Sweeney Todd (musical)

From Freepedia

Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Hugh Wheeler.

The musical is based on the 19th century legend of Sweeney Todd, and specifically upon the 1973 play by Christopher Bond.

Contents

Plot

Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.

It tells the story of Benjamin Barker, a London barber who in the story's past was sent as a prisoner to Australia by the unscrupulous Judge Turpin, who desired and subsequently raped Barker's wife. Years later, Barker returns to London calling himself Sweeney Todd and craving revenge against the Judge. He moves into a flat above a pie shop in Fleet Street run by his former neighbor Mrs. Lovett, who becomes his partner in crime. After being foiled in his attempt to kill the Judge, he goes mad and begins cutting throats indiscriminately; their bodies are then ground up to make the meat pies sold by Mrs. Lovett. Though Todd initially thinks he can have both his revenge and personal happiness with Mrs. Lovett, he is still deeply scarred by the loss of his wife and daughter, an emotional trauma exacerbated by the shocking revelation of his wife's true fate.

In the end, Sweeney Todd has become so completely consumed by revenge that he is, in turn, destroyed by it. The show ends, to say the least, in a bloodbath. Every major character is either dead or mentally scarred by the experience. Unfortunately for Sondheim, this ending, with no redemption and no "happy clappy" end number, led to the show not being a huge success with the audiences during its early years. Many consider it now to be have been too much ahead of its time back in 1979; a decade later, audiences would be more receptive of other musicals with tragic endings, like Miss Saigon.

Performance History

The original production opened on Broadway at the Uris Theatre on March 1, 1979 and starred Angela Lansbury and Len Cariou. It won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award and the Tony Award for Best Musical of 1979. It also starred Victor Garber as Anthony Hope, Sarah Rice as Johanna and Ken Jennings as Tobias Ragg. The original Broadway production played 557 performances. A DVD of the original tour company is now available - although the lead Len Cariou had by then been replaced by George Hearn, Angela Lansbury continued to give a memorable turn as Mrs. Lovett. A Broadway revival appeared in 1989.

Early in the 2000s, this Sweeney Todd gained acceptance in opera companies throughout the United States and the United Kingdom. Bryn Terfel, the popular Welsh bass-baritone performed the title role at Lyric Opera of Chicago in 2002. It was performed at the Royal Opera House in London during the 2003-2004 season.

There will be performances at the Komische Oper in Berlin during the 2004-2005 season, in the German language, directed by Christopher Bond, the playwright whose version led to Sondheim's.

The second revival has been previewing since October 3 and is currently set to open on November 3. The production will star Tony Award winners Michael Cerveris and Patti LuPone.

On October 13, movie studio RJ Blindside announced it was looking to adapt the musical for the big screen.

2005 Revival Info

Unlike the original broadway staging of Sweeney Todd, this version of Sweeney is smaller with a 10 person cast; moreover, instead of a full orchestra, each member of the actor also plays at least one instrument.

Cast List:


Music

Sondheim's score to Sweeney is one of his most complex to date. He relies heavily on counterpoint and rich, "angular" harmonies in the show. The compositional style of Sweeney has been compared to that of Maurice Ravel, Sergei Prokofiev, and Bernard Herrmann. Sondheim also quotes the ancient Dies Irae Gregorian chant, both as part of the eponymous ballad that runs throughout the score ("Swing your razor wide, Sweeney!") and in an inversion later on ("These are my friends..."). Sondheim also relies heavily on leitmotif - at least twenty distinct ones can be identified throughout the score, identified here by their first appearance in the libretto:

  • The Ballad of Sweeney Todd
  • No Place Like London
  • "Alms! Alms! For a miserable woman..."
  • "'Ow would you like a little squiff, dear..." (reappears in Poor Thing)
  • "There was a barber and his wife..."
  • "There's a hole in the world like a big black pit..."
  • The Worst Pies in London
  • "City on Fire"
  • Poor Thing
  • My Friends
  • Green Finch and Linnet Bird
  • Johanna (Anthony)
  • "Ladies and gentlemen! May I have your attention, perlease?..."
  • Wait
  • "He means to marry me Monday..."
  • "Excuse me, my lord. May I request, my lord..."
  • Pretty Women
  • "And I'll never see Johanna..."
  • A Little Priest
  • Not While I'm Around

Awards and Nominations

At the 1979 Tony Awards, the original Broadway production of Sweeney Todd was nominated for nine awards and won in each of those categories with the exception of Ken Billington's lighting design, which was nominated, but lost to Roger Morgan and The Crucifer of Blood.

Additionaly in 1979, Ken Jennings and Sarah Rice were honored with Theatre World Awards for their work with Sweeney Todd and the show was extended the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award.

The 1989 Broadway revival was honored at the 1990 Tony Award Ceremony with four nominations in the following categories. It did not win in any of these.

External Links

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