SONDHEIM ROLE A FIRST FOR ACTOR
BROADWAY VETERAN EXCITED FOR RARELY PERFORMED MUSICAL ‘SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE’
He may be a veteran of five Broadway shows, but Will Blum is still starstruck by Stephen Sondheim. Little wonder that his casting as pointillist artist Georges Seurat in CCAE Theatricals’ production of “Sunday in the Park With George” is “a dream come true.”
“I’m absolutely honored,” said Blum, to be in the production that begins previews tonight at the California Center for the Arts in Escondido. “I think about Steve (the late Sondheim, who wrote the music and lyrics for this Pulitzer-winning musical) and I want to do it correctly.”
“Sunday in the Park With George,” written by Sondheim and James Lapine and inspired by Seurat’s hugely influential 1884 painting “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte,” tells the dual story of the artist and, in Act 2, his greatgrandson. It is also a story of Seurat’s passion, not only for his work but for his mistress and model, Dot.
The musical has only been produced once before in San Diego County, that by the bygone ion theatre company at the San Diego Museum of Art in 2016.
Blum, most recently seen in “Beetlejuice” on Broadway, has been a devotee of “Sunday in the Park With George” since he was a teenager when he rented a VHS tape of the original 1985 production at the Booth Theatre, later broadcast on Showtime. It starred Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters.
“If you’re an artist of any kind, it speaks to you in such a deep way,” said Blum of “Sunday in the Park.” “It’s a spiritual thing almost. It feels divine when it’s done full out and correctly and with an orchestra. Just hearing the song ‘Sunday’ out loud is one of the most beautiful experiences you can have.”
This production marks the first time Blum will perform in a work with Sondheim’s name on it. He’s excited.
“The music is so smart, but it tugs at the heartstrings in a way that’s very different from his other works,” Blum said. “There are certain chords in play, and
every time I tear up because he has this secret peering into the human soul that allows you to access these emotions.
“I’ve never found any other piece that reflects the way my soul sings.”
Blum’s co-star (as Dot) will be Emily Lopez (“Carrie the Musical”). “Even when I saw her before she sang, I thought ‘That’s Dot,’ ” said Blum. “She’s a gifted musician with a unique voice.”
For Blum, playing Seurat in the Escondido production directed by T.J. Lawson is an opportunity to test his dramatic chops after the comic rigors of “Beetlejuice.”
Blum was a swing in the Broadway company of the
comedy horror musical, serving as the understudy to Alex Brightman in the title role and two other characters from April 2019 to April 2022. Before that, he was featured in the Broadway companies of “Torch Song,” “School of Rock,” “Book of Mormon” and “Grease.”
“With ‘Beetlejuice,’ ” he said, “I had to learn how to catch ukuleles and be popped out of a toaster. Being the clown is fun, but it’s rare when people ask the clown to be more than that. This (‘Sunday’) is exactly the story my heart needs to tell and to sing right now.”