Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey’s ‘Sunday in the Park With George’ Collapses as 2027 Revival Is Cancelled

One of London theater’s most anticipated celebrity reunions is officially off the calendar.

The planned 2027 revival of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Sunday in the Park With George will no longer go ahead at London’s Barbican after the departures of its two marquee stars, Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey.

Empire Street Productions confirmed that the 2027 staging “will no longer proceed as scheduled.” But the announcement came with an important caveat: the company will retain the production rights “with a view to presenting the production in 2028.”

So this is goodbye to the 2027 version.

It may not be goodbye to Sunday in the Park With George.

Ariana Grande’s Exit Started the Unraveling

The production had generated enormous attention because it would have reunited Grande and Bailey after their work together as Glinda and Fiyero in the Wicked films.

Grande was set to take on the dual roles of Dot and Marie, while Bailey was scheduled to play George in the revival, directed by acclaimed theater director Marianne Elliott.

Then the plan began to unravel.

Grande withdrew after announcing that she intended to step back from public-facing work following the completion of her touring commitments.

At first, producers insisted the musical would continue.

Grande would be replaced, and casting discussions began for a new Dot.

That confidence did not last.

Jonathan Bailey Followed Ariana Grande Out

Bailey announced his own departure in September.

In his statement, he described Grande as one of his “dearest friends” and said his support for her was “unwavering.”

He also called Sunday in the Park With George a passion project but explained that, after consideration, he had decided to step back as well.

Even after losing both original leads, Empire Street Productions initially maintained that the revival remained alive and that discussions about replacements were underway.

That made the cancellation a significant reversal.

Instead of simply replacing Grande and Bailey, the company abandoned the entire planned 2027 Barbican run.

Losing Both ‘Wicked’ Stars Changed the Production Completely

It is difficult to separate the enormous anticipation surrounding the revival from its casting.

Grande and Bailey were not merely two actors attached to an existing West End production.

Their reunion was the event.

Both emerged from the hugely successful Wicked films with heightened profiles, and the possibility of seeing them together on a London stage in one of Sondheim’s most admired works immediately created the kind of attention musical revivals rarely receive before tickets even go on sale.

Replacing one star would have substantially changed that equation.

Replacing both would effectively mean marketing an entirely different production.

‘Sunday in the Park With George’ Is One of Sondheim’s Most Celebrated Works

The musical itself comes with considerable history.

Inspired by Georges Seurat’s painting “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte,” Sunday in the Park With George explores an artist’s obsession with his work and the personal relationships that can be sacrificed in the process.

The original Broadway production opened in 1984 with Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters and went on to win the 1985 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

Its songs include “Finishing the Hat,” “Move On” and the title number, and its meditation on creativity, artistic obsession and legacy has made it one of Sondheim’s most enduring works.

Could the Musical Return in 2028?

For now, Empire Street Productions is stopping short of guaranteeing a 2028 production.

Its wording matters.

The company says it is retaining the rights “with a view to presenting the production in 2028,” with more information promised later.

That leaves virtually everything else unanswered.

Would Marianne Elliott still direct?

Would producers start casting from scratch?

Could either Grande or Bailey return after their respective breaks?

Or would a 2028 production bear little resemblance to the star-driven revival originally announced?

None of that has been confirmed.

What is certain is that the version audiences expected to see at the Barbican is gone.

Ariana Grande left.

Jonathan Bailey followed.

Producers tried to keep going.

And eventually, Sunday in the Park With George lost both of its stars — and its place on the 2027 calendar.

The hat, as Sondheim fans might put it, will have to wait a little longer to be finished.