It’s always fascinating when you get to witness a small local group put on its adaptation of a Broadway staple. Many shows struggle to capture the boundless visions of Broadway greats. Cottage Theatre’s production of Sunday in the Park With George is not one of them.

Sunday in the Park With George follows a heavily fictionalized version of 19th-century painter Georges Seurat, played by Dylan Bunten, as well as his muse Dot, played by Laurel Merz, as Seurat crafts his pointillist magnum opus, “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte.” 

After intermission, time jumps to 1984, where Bunten and Merz play the great-great-grandson of Seurat and the daughter of Dot, respectively.

The clear emotional core of Sunday lies in its lead actors. Bunten is inspired as George, beautifully portraying the artist as simultaneously obsessive in his work while distant to those around him. Bunten delivers lines clearly and authoritatively but also possesses great comedic timing and a beautiful, deep singing voice that was one of the highlights of the musical.

When time skips to 1984, Bunten does an incredible job of realistically portraying a family member from generations down the line. Both men suffer from some of the same neuroses, but they’re fundamentally two different human beings. Bunten understands this dichotomy and is able to embody it with razor-sharp precision.

Opposite Bunten, Laurel Merz is excellent as Dot. Her energy and highly expressive face provide a lightning rod for the other actors to play off. I was highly impressed with her singing, particularly her breath control on the titular opening song.

In the second act, Merz melts into the role of the elderly Marie, nearly unrecognizable from her first role. Her mannerisms, voice and gaze are uncannily realistic to the character’s advanced age.

Backing up the two leads are an essential ensemble that populate every corner of the stage

The multimedia aspect is one of the first act’s strongest attributes. Through the use of screens both in front of and behind the actors, the first act takes on a dreamlike atmosphere that is perfectly encapsulated by the pointillistic visuals that frame and lie behind the characters at all times.

Unfortunately, once we get to 1984, the multimedia aspect suffers. The dreamlike visuals are replaced by unimpressive stock videos of lasers, and the final scenes feature what appears to be a PNG of the River Seine as the backdrop. While I understand the limitations, more inspired imagery choices in the second act could have led to a more immersive experience.

The direction by Jesse Merz is, for the most part, superb. Every inch of the theater’s small space is utilized to maximum capacity, and the way the characters flow satisfyingly among one another before freezing and embodying a classic work of art is magical.

I found nearly every choice in the direction to be well thought out, except for one bizarre moment in the first act that completely took me out of the play.

In said moment, the character Franz reaches out to angrily throttle Louise, the bratty child character, but in this production, this is accomplished by Franz reaching out while five feet away and making a shaking motion while Louise pretends to convulse.

Although the moral intent is understandable, the directing choice to have the actors mime the act while never going anywhere near each other feels awkward and deeply artificial. Audiences aren’t stupid. They know that strangling or shaking a child is wrong, and there are plenty of stage-safe ways this could have been accomplished while retaining some element of physicality.

Finally, Stephen Sondheim’s music, conducted by Christopher Holt, was spot on. It seemed like every line of dialogue was punctuated with a little riff or a few piano keys, all perfectly timed. I was very impressed by how on point each member of the nine-person band was individually, with each getting plenty of work in nearly every scene and none missing a beat.

I highly recommend Cottage Theatre’s production of Sunday in the Park With George. Bunten and Merz’s passion and energy, backed up spectacularly by a solid ensemble, breathe emotion, passion, love and joy into the work. You truly feel the heart in the set design, the passionate line delivery and the intricacy of the direction. What little issues I had with the production pale in comparison to the joy I had while watching.

Sunday in the Park with George plays Cottage Theatre Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays ​at 7:30 pm and Sundays at 2:30 pm through June 21, $32 adult,$20 student, CottageTheatre.org.

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