| Sweeney Todd | |
|---|---|
| The Demon Barber of Fleet Street | |
 Artwork from the original Broadway production | |
| Music | Stephen Sondheim |
| Lyrics | Stephen Sondheim |
| Book | Hugh Wheeler |
| Basis | Sweeney Todd byChristopher Bond |
| Premiere | March 1, 1979:Uris Theatre,New York City |
| Productions | |
| Awards | |
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (often referred to simply asSweeney Todd) is a 1979musical with music and lyrics byStephen Sondheim and book byHugh Wheeler. It is based on the 1970 playSweeney Todd byChristopher Bond. The character ofSweeney Todd first appeared in a Victorianpenny dreadful titledThe String of Pearls.
Sweeney Todd opened onBroadway in 1979 and in theWest End in 1980. It won theTony Award for Best Musical andOlivier Award for Best New Musical. It has been revived in many productions and inspired afilm adaptation. The original logo for the musical is a modified version of an advertising image from the 19th century,[1] with the sign replaced by a straight razor. There is also a woman wearing a blood-stained dress and holding a rolling pin next to the man.
The characterSweeney Todd originated in serializedVictorian popular fiction, known aspenny dreadfuls. A story calledThe String of Pearls was published in a weekly magazine during the winter of 1846–47. Set in 1785, the story featured as its principal villain a certain Sweeney Todd and included all the plot elements used in later versions. The murderous barber's story was turned into a play before the ending had even been revealed in print. An expanded edition appeared in 1850, an American version in 1852, a new play in 1865. By the 1870s, Sweeney Todd was a familiar character to most Victorians.[2]
The musical was based onChristopher Bond's 1970 playSweeney Todd, which introduced a psychological backstory and motivation to Todd's crimes. In Bond's reincarnation of the character, Todd was the victim of a ruthless judge, who exiled him to Australia and raped his young wife, driving her mad.Stephen Sondheim first conceived of a musical version of the story in 1973, after he saw Bond's take on the story atTheatre Royal Stratford East.[3]
Bond's sophisticated plot and language significantly elevated the lurid nature of the tale. Sondheim once observed, "It had a weight to it ... because [Bond] wrote certain characters inblank verse. He also infused into it plot elements fromJacobean tragedy andThe Count of Monte Cristo. He was able to take all these disparate elements that had been in existence rather dully for a hundred and some-odd years and make them into a first-rate play."[4]
Sondheim felt that the addition of music would greatly increase the size of the drama, transforming it into a different theatrical experience, saying later:
What I did to Chris' play is more than enhance it. I had a feeling it would be a new animal. The effect it had at Stratford East in London and the effect it had at the Uris Theater in New York are two entirely different effects, even though it's the same play. It was essentially charming over there because they don't take Sweeney Todd seriously. Our production was larger in scope. Hal Prince gave it an epic sense, a sense that this was a man of some size instead of just a nut case. The music helps to give it that dimension.[4]
Music proved to be a key element behind the impact ofSweeney Todd on audiences. Over eighty percent of the production is set to music, either sung or underscoring dialogue. The score is one vast structure, each individual part meshing with others for the good of the entire musical machine. Never before or later in his work did Sondheim utilize music in such an exhaustive capacity to further the purposes of the drama.[4]
Sondheim decided to pair one of the most nightmarish songs (Sweeney Todd's "Epiphany") with the comic-relief of "A Little Priest". This pair of songs at the end of Act I was the most significant musical addition which Sondheim made to Bond's version of the story. In the play, Sweeney Todd's mental collapse and the subsequent plan for Lovett's meat pies take place in less than half a page of dialogue, much too quickly to convey the full psychological impact, in the view of scholar Larry A. Brown. Sondheim's version more carefully reveals the developing ideas in Sweeney Todd and Mrs. Lovett's demented minds.[4]
Sondheim often said that hisSweeney Todd was about obsession – and close friends seemed to instinctually agree. When Sondheim first played songs from an early version of the show for Judy Prince (wife of the show's director), she told him: "Oh God – I didn't know this was what [Sweeney Todd] was about. It's nothing to do withGrand Guignol. It's the story of your [own] life."[3]
When Sondheim first brought the idea for the show to directorHarold Prince, his frequent collaborator, Prince was uninterested, feeling it was a simple melodrama that was not very experimental structurally. However, Prince soon discovered a metaphor in which to set the show, making what Sondheim had originally envisioned as "a small horror piece" into a colossal portrait of theIndustrial Revolution, and an examination of the general human condition of the time as it related to men like Sweeney Todd. Said Sondheim, "Hal's metaphor is that the factory turns out Sweeney Todd's. It turns out soulless, defeated, hopeless people. That's what the play's about to him; Sweeney Todd is a product of that age. I think it's not. Sweeney Todd is a man bent on personal revenge, the way we all are in one way or another, and it has nothing whatsoever to do with the time he lived in, as far as I'm concerned."[4] However, Sondheim accepted Prince's vision as a different way to do the show, and as an opportunity to do the show on a large scale, knowing that small-scale productions could be done at any time.
