Bernadette Peters (born February 28, 1948) is an American Tony Award and Go… Read Full Bio ↴Bernadette Peters (born February 28, 1948) is an American Tony Award and Golden Globe Award-winning actress and singer. Beginning as a child actress, Peters has established herself as an important stage actress, particularly in musical theatre, as well as a recording star, and an actress in films and television. Peters first reached Broadway in the 1960s. In the 1970s, she took roles in film and television, but in the 1980s returned to theatre, where she has been, for over two decades, one of the most critically acclaimed Broadway stars. Peters also continues to act in films and on television, where she has been nominated for Emmy Awards for three of her appearances.

Peters is particularly noted for her starring roles in the musicals Song and Dance (Tony Award, Best Actress in Musical) , Annie Get Your Gun (Tony Award, Best Actress in Musical), Sunday in the Park with George, and Into the Woods, becoming closely associated with the composers Stephen Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber, and in films including The Jerk and Pennies from Heaven, both opposite Steve Martin.

Peters has received many honorary awards over the years, including a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (April 1987); the Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year (1987); the Sarah Siddons Award for outstanding performance in a Chicago theatrical production (1994); the American Theatre Hall of Fame at the Gershwin Theatre in New York City (1996), becoming the youngest person so honored (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Christopher Rawson, January 25, 1996, p. C1); an Honorary Doctorate from Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York (May 19, 2002) [10]; and the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame (June 28, 2002).

Tell Me on a Sunday
Bernadette Peters Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Emma
Don't write a letter when you want to leave
Don't call me at three a.am. from a friend's apartment
I'd like to choose how I hear the news
Take me to a park that's covered with trees
Tell me on a Sunday please

Let me down easy, no big song and dance

No long faces, no long looks, no deep conversation
I know the way we should spend the day
Take me to a zoo that's got chimpanzees
Tell me on a Sunday please

Don't want to know who's to blame
It won't help knowing
Don't want to fight day and night
Bad enough you're going
Don't leave in silence with no words at all
Don't get drunk and slam the door
That's no way to end this
I know how I want you to say goodbye
Find a circus ring with a flying trapeze
Tell me on a Sunday please

I don't want to fight day and night
Bad enough you're going
Don't leave in silence with no words at all
Don't get drunk and slam the door
That's no way to end this
I know how I want you to say goodbye

Don't run off in the pouring rain
Don't call me as they call your plane
Take that hurt out of all the pain

Take me to a park that's covered with trees
Tell me on a Sunday please

Overall Meaning

In Bernadette Peters's song Tell Me On a Sunday, Emma (the singer) is pleading with her lover not to leave her in a harsh way. She doesn't want to receive a letter or a phone call in the middle of the night from a friend's apartment telling her that her partner is leaving her. Emma wants her partner to take her to a park that's covered with trees and break the news to her on a Sunday. She wants to be let down easily, with no big song and dance or deep conversation.

Emma is aware that her partner is leaving her, but she wants to spend the day together and enjoy each other's company. Throughout the song, Emma gives explicit instructions on how she wants her partner to leave her. She doesn't want to know who's to blame, nor does she want to fight day and night. Emma doesn't want her partner to leave in silence with no words at all. Instead, she wants them to find a circus ring with a flying trapeze which symbolizes freedom, adventure, and excitement.

The song tells a story of a woman who knows that a breakup is inevitable, but she wants it to be done with grace and kindness. Emma wants to share happy memories with her partner instead of being filled with regret and hurt. The song's lyrics show how important it is to be considerate of someone's feelings even during a breakup.

Line by Line Meaning

Don't write a letter when you want to leave
I don't want a letter as a goodbye. It is better to talk in person.

Don't call me at three a.am. from a friend's apartment
Don't call me in the middle of the night from a place where you shouldn't be. We should have a proper conversation.

I'd like to choose how I hear the news
Please tell me in a way that is considerate and thoughtful. I need to prepare myself emotionally.

Take me to a park that's covered with trees Tell me on a Sunday please
Let's go to a peaceful place where we can talk about what's happening. Sunday would be a good day for this.

Let me down easy, no big song and dance No long faces, no long looks, no deep conversation
Please don't make this any harder than it has to be. Let's keep it simple and straightforward.

I know the way we should spend the day Take me to a zoo that's got chimpanzees Tell me on a Sunday please
Let's spend the day together doing something fun. Going to the zoo would be a good distraction. Please tell me on a Sunday.

Don't want to know who's to blame It won't help knowing
I don't need to know whose fault it is. It won't change the situation.

Don't want to fight day and night Bad enough you're going
I don't want to argue about it. It's already hard enough that you're leaving.

Don't leave in silence with no words at all Don't get drunk and slam the door That's no way to end this
Please don't disappear without saying anything. Don't make a dramatic exit while drunk. It's not the right way to go.

I know how I want you to say goodbye Find a circus ring with a flying trapeze Tell me on a Sunday please
Please make it memorable but not too dramatic. Find something unique like a circus performance. Let's make it on a Sunday.

Don't run off in the pouring rain Don't call me as they call your plane Take that hurt out of all the pain Take me to a park that's covered with trees Tell me on a Sunday please
Don't sneak away without saying goodbye. Don't call me at the last minute when you're boarding your flight. Help me cope with this by telling me in a gentle way. Let's go to a park on a Sunday and talk about it.

Contributed by Ethan J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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