The Creighton Fine and Performing Arts Department continued to celebrate its 50th Anniversary with the fall musical “Sunday In The Park With George.” The musical opened on Oct. 30 and continued through Nov. 8. 

The musical featured a cast of 19 students as well as an alumnus. 

Alumnus Dan Tracy graduated from Creighton in 2011 with a BFA in Musical Theatre and plays protagonist George Seurat in the Creighton production. He has also performed in a number of plays and musicals, including the national tour for “American Idiot,” and he will soon be joining the national tour for “The Sound of Music.”

According to director and assistant professor of theater Amy Lane, Tracy reprised a Creighton role in honor of the department’s 50th anniversary.

“I’m nothing if not flattered to be asked back to help celebrate,” Tracy said. “It was quite odd being back in the Lied Center, which used to be a second home to me, and find that I didn’t know a single student there. It’s been five weeks since then, of course, so things have changed and I’ve gotten to know the cast and crew and everyone involved with the show very well.”

Tracy’s vast professional experience has proven to be “very nerve-wracking” for College of Arts and Sciences freshman Samuel McKinney, who was part of the ensemble. 

“I have only done small community plays and high school productions,” McKinney said. “This show is much better than anything I have done in the past.”

Tracy, however, simply sees himself as “just another member of the cast.”

“It’s certainly not my place to advise other actors on how to improve their roles,” Tracy said. “It’s not that I’m not open to discussion, but it’s important to remember that acting is a highly individualized process and an actor must find what works for him or her personally. Once an actor makes a choice about a character, the choice is evaluated by the director to see if it works in the larger context of the show itself. In other words, all actors bring their individual performances to the table and the director sifts through and adjusts them to create a unified show.”

For College of Arts and Sciences sophomore Natalie Hanson, the character development was her biggest challenge. 

“For me, it was particularly challenging trying [to] connect the dots between my character and the others onstage,” Hanson said. “You really have to listen to the words that Sondheim [who wrote the music and lyrics for the musical] gives us and create your own story based on those words. There are so many important characters in this show, which makes it even more difficult to make sure you are giving the audience a good picture of who you are so that they understand the show to its fullest capacity.” 

The first performances marked the end of a long rehearsal schedule that began in September. 

“Our schedule, for the most part, was Sunday through Friday [with] Saturdays off,” College of Arts and Sciences senior Alexia Lorch said. “As we, of course, got closer to the show, [rehearsals] became a more everyday thing.”  

Lorch plays the role of Dot, George Seurat’s lover, in the first act, and the grandmother of George’s descendant, Marie, in the second act. She was hesitant to talk about her roles in fear of “giving too much away.”

As opening weekend approached, Hanson worried about the audience’s reaction.

“[The musical] is unlike any other piece of art that I have been a part of, and [it] is definitely not what a lot of people are expecting,” Hanson said. “At least, that is what I think. It is a heavier piece of work and is so beautiful. That being said, it took me a few times of going through the music to digest the story and the true genius of this musical, and I hope the audience enjoys this aspect of the show.” 

With the shows now behind them, the cast agrees the performances went well. 

“We got so much positive feedback it was overwhelming,” McKinney said.

Lorch reported that audience members went to Facebook after the first few shows to comment on the musical. People were congratulating the cast, claiming their performance was “simply stunning,” and wishing them “an amazing run.” 

“If you enjoy a beautiful story, fantastic music, beautiful artwork, suspense, drama, comedy and romance, come see this show,” McKinney said. “The show is beautiful, and I am so very thankful to have been a part of it.”  

CU alumnus Dan Tracy and College of Arts and Sciences senior Alexia Lorch perform in their roles of George Seurat and his lover Dot, respectively. The musical follows Tracy’s character, a famed painter, as he finds the inspiration for arguably his most famous work, “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte,” in a local park.

Claire Storey / The Creightonian