On the stage of theUris Theater in New York, this tale of horrors was transformed into a mountain of steel in motion. Prince's scenic metaphor forSweeney Todd was a 19th-centuryiron foundry moved from Rhode Island and reassembled on the stage, which criticJack Kroll aptly described as "part cathedral, part factory, part prison, that dwarfed and degraded the swarming denizens of the lower orders".[4]
When it came to casting, Sondheim thought stage veteranAngela Lansbury would add some needed comedy to the grim tale as the lunatic Cockney shopkeeper, but Lansbury needed to be convinced. She was a star and, as she pointed out to Sondheim, "Your show is not calledNellie Lovett, it's calledSweeney Todd. And I'm the second banana." To convince her, Sondheim "auditioned", writing a couple of songs for her, including the macabre patter song, "A Little Priest". And he gave her the key to the character, saying, "I want Mrs. Lovett to have a music hall character." Lansbury, who had grown up in British music halls, immediately got it. "Not just music hall ... but dotty music hall", as she put it.[5] After she was formally confirmed in the role, she relished the opportunity, saying that she loved "the extraordinary wit and intelligence of [Sondheim's] lyrics."[6]
Canadian actor and singerLen Cariou was Sondheim's personal choice to play the tortured barber.[7] In preparation for the role, Cariou (who was studying with a voice teacher at the time) asked Sondheim what kind of range he needed to have in the role. Cariou told him he was prepared to give Sondheim a couple of octaves to deal with, and Sondheim immediately replied, "That would be more than sufficient."[8]
With Prince absorbed in staging the mammoth production, Lansbury and Cariou were left largely to their own when it came to developing their characters. They worked together on all their scenes, both of them creative actors who were experienced in giving intense performances. "That cuckoo style of playing Mrs. Lovett, that was pretty much Angela ... She invented that character", Cariou said. She recalled, "I just ran with it. The wide-openness of my portrayal had to do with my sink or swim attitude toward it. I just figured hell, I've done everything else on Broadway, I might as well go with Mrs. Lovett."[5]
It is said that on opening nightHarold Clurman, the doyen of American theatre critics, rushed up toSchuyler Chapin, former general manager of theMetropolitan Opera, demanding to know why he had not put it on at the Met. To which Chapin replied: "I would have put it on like a shot if I'd had the opportunity. There would have been screams and yells but I wouldn't have given a damn. Because it is an opera. A modern American opera."[3]
The citizens of London, who act as aGreek chorus throughout the play, drop abody bag and pour ashes into a shallow grave.Sweeney Todd rises forth ("The Ballad of Sweeney Todd"), and introduces the drama.
In 1846,[9] young sailor Anthony Hope and the mysterious Sweeney Todd, whom Anthony has recently rescued at sea and befriended, dock in London. A beggar woman sexually solicits them, appearing to recognize Todd for a moment ("No Place Like London"), and Todd shoos her away. Todd obliquely relates some of his troubled past to Anthony: he was a naïve barber, "removed...from his plate" by a corrupt judge wholusted after Todd's wife ("The Barber and His Wife"). Leaving Anthony, Todd enters a meat pie shop onFleet Street, where the owner, the slatternly widowMrs. Lovett, laments the scarcity of meat and customers ("Worst Pies in London"). When Todd asks after the empty upstairs apartment, she reveals that its former tenant, Benjamin Barker, wastransported for life based on false charges byJudge Turpin, who, along with his servant,Beadle Bamford, then lured Barker's wifeLucy to amasked ball at the Judge's home and raped her ("Poor Thing").
