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The joys and emotional costs of a life dedicated to art are at the center of Stephen Sondheim’s Pulitzer Prize-winning musical “Sunday in the Park with George.”
The 1983 show was a natural choice for Greenville Theatre as it continues to celebrate its centennial season, said Max Quinlan, producing artistic director of the theater.
“It’s a musical that examines what it’s like to be an artist and how much one has to sacrifice to devote their lives to art,” Quinlan said. “That’s what we’ve been doing at Greenville Theatre for 100 years — creating art.”
Greenville Theatre is offering six performances of the show over one weekend, Jan. 22-25, as a part of its Off Broadway Series.
Uniquely, the production features an 18-piece orchestra, positioned onstage behind the action. Chase McAbee conducts.
The show explores the creation of French artist Georges Seurat’s painting “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte — 1884.”
The first act depicts George’s artistic struggles and his relationship with his lover, Dot, while the second act jumps forward a century to his great-grandson, a modern artist grappling with the legacy of art and connection.
It’s a complex work about art, love, and the struggle to create something meaningful and enduring.
George’s obsessive devotion to his art is admirable, although the story questions whether George neglects “the most important moments and important people his life as he tries to create something that has never been done before,” Quinlan said.
‘Give us more to see’
The real-life Seurat developed the style known as pointillism. It’s a highly systematic technique based on the idea that closely positioned points of pure color mix together in the viewer’s eye to create images most clearly viewed from several feet away.
“La Grande Jatte,” Seurat’s largest and best-known painting, depicts people from different social classes strolling and relaxing in a park just west of Paris on the island of La Grande Jatte in the Seine River.
Seurat died at age 31, having sold only a few paintings to friends. His works are now worth millions of dollars.
Greenville Theatre’s 16-member cast features Andrew Anderson and Jamie Ann Walters, two stars of the theater’s “Shrek,” in the challenging roles of George and Dot.
“Sunday in the Park with George” is one of only 10 musicals to have won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in the 100-year history of the award.
The show affirms the importance of art during tumultuous times, Quinlan said.
“Right now, art really matters, giving people that escape and that burst of joy and excitement,” Quinlan said. “It’s really a necessity these days.”
For Quinlan, a favorite Sondheim lyric comes from the show’s song “Move On.” It expresses the aim of the creative artist to discover fresh perspectives:
“Anything you do/ Let it come from you / Then it will be new/ Give us more to see.”
Want to Go?
What: “Sunday in the Park With George,” by Stephen Sondheim
When: Jan. 22-25
Where: Greenville Theatre, 444 College St.
Tickets: $50
Info: 864-233-6238 or greenvilletheatre.org
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