Jake Comes Back Singing
Monday, December 19, 2016 at 10:21PM by Eric Blume
Playbill recently announced that one of our very favorite Oscar nominees/hunks/great actors, Jake Gyllenhaal, will reprise his four-day stint from October as French painter George Seurat in Steven Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park with George for an official ten-week Broadway run. Previews begin February 11th.
I was able to catch Jake in the initial staged-concert run of the show, and he’s a sight to behold...
Sunday is a fairly divisive entry in the Sondheim canon, with some feeling it’s his most moving and profound (I’m in that camp), and others who find it cold and lacking connective tissue (the two acts take place nearly a hundred years apart). What isn’t in question is the difficulty of the score, which requires Jake to soar at the top of his tenor voice for a majority of the show. It was one thing for Jake to tackle the music from Little Shop of Horrors last summer, but the Sunday score is incomparably more intricate and difficult.
The evening performance I saw, which was the very first, he went up on a few lyrics two or three times, but his performance was sublime. He carries such natural weight and authority, and he plunges deeply into the role. There’s a joy to his signing, and like all smart musical theater performers, he lets the music do the majority of the work for him: at his best, he’s simply carried along on the euphoria of the moment, letting the notes come the acting, and the acting come from the notes. I can only imagine what a few more weeks of rehearsal will bring to his skillful work on this piece, and I can’t imagine him not winning a Tony for this show next June.
Tickets are going fast and are brutally expensive for the run, but if you can talk somebody into treating you for Christmas, you won’t regret it. Gyllenhaal’s co-star, Annaleigh Ashford (Tony nominated for Kinky Boots and a winner for You Can't Take It With You), does similarly beautiful work in the role originated by Bernadette Peters, and Jake’s star performance, both subtle and big, is a genuine wow.
Reader Comments (16)
Sunday in the Park with George is my favourite Sondheim musical. I didn't realize it was perceived as divisive, let alone cold. It always reduces me to tears. Sigh, if only New York would be closer for me. Seeing Jake Gyllenhaal tackle what Mandy Patinkin did originally sure must be a wonderful treat.
I think the only (lyrics and music by) Sondheim shows that aren't "divisive" in some way are A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, A Little Night Music and The Frogs. Vying for Most Divisive: Merrily We Roll Along and Passion.
I want to go to this so badly but $200 a seat. yikes.
My bold prediction for next year's race: Jake Gyllenhaal Best Actor nominee and Miranda Richardson Best Supporting Actress for Stronger.
What I would give to see this, but alas. Australia is so far away.
I LOVE Sunday in the Park with George, Mandy and Bernie are DIVINE.
Can't wait for this revival too. Cast recording pretty soon PLEASE!
I saw SITPWG with Jake and he was spectacular. Just spectacular.
Hearing Jake Gyllenhaal sing would be shall I say...music to my ears. Interestingly, he was originally set to play Cinderella's Prince in Into The Woods but had to drop out because of scheduling conflicts. Would've been interesting.
Can someone please put Jake in a movie musical ....
Looks like there are still some $49 tix if you look upstairs. I saw Ashford onstage a few years back and she was divine... she's perfect for this role.
He was fantastic in the concert staging, which had limited rehearsal time (and he was reliant on using a script, as all the actors were, for some sections). I cannot wait to see what he does with a longer rehearsal period and time to get fully off-book.
His performance of the dog section in "The Day Off"- a supremely weird and tricky part- was the best I've seen.
I hope Phylicia Rashad is able to reprise her role. While I imagine a lot of the top-tier cast will be unable to commit to playing such bit roles, Rashad's part is featured enough to merit a return (it netted Dana Ivey a Tony nod back in the original production).
Maybe Chazelle will write something for him? I could totally see him singing and dancing his way through a black comedy.
Why not a big screen version of this property? It's got cinematic potential.
Jake received a Best Actor nomination from the London Film Critics today for his work in "Nocturnal Animals."
Jake is loved in the UK...he won the BAFTA there for BM/
Charles -- i saw both of Ashford's tony nominated performances and she is just magic. I keep hoping the movies will use her. at least we got Masters of Sex!
Austin - Dana Ivey did not play the same role(s) as Rashad. She played Carmen Cusack's roles.