Todd's reaction reveals that he is himself Benjamin Barker. Promising to keep his secret, Mrs. Lovett explains that Lucy poisoned herself witharsenic and that their then-infant daughter,Johanna, became the Judge'sward. Todd swears revenge on the Judge and the Beadle, and Mrs. Lovett presents Todd with his old collection ofsterling silverstraight razors, which persuades Todd to take up his old profession ("My Friends" and "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd" – reprise). Elsewhere, Anthony spies a beautiful girl singing at her window ("Green Finch and Linnet Bird"), and the beggar woman tells him that her name is Johanna. Unaware that Johanna is his friend Todd's daughter, Anthony is immediately enamored ("Ah, Miss"), and he pledges to return for her, even after the judge and the Beadle threaten him and chase him away ("Johanna").
In the crowded London marketplace, flamboyant Italian barberAdolfo Pirelli and his simple-minded young assistantTobias Ragg pitch a dramatic cure-all for hair loss ("Pirelli's Miracle Elixir"). Todd and Lovett soon arrive; as part of his plan to establish his new identity, Todd exposes the elixir as a sham, challenges Pirelli to a shaving competition and easily wins ("The Contest"), inviting the impressed Beadle for a free shave ("The Ballad of Sweeney Todd" – reprise 2). Several days later, Judge Turpinflagellates himself in a frenzy over a growinglust for Johanna, but instead resolves to marry her himself ("Johanna – Mea Culpa").
Todd awaits the Beadle's arrival with mounting impatience, but Mrs. Lovett tries to soothe him ("Wait"). When Anthony tells Todd of his plan to ask Johanna to elope with him, Todd, eager to reunite with his daughter, agrees to let them use his barbershop as a safehouse. As Anthony leaves, Pirelli and Tobias enter, and Mrs. Lovett takes Tobias downstairs for a pie. Alone with Todd, Pirelli drops his Italian accent and reveals that he is really Daniel O'Higgins, Benjamin Barker's former assistant. He knows Todd's true identity (having recognized Barker's illustrious shaving tools during their earlier competition) and demands half his income for life. (In the film, the name is not Daniel O'Higgins but "Davy Collins".) Todd kills O'Higgins by slitting his throat ("Pirelli's Death" and "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd" – reprise 3) and temporarily hides his body. Meanwhile, Johanna and Anthony plan their elopement ("Kiss Me"), while the Beadle recommends Todd's grooming services to the Judge so that the judge may better win Johanna's affections ("Ladies in Their Sensitivities").
Panicked at first on learning of Pirelli's murder, Mrs. Lovett swipes his leftover coin purse and then asks Todd how he plans to dispose of the body. Suddenly, the judge enters; Todd quickly seats him and lulls him with a relaxing conversation ("Pretty Women"). Before Todd can kill the judge, however, Anthony re-enters and blurts out his elopement plan. The angry judge storms out, vowing never to return and to send Johanna away. Todd drives Anthony out in a fit of fury and, reminded of the evil he sees in London, resolves to depopulate the city by murdering his future customers since all people deserve to die: the wicked to be punished for their deeds, and the "rest of us" to be relieved of their misery ("Epiphany"). While discussing how to dispose of Pirelli's body, Mrs. Lovett is struck by a sudden idea and suggests that they use the bodies of Todd's victims in her meat pies, and Todd happily agrees ("A Little Priest").
Several weeks later, Mrs. Lovett's pie shop has become a successful business, and Tobias works there as a waiter. The pies are very popular ("God, That's Good!"). Todd has acquired a special mechanical barber's chair that allows him to kill clients and then send their bodies directly through a chute into the pie shop's basement bakehouse. Casually slitting his customers' necks, Todd despairs of ever seeing Johanna, while Anthony searches London for her ("Johanna – Quartet"). Anthony finds Johanna locked away in a privatelunatic asylum, but barely escapes being placed under arrest by the Beadle. After a day of hard work, while Todd remains fixated on his revenge, Mrs. Lovett envisions eloping with Todd and retiring to the seaside ("By the Sea"). Anthony arrives to beg Todd for help to free Johanna, and Todd, revitalised, instructs Anthony to rescue her by posing as a wigmaker intent on purchasing inmates' hair ("Wigmaker Sequence" and "The Ballad..." – reprise 4). However, once Anthony has departed, Todd sends a letter informing the Judge that Anthony will bring Johanna to his shop just after dark, and that he will hand her over ("The Letter") in order to lure him back to the shop.
