Wicked fans should be excited to learn that Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey are reuniting for another musical collaboration. The pop star and Bridgerton actor found a new kind of fame in the last few years, leading the two-part cinematic adaptation of the beloved Broadway musical Wicked alongside Oscar nominee and Tony winner Cynthia Erivo.
Erivo and Grande are the co-protagonists of Wicked, portraying Elphaba/The Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good, respectively, while Bailey plays Fiyero, a prince who ends up in a love triangle with the two witches. After getting to show off their musical chops on such a massive stage, Grande and Bailey are working on another award-winning musical.
Per Deadline, Grande and Bailey “are in early planning stages to reunite” for a revival of the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Sunday in the Park With George. The show’s music and lyrics were written by Stephen Sondheim, and the book by James Lapine. The revival would tentatively open at London’s Barbican Theatre in 2027, directed by multi-Tony and Laurence Olivier winner Marianne Elliott.
Originally premiering on Broadway in 1984, Sunday in the Park with George is inspired by Georges Seurat’s painting A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, following a fictionalized version of the artist as he creates his masterpiece, with characters who are the people in the painting. The story also concerns George’s great-grandson (also George), another tortured artist.
Bailey and Grande presumably would be the two leads, George and his lover Dot, who were originally played by Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters, respectively, on Broadway. Deadline‘s Baz Bamigboye reports that “all involved are understood to be ‘cautiously optimistic’ that the show will go on with Grande and Bailey,” who “excelled in the parts […] at early read-throughs.“
Bailey is also reuniting with Elliot, as she directed the 2018 gender-swapped production of the musical Companyfor which Bailey won an Olivier Award. Bailey has been performing in musicals and plays on stage since childhood, long before becoming known for on-screen roles including Bridgerton, Fellow Travelers, and Jurassic World Rebirth.
Grande started her career on the stage, starring in the Broadway show 13 when she was a teenager, before landing her iconic role of Cat Valentine in Nickelodeon’s Victorious, reprising it for the spinoff Sam & Cat. From there, Grande went on to pursue a music career while taking on some small comedic roles and regularly appearing on Saturday Night Live.
But Grande really made her mark as a serious actor with her Oscar-nominated turn in Wicked. With multiple collaborators reuniting for such an acclaimed show, Sunday in the Park With George will attract a lot of attention when it opens, and the talent of Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, and Marianne Elliott makes it extremely promising as a work of art.
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- Birthdate
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June 26, 1993
- Birthplace
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Boca Raton, Florida, USA
- Height
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5 feet 0 inches
- Notable Projects
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Don’t Look Up
- Professions
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Singer, Actress
Discover the latest news and filmography for Ariana Grande, known for Victorious and Sam & Cat.
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- Birthdate
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April 25, 1988
- Birthplace
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Wallingford, Oxfordshire, England, UK
- Notable Projects
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Bridgerton, Crashing, Fellow Travelers
