Celebrating 40 years since its Broadway production and 140 years since the work of art that inspired it, Sondheim’s modern masterpiece, SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE, is revived at Art Factory in a breathtaking new production. The elaborate Pulitzer Prize-winning musical follows post-Impressionist painter, Georges Seurat, and his muse, Dot, on a series of Sunday afternoons in the park on the island of La Grande Jatte in Paris. The artist sketches the park’s visitors while creating their backstories in his head. Obsessed with capturing light and how it bends to create color, he dives deep into his work, nearly ignoring the real world around him, but unknowingly inventing Pointillism. The second act zooms forward a century, where George, a modern artist, is presenting his newest work at the Art Institute of Chicago during a celebration of his alleged great-grandfather’s painting, A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte.
Scored with genius intricacy by the late Stephen Sondheim, the musical looks deeply into the artist’s plight and the struggle between creation and connection. James Lapine (Into the Woods, Falsettos) connects Sondheim’s epic songs with a complex book, creating unforgettable characters. SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE is a sheer marvel of musical theatre.
Art Factory’s new production stars Colton Berry as Georges/George and Victoria Ritchie as Dot/Marie. The entirely Houston-local cast of immense talent includes Jared Dees (Jules/Bob), Alana Scott (Yvonne/Naomi), Caryn Fulda (Old Woman/Blair), Luke Yerpestock (Boatman/Charles), Luke Hamilton (Franz/Dennis), Sarah Beth Sims (Frieda/Betty), Elizabeth Chrisman Shurtz (Celeste 1/Elaine), Pari Zangara (Celeste 2/Waitress), Robby Black (Soldier 1/Photographer), Laura Newman (Mrs./Harriet), Matthew Shurtz (Mr./Lee), Lamonte Brooks (Louis/Alex), Kariyana Chanté (Nurse), Juliette Newman (Louise), and Ryan Perez (Soldier 2/Billy). Beckie Cohen, Emily Dees, Allison Giles, Carrigan Moon, Avi Palmer, Abbi Rodrigue, and Athena Try make up the Ensemble. SUNDAY is directed by Founding Executive Director Luke Hamilton, with Music Direction by Elizabeth Chrisman Shurtz, Stage Management by Ashley Frye, and Production Design by Founding Artistic Director Colton Berry. Jane Volke and Christine Mompoint serve as production assistants.
SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE runs July 5 through 21, with Friday and Saturday performances at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday performances at 5:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at www.ArtFactoryHouston.com/tickets , or at the door. Art Factory is located just north of downtown at The Docks, 1125 Providence Street. Free onsite parking is available.