Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey are set to share the West End stage once more, this time in Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Sunday in the Park with George.
At a Glance
- Grande, 32, and Bailey, 37, will star as Dot and George in the 2027 Barbican Theatre revival
- The casting reunites the Wicked costars after they played Glinda and Fiyero
- Summer 2027 target date follows months of social-media speculation
- Why it matters: Marks Grande’s first London stage appearance and her first live theater role since 2008
Rumors ignited in December when Deadline reported that producers were in early development on a summer 2027 run at the Barbican. On January 14, the duo ended the guessing game with a joint Instagram post shot inside The Art Institute of Chicago. Seated in front of Georges Seurat’s pointillist masterpiece A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, they captioned the image: “All it has to be is good,” quoting Sondheim’s signature song “Finishing the Hat.”
The Musical
Sunday in the Park with George follows painter Georges Seurat as he obsessively crafts the canvas that would become his legacy. Act I chronicles the artist’s emotional isolation from his lover and muse, Dot. Act II leaps forward a century, exploring how art outlives its creator. The 1984 Broadway original starred Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters; London first saw the work in 1990 with Philip Quast and Maria Friedman at the National Theatre. A 2008 Broadway revival featured Daniel Evans and Jenna Russell, while Jake Gyllenhaal and Annaleigh Ashford led a 2017 New York staging that was scheduled to transfer to the West End in 2020 before COVID-19 halted production.
Creative Team
Although no official press release has been issued, sources tell News Of Losangeles that Marianne Elliott-the Tony and Olivier Award winner behind the gender-swapped Company revival-is expected to direct. Elliott previously guided Bailey to an Olivier for his rapid-fire rendition of “Getting Married Today” in that same Sondheim reimagining.
Stage Credentials
Bailey’s theater résumé began at age 8 as Gavroche in Les Misérables. Subsequent London credits include Cock, Richard II, and The Last Five Years. Grande made her Broadway debut at 15 in the 2008 musical 13, then pivoted to television with Victorious and Sam & Cat before becoming a global pop act. Sunday in the Park with George will mark her first return to live theater in 17 years and her debut on a West End stage.
Screen to Stage
The pair cemented their friendship while filming Wicked, where Bailey played Fiyero opposite Grande’s Glinda. They previously told News Of Losangeles that shared “theater kid” roots fueled their bond. “We were both very theater children in the room,” Grande said. “I mean incessant,” Bailey added.
Next Moves
Before stepping into Dot’s shoes, Grande will embark on her 2026 Eternal Sunshine Tour, telling Good Hang with Amy Poehler that the concerts “might not happen again for a long, long, long, long time.” Bailey, currently seen in Wicked: For Good, continues to balance stage and screen projects.
Key Takeaways
- The summer 2027 production is poised to be one of London’s hottest tickets
- Grande’s casting signals a high-profile return to her musical-theater origins
- Bailey reteams with Elliott after their Olivier-winning Company collaboration
- No official opening date or further casting has been announced
Sources told News Of Losangeles that an official announcement with full casting and on-sale dates is expected later this year.
