!

Sunday in the Park

with George
Inspired by George Seurat's famous painting, this
poetic masterpiece explores the challenges in
understanding life and art.
Show Essentials

PG13

14
RATED

ROLES
+ ENSEMBLE 2
ACTS

Full Synopsis

Act One

George, a brooding artist, enters a framed but

otherwise empty white space. He sits at an easel
with a drawing pad and a box of chalk. As he
addresses the audience, the scene transforms into
a grassy-green expanse of park. The sun rises as
the cut-out form of a couple appears. It is the
island of La Grande Jatte in the middle of the River
Seine, and it is 1884 Paris. Dot, George's mistress
and model, enters in elaborate, bustled dress.
Georges turns her profile towards the audience
and begins to sketch her. She fidgets and
complains about being uncomfortable. She
obviously wants George to pay attention to her, but
he is absorbed only in his painting ("Sunday in the
Park with George"). As George continues to give
Dot orders and treat her like an inanimate object,
other characters appear, including an old lady and
her nurse. George observes and paints the other
characters, trying to get everything just right.
Through snippets of conversation, the audience
learns information that helps to establish time and
place for the painting – for example, the Eiffel
Tower is being constructed in the distance.

Another artist, Jules, and his wife, Yvonne, enter

and view George's composition. They criticize his
vision, displeased with what they see ("No Life").
Jules and Yvonne visit George in the park. They
exchange idle chatter, avoiding real comment on
George's work. They leave, and Dot expresses her
disdain for them. George sends Dot off, pleasing
her by telling her that they will go to the Follies later.
He attempts to draw the old lady's picture, and we
learn that she is his mother, but she does not
appear to recognize him.

George and Dot are in his studio. While Dot is

musing to herself that George paints all night while
she dreams, George works alone on the huge
canvas. As George struggles to get every aspect of
his work just right, Dot dreams of being in the
Follies ("Color and Light"). George takes a moment
away from the painting and tells Dot that he can't
go to the Follies tonight, because he has to work on
the painting. She stalks out.

On another Sunday in the park, George sketches a

boatman with his black dog. Two girls named
Celeste #1 and Celeste #2 are now in the painting.
As George talks with the boatman, Dot passes
through the scene with Louis the Baker. The
women onstage gossip about the fact that Dot has
obviously taken up with another man and remark
on George's recent affair with numerous women
("Gossip"). Jules and Yvonne appear, and Jules
says that there is talk of including George's
paintings in an important group show, but they are
not pleased with this idea. Dot studies her reading
lesson. The Boatman speaks gruffly to Louise,
Jules and Yvonne's little girl. George corrects him.
Enraged, the boatman leaves.

George proceeds to sketch the dog. George speaks

to Dot, who has moved out of his studio. Louis
appears with a treat that he has baked for Dot.
George steps away quickly. Dot and Louis leave.
George sits down and resumes his painting of the
dog; George imagines everyone's thoughts in the
park ("The Day Off"). Jules and George discuss
George's work. Jules tells George to forget
experimentation and to spend his time meeting
prospective buyers, enjoying life instead. The
Boatmen tells George that artists can't really know
the people whom they paint. He accuses George of
painting what is true with one eye and what suits
him with the other. Dot enters and explains that
she has met a good man – Louis. He is not what she
had in mind, but she is choosing him because it
seems as though she cannot have George... and
she needs someone ("Everybody Loves Louis"). Mr.
and Mrs., two American tourists, appear with
pastries. They decide that they will take a baker
home with them. The two girls named Celeste
begin fishing. They soon attract the attention of
two soldiers; one of whom is represented by a
cardboard cutout.

George sits at his easel, painting and reflecting on

Dot's decision to leave him. He thinks about the
fact that while the world experiences life, he sits
and watches, as he tries to capture it in his
paintings. He realizes that he can never completely
give himself over to a relationship without having
his art get in the way ("Finishing the Hat"). Dot
comes to George's studio, pregnant with George's
child. She asks George for the painting that he
made of her powdering herself. She is planning to
marry Louis. Jules and Yvonne arrive. As George
and Jules look at George's work, Yvonne and Dot,
who have always had little use for one another,
converse about their respective situations. George
attempts to excite Jules about his revolutionary
use of color. He has painted in red and blue, yet the
eye perceives violet. Jules accuses him of trying to
be a scientist instead of a painter. Jules says that
he knows George wants to be included in the next
group show. He says, reluctantly, that he will
consider speaking on George's behalf.

