I love Sunday in the Park With George. A lot. More than someone probably should.
Fine. I admit that.
That being said, this new production (http://sundayintheparkonbroadway.com/) drives me absolutely insane. Not because it’s outright terrible - because it’s not. Empirically, it’s probably a really good production. My issues with the current revival of Sunday in the Park With George stem from the fact that there are some huge mistakes being made on that stage every night that are part of the production (it was transferred directly from the West End, so it pretty much arrived in the same form it was going to open) that could have easily been fixed… and just weren’t. So instead of a breathtaking production of the first Broadway revival of one of Sondheim’s master works - not to mention one of my favorite musicals - we get this wildly imperfect, extremely frustrating fabrication eight times a week.
To kick things off, I think Jenna Russell should be shot for not giving Dot her all every night, when a million other actresses would kill to play that part; I think Caroline Humphris should be subjected to cruel and unusual punishment for her absolutely horrific musical direction; Chris Gatelli should be drawn and quartered for his terrible (complete lack of?) musical staging. But this blog will be dedicated to my biggest problem with said production: one Mr. Sam Buntrock (director). Child prodigy. And by “child,” I mean “completely misguided.” And by “prodigy,” I mean “idiot.”
Many people say that Sunday in the Park With George, “like Into the Woods,” they always say, could stand just fine without the second act. While I agree this might be true for Into the Woods, this can’t be true for Sunday in the Park With George.
At the end of the first act of Into the Woods, for all intents and purposes, all loose ends are tied up. The good people got what they wanted, and the bad people got what they deserved. It’s not until the beginning of Act Two that we see everything “ever after” didn’t wrap up quite so “happily.”
Now before you read any further, prepare yourselves, I feel a rant coming on… don’t say I didn’t warn you.
In Sunday in the Park With George, however, there is - or at least should be, PAY ATTENTION SAM - one big loose end that remains untied until the end of the show. That loose end is George’s relationship with Dot.
At the end of Act One, Dot tries one last time to make it work with George. When she realizes “[They] Do Not Belong Together” she leaves. Very upset with George and with herself for thinking he could ever love her. Dot hates George. That’s why she leaves. Of course, this all ends up being beautifully resolved in “Move On” when George’s grandson finally makes a connection with his great-grandmother (Dot, no less) and everyone works out their issues (and I sob silently in my seat).
The point is Dot leaves hating George. My favorite moment in the Great Performances DVD of Sunday in the Park With George is during the Act One finale “Sunday.” Mandy Patinkin goes to hand Bernadette Peters the leash that he just clipped to the monkey in the painting, and she gives him this AMAZING look. Without saying anything, she expresses to him and to us exactly how she feels about him and their relationship. And, guess what… she hates him. A lot. And she still doesn’t understand how he can let her go. Then, she looks away and is concentrating, like a good model should.
The point, again, is that (say it with me) Dot. Hates. George!
Anyway, in this production, that moment is gone. Daniel Evans goes to hand Jenna Russell the imaginary leash and… they share a beautiful moment. Oh yeah. It’s not just that the moment is gone… there’s still a moment. And it’s beautiful. You can hear the freaking love theme from Titanic if you listen closely. Jenna looks at him longingly and lovingly and smiles at him as she extends an arm out toward him, lingering on his touch.
Follow me…. here. If Dot really loved George as much as Jenna Russell’s Dot clearly loves Daniel Evans’ George…. WHY WOULD SHE LEAVE? Why wouldn’t she run back to him one last time and give it yet another go???
IT DOESN’T MAKE ANY SENSE. And it drives me insane.
I warned you, didn’t I? Don’t worry, I’m not done yet…
Because without that imperfect ending to their relationship (remember, that’s the last time Dot sees George… because she runs off to America to move on and then GEORGE DIES. It’s not a happy ending until Act Two.) However, in this production… we get a happy ending. And if all our loose ends are tied up, WHY IS THERE A SECOND ACT??? Why would Dot need to come back? If she already knows George loves her, if everything is resolved for her, WHY DOES SHE NEED TO COME BACK??? In “Move On” Dot isn’t just there for George, she’s there for herself, too. So don’t give me that bullshit that she just wanted to help George. She does a lot of explaining in that song about why she left for someone who purportedly doesn’t feel guilty.
In short, Sam Buntrock is an idiot and deserves some cruel and unusual punishment. Pronto. This is the first Broadway revival of one of Sondheim’s beloved work… not some community theater production at the White Plains Performing Arts Center. Maybe let’s not make huge, fundamental errors, Sam, shall we?
This is why I need to be in charge of everything. Obviously I’m the only one who can be trusted with such things.
