Ariana Grande has officially pulled out of the forthcoming revival of Stephen Sondheim's Sunday in the Park with George, which had been set to open at the Barbican in 2027. The production company confirmed her departure, adding that it had her "complete understanding and support".
A representative for the 33-year-old singer told People: "She looks forward to finishing the tour and ending it on a high note, both healthily and happily, and then taking a much-deserved break from public-facing work and appearances, which has led to endless, ongoing public scrutiny." They added: "This tour has been a beautiful experience for her. She loves her fans and has loved every minute of this tour so much."
Endless public scrutiny
Grande's physical appearance has been a subject of discussion in recent years, and the release of her music video for the song Petal reignited speculation about her health.
The track's lyrics deal with a toxic relationship with fame, as she sings: "It's bye, this time for real; Tired of painting endless pictures of a life that isn't mine." She has previously told The New York Times that fame "has stripped a lot of joy out of this for me".
Fame and personal pain
On the album, she also addresses the expectation that artists must channel their personal suffering into music, describing it as a "f***ed situation". She sings: "Tryna feel something real; To cry again; They say the artist needs tears to write again," before adding: "'Cause all of my favourite stories end in some kind of catastrophe; But I don't need someone to save me 'cause this music and I will never die."
Grande has also been candid about her private life, particularly following her divorce from real estate broker Dalton Gomez after just over two years of marriage and her subsequent relationship with Wicked co-star Ethan Slater. Slater filed for divorce from his wife Lilly Jay shortly after the pair's romance became public.
Split with Ethan Slater
Grande and Slater split earlier this year, with sources reporting in June 2026 that they had ended their relationship several months beforehand in an "amicable" manner and remained "supportive" of one another. In the song petal, she sings: "trying on different boys for size; If this is my curse, I'll let it ride".
Speaking to Apple Music about the song's writing process, Grande explained that she wrote from a place of "unfiltered rage", which was "very experimental and different for me". She said: "I am usually too shy to tap into that. This time, I didn't filter as much as I usually do. I usually do a lot of rewrites and make things a little kinder. This time, I didn't."