Disappointed, Jules has not immediately seen the

merit in his work, George forgets that Dot is waiting
in the next room for him, until she reappears. She
tells him that she and Louis are going to America.
He says that she will not like it there and returns to
his painting. She is outraged at how little he seems
to care; she implores him to ask her to stay, but he
cannot do that ("We Do Not Belong Together").
George goes back to the island one more time and
draws the old lady in the park. She now seems
loving and warm towards him. They share sweet,
but contradictory, memories they each see their
shared past differently. She longs for all of the
things that are disappearing from the landscape of
her life, and he tries to capture the existing world
on his canvas ("Beautiful").

Louis and Dot, who carries her baby, Marie, enter.

Dot brings Marie to George. She again asks for the
painting that he did of her. He says that he has
repainted it with another model. He refuses to look
at his child, saying that Marie now belongs to Louis.
Dot starts to leave, unable to speak. Georges says
that he is sorry, and Dot and Louis exit. George's
mother says that she has worried about him all of
his life. She urges him to connect with people. Jules
and Frieda appear, looking for a spot in the park
where they can share a stolen moment of passion.
The two Celestes and the two soldiers appear and
begin to fight about their coupling. Yvonne finds
Louise, who reports that she discovered her father
and Frieda together. Yvonne accuses Jules of being
unfaithful with Frieda. A fight ensues between
Jules, Yvonne, Franz and Frieda.

Soon, the entire stage is filled with fighting. George

freezes everyone, and the noise ceases. Everyone
begins to take positions around the stage at his
direction. They create the picture that we know as
A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande
Jatte. The company describes the world inside of
the picture ("Sunday"). George rushes about
making small adjustments. On the final chord, the
completed canvas flies in on a painted scrim. The
lights go down slowly as the image of the
characters fades behind the painting, with George
standing in front.

Act Two

We return to the entire company onstage in the

painting, as we left them. They give a tense review
of the miseries that they are each experiencing,
frozen in position on a canvas ("It's Hot up Here").
They leave the stage one by one, exchanging their
reactions to George's sudden death.

The lights change, and we are now in 1984, in the

gallery at the museum where George's painting
now hangs. A contemporary artist, George enters
pushing Marie, his grandmother, in a wheelchair.
Dennis, George's technical assistant, pushes in a
control console. George of 1984 is an inventor-
sculptor. He introduces his post-modern invention,
a large contraption entitled Chromolume #7.
George explains that he has been commissioned
to do this work in commemoration of Georges
Seurat's painting. George and Marie review the
history of Georges Seurat ("Chromolume #7").
Then, Chromolume #7 is activated. Music swells.
Brilliant shafts of light appear. Colors fill the stage,
creating a pointillist effect. The machine begins to
produce images from the painting... when it
suddenly explodes. George apologetically explains
that there is an electrical problem. Marie reveals
that she believes Seurat to be her real father,
though George disputes this idea. She displays the
small red book that Dot used to write in as proof.
The Chromolume sends laser beams bursting
throughout the theatre.

The painting flies in. We are at the museum

reception honoring George. The guests argue
among themselves about the validity of the
Chromolume as art. George networks with the
crowd ("Putting It Together"). He appears to excel
at the part of being an artist that his great-
grandfather did very poorly. As he moves from one
group to another, he replaces himself with a cut-
out likeness.

George's former wife, Elaine, appears at Marie's

side. Marie tells some of the guests that she and
George have planned a trip to France, where he will
do a presentation on La Grande Jatte with the
Chromolume. The art critic, Blair Daniels, begins to
lecture George about his lack of originality and
failure to move beyond the Chromolume concept.
Blair and Marie talk about the Seurat painting. Marie
tells Blair that there are only two things in life that
are worthwhile to leave behind: children and art.
Elaine tells George that she thinks that Marie is
tiring and will take her to the hotel. They embrace
fondly. Marie continues stressing the importance
of family ("Children and Art"). When Marie and
Elaine leave, George urges himself to connect.

George and Dennis are on the Island of La Grande

Jatte. It is now covered with high-rise buildings. A
tree that George originally removed in Act 1 and
then reinserted into his painting is all that remains
of the old landscape. As they discuss the
installation of the Chromolume, Dennis says that
he is quitting his work with George, because he
wants to do something new. George says that he,
too, needs that in his life; he wants to create art
that means something to him. We learn that Marie
has died and that George has brought her red book
with him. Dennis leaves, and George begins to read
the notes in the back of the book. Dot's notes
move him to take stock of his own life ("Lesson
#8"). Dot appears and sees George reading her
book. She speaks to him as if he were the other
George. She thanks him for all that he tried to teach
her and asks him about his work. He tells her that
he has nothing to say in his work, and she tells him
that he has to stop blocking himself ("Move On").
Suddenly, Dot and George are singing together,
completing the love song that they were never able
to finish in Act I.

