4 Stars from Time Out. He does spoil the chromolume, so keep that in mind if you''re looking to be surprised.
"You will be suitably swept away by Gyllenhaal’s passionately acted, exquisitely articulated George, the most psychologically cohesive and sympathetic rendition I’ve witnessed live. (Mandy Patinkin on video will always remain the gold standard.) Comical and tender by turns, Ashford provides the flashes of light where Gyllenhaal turns inward to shadow.''
"Under the direction of Sarna Lapine, the staging is more theatrically structured than it was at City Center, with its stools and lecterns. But even as retooled, the show retains the quality of serene simplicity that heightens the poignant beauty of the score. Gyllenhaal returns in the leading role, his acting chops intact, but his voice refreshed and enhanced by what must have been professional coaching."
"The creation of harmony out of disharmony and coherence out of chaos are among the themes of Sunday in the Park With George. However, in fortifying for Broadway what was already a probing interpretation of this complex 1984 musical diptych by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, first seen in a New York City Center concert staging last fall, the production has elevated an affecting work into something quite rare and exquisite.'
"I've seen this double role played by Mandy Patinkin in the original production and by Daniel Evans in the very fine London revival that traveled to Broadway in 2008. But I don't recall ever experiencing the binding unity of creative vigor and purpose with such piercing solitude that Gyllenhaal brings to the two parts. His Georges are single-minded obsessives, consumed by their art to a degree that renders them incapable of lasting human connections. And yet, the yearning for such a connection gnaws away at them throughout."
"Ashford is the funniest Dot in memory, her mischievous humor and openness playing in delicate counterpoint to Gyllenhaal's Seurat, a man entirely shut in on himself and his work."
"Neither Gyllenhaal nor Ashford (nor anyone else involved in the show) will be eligible for Tonys, as the producers have withdrawn the production from consideration because its abbreviated run will limit their chances of recouping (not likely to be a problem, given the accolades). Nevertheless, their names will not soon disappear from the thoughts of Tony voters come spring, for what was clear when the show was presented last October is more so today: This is a spectacular revival and the principals are simply breathtakingly good."
Matthew Murray loves Jake and actually like this revival more than the 2008 production, but has some issues with the set, staging, and some performances.
"A superb revival of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s 1984 masterpiece “Sunday in the Park with George,” starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Annaleigh Ashford, has brought back to life the 113-year-old Hudson Theatre in Times Square."
"Jake Gyllenhaal’s got it, by George! A handsome, nimble singing voice to go with his solid acting chops, that is. It’s all on exhibition in Broadway’s wonderful revival of “Sunday in the Park with George” at the newly renovated Hudson Theatre."
And...Brantley is a major love letter and critics' pick.
"this interpretation comes across with more personal, in-the-moment intimacy than any I’ve seen, including the dazzling Broadway debut of 1984, which starred Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters, directed by James Lapine (Ms. Lapine’s uncle, as it happens)."
"Every once in a rare while, the theater rewards us with a kind of transcendent experience, a feeling that this, surely, will never happen again — at least not remotely in the same way.
My once-in-a-lifetime theory is being crushed — exquisitely, rapturously — right now as Jake Gyllenhaal and Annaleigh Ashford step up alongside Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters in the treasured place where I keep memories of the original “Sunday in the Park With George.” They are that good."
ljay889 said: "4 Stars from Time Out. He does spoil the chromolume, so keep that in mind if you''re looking to be surprised.
"You will be suitably swept away by Gyllenhaal’s passionately acted, exquisitely articulated George, the most psychologically cohesive and sympathetic rendition I’ve witnessed live. (Mandy Patinkin on video will always remain the gold standard.) Comical and tender by turns, Ashford provides the flashes of light where Gyllenhaal turns inward to shadow.''
ljay889 said: "And...Brantley is a major love letter and critics' pick.
"this interpretation comes across with more personal, in-the-moment intimacy than any I’ve seen, including the dazzling Broadway debut of 1984, which starred Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters, directed by James Lapine (Ms. Lapine’s uncle, as it happens)."
WOW. Talk about a rave. Only a little over a week before I get to see this!!
"Oh look at the time, three more intelligent plays just closed and THE ADDAMS FAMILY made another million dollars" -Jackie Hoffman, Broadway.com Audience Awards
I saw the show last week, and the minute I left the theater I was praying for a cast recording. I have never experienced anything like this show and I feel like I have had some sort of awakening after seeing it.
barbraboy19902 said: "Forgive me if this is a dumb question: but, what is a chromelume?"
It's a work of art that George unveils in the second act of the show. The name is a combination of word roots that mean "color" and "light" (in Greek and Latin respectively), which Georges sang about in the first act. It's a laser light show of some sort, apparently very cool in this production.
barbraboy19902 said: "Forgive me if this is a dumb question: but, what is a chromelume?"
In the second act, the "second" George is an artist who creates a lighting installation called "Chromolume #7". The earlier posts are referring to the technology used to realize the character's artwork on the stage.
==> this board is a nest of vipers <==
"Michael Riedel...The Perez Hilton of the New York Theatre scene" - Craig Hepworth, What's On Stage