', the little daughter of Jules and Yvonne ★ 'Mr. & Mrs.', an American couple ★ 'Louis', a baker and Dot's husband-to-be	;Act II ★ 'George', an artist ★ 'Marie', his grandmother ★ 'Bob Greenberg', the museum director ★ 'Dennis', a technician ★ 'Naomi Eisen', a composer ★ 'Elaine', George's former wife ★ 'Harriet Pawling', a board member of the museum ★ 'Billy Webster', her friend ★ 'Charles Redmond', a visiting curator from Texas ★ 'Alex', an artist ★ 'Betty', another artist ★ 'Lee Randolph', the museum's publicist ★ 'Blair Daniels', an art critic

Casts

;1984 Broadway production ★ Georges/George - Mandy Patinkin^[6] ★ Dot/Marie - Bernadette Peters^[7] ★ Old Lady/Blair Daniels - Barbara Bryne ★ Nurse/Mrs./Harriet Pawling - Judith Moore ★ Franz/Dennis - Brent Spiner ★ Jules/Bob Greenberg - Charles Kimbrough ★ Yvonne/Naomi Eisen - Dana Ivey ★ Soldier/Alex - Robert Westenberg ★ Boatman/Charles Redmond - William Parry ★ Man Lying on Bank/Louis/Billy Webster - Cris Groenendaal ★ Young Man on Bank/Frieda/Betty - Nancy Opel ★ Celeste #2/Elaine - Mary D'Arcy ★ Louise/A Boy - Danielle Ferland ★ Celeste #1/A Waitress - Melanie Vaughan ★ Man with Bicycle/Museum Assistant - John Jellison ★ Mr./Lee Randolph - Kurt Knudson ★ Woman with Baby Carriage/Photographer - Sue Anne Gershenson ★ Little Girl - Michele Rigan	;2006 London production ★ Georges/George - Daniel Evans ★ Dot / Marie - Jenna Russell (taking over from Anna Jane Casey) ★ Old Lady / Blair Daniels - Gay Soper ★ Nurse / Mrs. / Harriet Pawling - Joanne Redman ★ Jules / Bob Greenberg - Simon Green ★ Yvonne / Naomi Eisen - Liza Sadovy ★ Boatman / Dennis - Alasdair Harvey ★ Soldier / Alex - Christopher Colley ★ Celeste #1 / Elaine - Sarah French Ellis ★ Celeste #2 / Silent Artist - Kaisa Hammarlund ★ Mr. / Charles Redmond - Mark McKerracher ★ Louis / Billy Webster - Ian McLarnon ★ Franz / Lee Randolph - Steven Kynman ★ Frieda / Betty - Anna Lowe ★ Louise - Lauren Calpin / Georgina Hendry / Natalie Paris

Television video

''Sunday in the Park with George'' was taped on October 21-25, 1985 at the Booth Theatre with the original Broadway cast. It was broadcast on American television on February 18, 1986 on Showtime and on June 16, 1986 on Public Television's "American Playhouse". (Bernadette Peters, who was performing in ''Song and Dance'' at the time of the taping, was given time off from that play in order to be able to tape this production. ^[8])

Cast recordings

★ 1984 Original Broadway Cast Recording (RCA)

★ 2006 London Cast Recording (PS Classics, 2 disc set)

Awards and nominations

1985 Pulitzer Prize for Drama

★ Music by Stephen Sondheim; Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim; Book by James Lapine ('WINNER')^[9]

1984 Tony Award nominations

★ Tony Award for Best Musical - Produced by The Shubert Organization (Gerald Schoenfeld: Chairman; Bernard B. Jacobs: President), Emanuel Azenberg

★ Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical - James Lapine

★ Tony Award for Best Original Score - Stephen Sondheim

★ Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical - Mandy Patinkin

★ Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical - Bernadette Peters

★ Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical - Dana Ivey

★ Tony Award for Best Scenic Design - Tony Straiges ('WINNER')

★ Tony Award for Best Costume Design - Patricia Zipprodt, Ann Hould-Ward

★ Tony Award for Best Lighting Design - Richard Nelson ('WINNER')

★ Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical - James Lapine

1984 Drama Desk Award nominations

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical - Produced by The Shubert Organization (Gerald Schoenfeld: Chairman; Bernard B. Jacobs: President), Emanuel Azenberg ('WINNER')

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book - James Lapine ('WINNER')

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical - Mandy Patinkin

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical - Bernadette Peters

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical - Charles Kimbrough

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Musical - James Lapine ('WINNER')

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestration - Michael Starobin ('WINNER')

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics - Stephen Sondheim ('WINNER')

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music - Stephen Sondheim

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design - Patricia Zipprodt, Ann Hould-Ward

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lighting Design - Richard Nelson ('WINNER')

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design - Tony Straiges ('WINNER')

★ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Special Effects - Bran Ferren ('WINNER')

New York Drama Critics' Award

★ Best Musical, Broadway 1983-84 ('WINNER')

2007 Olivier Award nominations

★ Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Musical Production ('WINNER')

★ Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor - Daniel Evans ('WINNER')

★ Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress - Jenna Russell ('WINNER')

★ Laurence Olivier Award for Set Design - Timothy Bird and David Farley ('WINNER')

★ Laurence Olivier Award for Lighting Design - Natasha Chivers and Mike Robertson ('WINNER')

★ Laurence Olivier Award for Best Director - Sam Buntrock

External links

★

★ The Stephen Sondheim Reference Guide page for Sunday in the Park With George

★ TV broadcast info from IMDb

★ Sunday in the Park with George (London Revival)

★ Detailed plot at Musical Theatre International

References

1. Zadan, Craig. ''Sondheim & Co.", 1986, p. 295 ISBN 0-06-015649-X
2. Zadan, Craig. ''Sondheim & Co.", 1986, pp. 303-306, ISBN 0-06-015649-X
3. STAGE: 'SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE' Frank Rich
4. Ask a Star: Jerry Herman, ''Broadway.com'', 2004-12-08.
5. [1]
6. Patinkin was replaced by Robert Westenberg, followed by Harry Groener. Patinkin returned to the show shortly before it closed.
7. Peters was replaced by Betsy Joslyn, followed by Maryann Plunkett.
8. ''New York Times'', October 17, 1985, Section C; Page 25
9. Information from the official Pulitzer website

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