Dot gives George of 1984 the power of his great-

grandfather to explore his own vision. The old lady
appears and asks George if the island is what he
expected. He replies that the air is rich and full of
light. The old lady leaves, and George begins to
recite his great-grandfather's words about art. The
characters from the original painting stroll in
among the new buildings that represent the
present. They stroll off. Dot leaves as a blank, white
canvas descends. George repeats his
grandfather's sentiment from the beginning of the
show – a blank canvas represents so many
possibilities ("Sunday").
Casting

← Back to Sunday in the Park...

Cast Size: Medium (11 to 20 performers)

Cast Type: Ensemble Cast
Dance Requirements: None

Character Breakdown

A Note on Casting and Cast Size

Sunday in the Park with George offers great

flexibility with its cast size. You may produce the
show with a large chorus to sing in the big group
numbers.

George

In Act 1: George Seurat, a rather cold artist

obsessed with his work at the cost of his personal
life. Constantly troubled and borderline obsessive.
Act 2: Seurat's burnt-out descendant and
inventor-sculpture searching for his purpose. In
the end, he is able to use his connection to the past
to find the meaning in a blank canvas.
Gender: Male
Age: 25 to 40
Vocal range top: Ab4
Vocal range bottom: G#2

Dot/Marie

As Dot, George's headstrong mistress and

occasional model so discontent with their
relationship that she eventually leaves him. As
Marie, George's elderly wheelchair-bound
grandmother who helps him connect to his artistry
through her grammar book notes.
Gender: Female
Age: 20 to 40
Vocal range top: D5
Vocal range bottom: E3

Old Lady

George's mother. A cranky and rather demanding

fixture in the park. She is able to find solace in
nostalgia, and inspires George to find order in his
art. Optional Doubling as BLAIR DANIELS.
Gender: Female
Age: 60 to 80
Vocal range top: Eb5
Vocal range bottom: F#3

Nurse

The Old Lady's attendant. She is calming and

assertive. Optional Doublings include HARRIET
PAWLING and MRS.
Gender: Female
Age: 40 to 60
Vocal range top: F4
Vocal range bottom: G3

Jules

A rival artist. Callous, critical, and ultimately

shallow. He forces Frieda to engage in extramarital
affairs. Optional Doubling as BOB GREENBERG.
Gender: Male
Age: 25 to 45
Vocal range top: F4
Vocal range bottom: G2

Yvonne

Jules' pampered wife. She is as snippy and snooty

as her husband. Optional Doubling as NAOMI
EISEN.
Gender: Female
Age: 25 to 35
Vocal range top: Eb5
Vocal range bottom: E3

Boatman

A surly blue-collared laborer, simple-minded and

slovenly. Optional Doubling as CHARLES
REDMOND.
Gender: Male
Age: 35 to 60
Vocal range top: Eb4
Vocal range bottom: Eb2

Celeste #1

A young shop girl, gossipy and flirtatious. Her

friendship with the other Celeste is strained when
they fight over the Soldier and his companion.
Optional Doubling as A WAITRESS.
Gender: Female
Age: 18 to 30
Vocal range top: G5
Vocal range bottom: B3

Celeste #2

Another young shop girl, gossipy and flirtatious. Her

friendship with the other Celeste is strained when
they fight over the Soldier and his companion.
Optional Doubling as ELAINE.
Gender: Female
Age: 18 to 30
Vocal range top: G5
Vocal range bottom: A3

Louise

Jules and Yvonne's spoiled little girl. She faces

neglect and abuse from her parents, despite being
honest. Optional Doubling as BOY.
Gender: Female
Age: 8 to 12
Vocal range top: Eb5
Vocal range bottom: G3

Franz

Jules's German coachman and Freida's husband.

Disgruntled with his job. Has a bit of a temper and
secretly yearns for the Nurse. Optional Doubling as
DENNIS.
Gender: Male
Age: 30 to 50
Vocal range top: G4
Vocal range bottom: B2

Frieda

Jules and Yvonne's cook and Franz's wife. Caring

and positive as a surrogate nanny to Louise. Forced
by Jules into an affair. Optional Doublings include
BETTY and YOUNG MAN.
Gender: Female
Age: 35 to 55
Vocal range top: F5
Vocal range bottom: G3

Soldier

A French military man, polite and gentlemanly.

