It has been announced that pop star Ariana Grande will no longer take part in Sunday in the Park with George at the Barbican. The announcement came over the weekend after Grande’s team announced that ‘intense public scrutiny’ led the star to take a step back from the public eye.
The highly anticipated revival of Sunday in the Park with George coming to the Barbican in 2027 will see a new lead star step in after Ariana Grande has withdrawn. The film and pop star has announced that following the completion of her tour Eternal Sunshine Tour, she will be stepping back from public facing engagements, including appearing in the musical.
Her star casting would see Grande reunite with her Wicked co-star Jonathan Bailey, in the Sondhiem musical, directed by Marianne Elliot. In a statement posted to the production’s Instagram, producers Empire Street Productions released a statement that read:
‘Following this evening’s announcement from Ariana Grande’s team, Empire Street Productions can confirm that she has decided to step back from Sunday in the Park with George.
We know this cannot have been an easy decision, and she makes it with our complete understanding and support. We wish her nothing but the best.
The production will open at the Barbican in summer 2027 as planned, and casting will be announced in due course.’
The news of her step back comes following the release of Grande’s new album petal and a subsequent music video, which led to an inundation of comments online about her body and her health.
Grande was set to star as Dot opposite Jonathan Bailey’s Georges Seurat in the musical by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine. The show is inspired by Seurat’s painting A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte. The musical follows the artist as he tries to complete the work, and explores his relationship with his lover and muse, Dot.
It was initially thought that tickets for the upcoming production would be released over the summer but it was pushed back to the autumn to accommodate Grande’s tour, which will see her perform at London’s O2 for 10 dates.
More updates on the production and new casting are expected to be announced soon.
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