Sunday in the Park With George
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Cititour.com Review
"Putting it together. Bit by bit." That well-known Sonheim lyric must have captured the imagination of English director Sam Buntrock. His Olivier-award-winning production of Sunday in the Park With George, Sondheim's paean to artists and sacrifice, has arrived on Broadway with technology and animation re-creating "bit by bit" Seurat's glorious work. The animation takes center stage at this revival. The painting in question, "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte," which the character of George creates "bit by bit" emerges not only as the sweeping backdrop for Sondheim's lush score but becomes a three-dimensional character in a two-dimensional world. With the use of projections and multiple screens (albeit often small ones, as in the case of the charcoal sketch of a dog), the production virtually animates the creation of the painting a la Disney’s Fantasia.
That's not to say that the emotional depth of James Lapine's book is given short shrift. On the contrary, the show allows the struggle between artists and loved ones to come to life not only through those characters looking at the painting, but those that exist only within the canvas itself. Daniel Evans plays George with subtle insecurities. (A memorable and manic Mandy Patinkin originally played the part.) He also plays the 19th-century painter's great-grandson, and does so with aplomb. Jenna Russell, as both George's lover in Act I and, in the second act, his daughter as an octogenarian, is a stunner. Michael Cumptsy and Jessica Molaskey as a fellow artist and his wife are finely etched.
At the end of an evening spent with George and his painting (the real one is on view at the Art Institute of Chicago) one wonders if all the bells and whistles applied to this British import are really necessary. Do we really need to see animation when innovative stagecraft would also reach a desired effect? It seems as if the production hinges on the magical appearance of the charcoal sketched figures and the painting coming to fruition. Indeed, the concept of technology examined in Act II as art fits Buntrock's concept like a glove. However, the meticulous details of Lapine's book, with its themes of "connection" and the performances of Sondheim's majestic score, provide the true depth of emotion here. It's overwhelming when you hear those strains of "Sunday…" and at the finale it seems that "balance, light and harmony" are alive and well and living within Sunday in the Park with George.
By Lesley Alexander
Visit the Site
http://sundayintheparkonbroadway.com
Cast
Daniel Evans, Jenna Russell, Michael Cumpsty, Alexander Gemignani, Jessica Molaskey, Mary Beth Peil
Open/Close Dates
Opening 1/25/2008
Closing 6/29/2008
Box Office
212-719-1300
Theatre Info
Studio 54
254 West 54th Street
New York, NY 10019
Map
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