Close with his companion, though he yearns for a
separation. Optional Doubling as ALEX.
Gender: Male
Age: 20 to 35
Vocal range top: F4
Vocal range bottom: A2

Louis

A baker who Dot starts seeing to make George

jealous. Kind, friendly, and very popular, but a bit
dull. Optional Doublings include BILLY WEBSTER
and MAN.
Gender: Male
Age: 35 to 55
Vocal range top: A4
Vocal range bottom: B2

Full Song List

SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: SUNDAY IN THE PARK
WITH GEORGE
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: NO LIFE
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: COLOR AND LIGHT
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: GOSSIP
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: THE DAY OFF
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: EVERYBODY LOVES
LOUIS
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: FINISHING THE HAT
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: WE DO NOT BELONG
TOGETHER
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: BEAUTIFUL
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: SUNDAY
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: IT'S HOT UP HERE
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: CHROMOLUME #7
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: PUTTING IT TOGETHER
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: CHILDREN AND ART
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: LESSON #8
SUNDAY IN THE PARK...: MOVE ON

Show History

Inspiration

Sunday in the Park with George, with music and

lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James
Lapine, is inspired by the painting, A Sunday
Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte by
Georges Seurat. The first act concentrates on the
fictionalized life of Seurat during his creation of the
painting, and the second act revolves around
Seurat's great-grandson, also an artist.
Critical Reaction

"In Sunday in the Park with George

George,, ...the
songwriter Stephen Sondheim and the
playwright-director James Lapine demand
that an audience radically change its whole
way of looking at the Broadway musical.
...Mr. Sondheim and Mr. Lapine have
created an audacious, haunting and, in its
own intensely personal way, touching work.
...Stand back and you'll see that this
evening's two theater artists, Mr. Sondheim
and Mr. Lapine, have woven all those
imaginative possibilities into a finished
picture with a startling new glow."
– The New York Times
Tony® Award

1984 - Actor (Musical), Nominee (Mandy Patinkin)

1984 - Best Actor in a Musical, Nominee
(Mandy Patinkin)
1984 - Book Of A Musical, Nominee (James Lapin)
1984 - Best Actress in a Musical, Nominee
(Bernadette Peters)
1984 - Costume Design, Nominee
(Patricia Zipprodt and Ann Hould-Ward)
1984 - Best Featured Actress in a Musical,
Nominee (Dana Ivey)
1984 - Director Of A Musical, Nominee
(James Lapine)
1984 - Best Scenic Design, Winner (Tony Straiges)
1984 - Featured Actress In A Musical, Nominee
(Dana Ivey)
1984 - Best Lighting Design, Winner
(Richard Nelson)
1984 - Lighting Design, Winner (Richard Nelson)
1984 - Best Costume Design, Nominee
(Patricia Zipprodt & Ann Hould-Ward)
1984 - Musical, Nominee
(The Shubert Organization, Emanuel Azenberg
(producers))
1984 - Best Direction Of A Musical, Nominee
(James Lapine)
1984 - Scenic Design, Winner (Tony Straiges)
1984 - Best Musical, Nominee
(Sunday in the Park With George)
1984 - Best Book Of A Musical, Nominee
(James Lapine)
1984 - Actress (Musical), Nominee
(Bernadette Peters)
1984 - Best Original Score, Nominee
(Stephen Sondheim)
1984 - Best Score, Nominee
(Stephen Sondheim (music and lyrics))

Drama Desk Award

1984 - Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical,

Nominee (Charles Kimbrough)
1984 - Outstanding Costume Design, Nominee
(Patricia Zipprodt & Ann Hould-Ward)
1984 - Outstanding Lighting Design, Winner
(Richard Nelson)
1984 - Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical,
Nominee (Charles Kimbrough)
1984 - Outstanding Lyrics, Winner
(Stephen Sondheim)
1984 - Outstanding Lighting Design, Winner
(Richard Nelson)
1984 - Outstanding Music, Nominee
(Stephen Sondheim)
1984 - Outstanding Musical, Winner
(Sunday in the Park With George)
1984 - Outstanding Musical, Winner ()
1984 - Outstanding Lyrics, Winner
(Stephen Sondheim)
1984 - Outstanding Actor in a Musical, Nominee
(Mandy Patinkin)
1984 - Outstanding Orchestration, Winner
(Michael Starobin)
 1984 - Outstanding Music, Nominee
(Stephen Sondheim)
1984 - Outstanding Actress in a Musical, Nominee
(Burnadette Peters)
1984 - Outstanding Set Design, Winner
(Tony Straiges)
1984 - Outstanding Orchestration, Winner
(Michael Starobin)
1984 - Outstanding Book of a Musical, Winner
(James Lapine)
1984 - Outstanding Actor in a Musical, Nominee
(Mandy Patinkin)
1984 - Outstanding Special Effects, Winner
(Bran Ferren)
1984 - Outstanding Set Design, Winner
(Tony Straiges)
1984 - Outstanding Costume Design, Nominee
(Ann Hould-Ward)
1984 - Outstanding Actress in a Musical, Nominee
(Bernadette Peters)
1984 - Outstanding Costume Design, Nominee
(Pat Zipprodt)
1984 - Outstanding Book of a Musical, Winner
(James Lapine)
1984 - Outstanding Director Of A Musical, Winner
(James Lapine)
1984 - Outstanding Director Of A Musical, Winner
(James Lapine)

NY Drama Critics Circle Award

1984 - Best Musical, Winner

(Sunday in the Park with George)

Outer Critics Circle Award

1984 - Best Broadway Musical, Winner

(Sunday in the Park with George)

Pulitzer Prize

1985 - Best New American Drama, Winner

(Stephen Sondheim James Lapine)

Connect

Playbill Vault (Original)

Playbill Vault (10th Anniversary Concert)
Playbill Vault (2008 Revival)
2012 Chicago Shakespeare Theater Production
Billing

Book by James Lapine

Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim

Requirements

You must give the authors/creators billing

credits, as specified in the Production Contract,
in a conspicuous manner on the first page of
credits in all programs and on houseboards,
displays and in all other advertising
announcements of any kind.

Percentages listed indicate required type size in

relation to title size.

"SUNDAY IN THE PARK

WITH GEORGE"
Music and Lyrics by

STEPHEN SONDHEIM
Book by

JAMES LAPINE

Originally Directed on Broadway by James Lapine

Ochestrations by Michael Starobin

Originally Produced on Broadway by

The Shubert Organization and Emanuel Azenberg
By arrangement with Playwrights Horizon, Inc. New
York City
which produced the original production of "Sunday
in The Park With George"
in 1983.

MTI Billing

In accordance with the Performance License, all

advertising materials (posters, programs,
websites, etc.) MUST include the following credit:

Sunday in the Park with George

Is presented through special arrangement with
Music Theatre International (MTI).
All authorized performance materials are also
supplied by MTI.
www.mtishows.com

In addition, all press releases and press

kits MUST indicate the production is
licensed by Music Theatre International.

Video Warning

In accordance with the Performance License, you

MUST include the following warning in all programs
and in a pre-show announcement:

ANY VIDEO AND/OR AUDIO RECORDING OF THIS

PRODUCTION IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.

Included Materials

Quantity
Item
Included

LIBRETTO/VOCAL BOOK 20

PIANO CONDUCTOR'S
2
SCORE

STUDY GUIDE 1

Production Resources

Resource

FULL SCORE ACT 1

FULL SCORE ACT 2

HOW DOES THE SHOW GO ON-10/CS

HOW DOES THE SHOW GO ON?

KEYBOARDTEK

PRODUCTIONPRO-DIGITAL SCRIPT/SCORE

REFERENCE RECORDING

STAGE WRITE APPLICATION

STANDARD ORCHESTRATION

Instrumentation Doubling

BASS ACOUSTIC BASS

CELLO

HARP

HORN

KEYBOARD 1

KEYBOARD 2

CROTALES , DRUM SET ,

FINGER CYMBAL , GLASS
CHIMES , HAMMER PLANK ,
MARACAS , ORCHESTRA
BELLS , POTS , ROTO TOMS ,
SANDPAPER BLOCK , SHIP'S
PERCUSSION
BELL , SMALL WOOD BLOCK ,
SUSPENDED CYMBAL , TAM-
TAM , TAMBOURINE , TEMPLE
BLOCKS , TIMPANI , TRIANGLE ,
VIBRAPHONE , WIND CHIMES ,
WOOD BLOCK

BASS CLARINET , CLARINET ,

REED 1
FLUTE

REED 2 CLARINET , FLUTE , PICCOLO

ALTO SAXOPHONE ,
REED 3 CLARINET , ENGLISH HORN ,
OBOE

VIOLA

VIOLIN

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