In the pie shop, Tobias tells Mrs. Lovett of his skepticism about Todd and his own desire to protect her ("Not While I'm Around"). When he recognizes Pirelli's coin purse in Mrs. Lovett's hands, she distracts him by showing him the bakehouse, instructing him how to work the meat grinder and the oven before locking him in. Upstairs, she encounters the Beadle at herharmonium; he has been asked by Lovett's neighbors to investigate the strange smoke and stench from the pie shop's chimney. Mrs. Lovett stalls the Beadle with "Parlor Songs" until Todd returns to offer the Beadle his promised "free shave"; Mrs. Lovett loudly plays her harmonium to cover the Beadle's screams above as Todd dispatches him. In the basement, Tobias discovers hair and fingernails in a pie he has been eating, just as the Beadle's fresh corpse comes tumbling through the chute. Terrified, he flees into the sewers below the bakehouse. Mrs. Lovett then informs Todd that Tobias has found out about their secret and they plot to kill him.
Anthony arrives at the asylum to rescue Johanna, but is exposed when Johanna recognizes him. Anthony draws a pistol given to him by Todd, but cannot bring himself to shoot Jonas Fogg, the corrupt asylum owner; Johanna grabs the pistol and kills Fogg. As Anthony and Johanna flee, the asylum's freed inmates prophesy the end of the world, while Todd and Mrs. Lovett hunt through the sewers for Tobias, and the beggar woman fears what has become of the Beadle ("City on Fire/Searching").
Anthony and Johanna (now disguised as a sailor) arrive at Todd's empty shop. Anthony leaves to seek a coach after he and Johanna reaffirm their love ("Ah Miss" – reprise). Johanna hears the beggar woman entering and hides in a trunk in the barbershop. The beggar woman seems to recognize the room ("Beggar Woman's Lullaby"). Todd enters and tries to force her to leave as she again seems to recognize him. Hearing the Judge outside, a frantic Todd kills the beggar woman, sending her body down the chute barely a moment before the Judge bursts in. Todd assures the Judge that Johanna is repentant, and the judge asks for a quick splash of cologne.
Once he has the Judge in his chair, Todd soothes him with another conversation on women, but this time he alludes to their "fellow tastes, in women at least". The Judge recognizes him as "Benjamin Barker!" just before Todd slashes his throat and sends him hurtling down the chute ("The Judge's Return"). Remembering Tobias, Todd starts to leave, but, realizing he has left his razor behind, returns just as the disguised Johanna rises, horrified, from the trunk. Not recognizing her, Todd attempts to kill her, just as Mrs. Lovett shrieks from the bakehouse below, providing a distraction for Johanna to escape. Downstairs, Mrs. Lovett is struggling with the dying Judge, who clutches at her dress. She then attempts to drag the beggar woman's body into the oven, but Todd arrives and, through a shaft of light, sees the lifeless face clearly for the first time: the beggar woman was his wife Lucy. Horrified, Todd accuses Mrs. Lovett of lying to him. Mrs. Lovett frantically denies it, explaining that Lucy did indeed poison herself, but lived, although the attempt left her insane. Mrs. Lovett then tells Todd she loves him and would be a better wife than Lucy ever could have been. Todd feigns forgiveness, dancing manically with Mrs. Lovett until he hurls her into the oven, burning her alive. Full of despair and in shock, Todd embraces the dead Lucy. Tobias, now insane and his hair turned white, crawls up from the sewer babbling nursery rhymes to himself. He picks up Todd's fallen razor and slits Todd's throat. As Todd falls dead and Tobias drops the razor, Anthony, Johanna and some constables break into the bakehouse. Tobias, heedless of them, begins turning the meat grinder, crooning Mrs. Lovett's previous instructions to him ("Final Scene").
The ensemble cast, soon joined by the risen Todd and Mrs. Lovett, sing a final reprise of "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd" warning against revenge (though admitting that "everyone does it"). Tearing off their costumes, the company exits. Todd sneers and vanishes.
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Notes on the songs:
Broadway (1979–80)
Broadway (2005–06)
West End (2012)
Broadway (2023–2024)
The original production premiered onBroadway at theUris Theatre on March 1, 1979, and closed on June 29, 1980, after 557 performances and 19 previews. Directed byHal Prince andchoreographed byLarry Fuller, the scenic design was byEugene Lee, costumes byFranne Lee and lighting byKen Billington. The cast includedAngela Lansbury as Mrs. Lovett,Len Cariou as Todd,Victor Garber as Anthony,Sarah Rice as Johanna,Merle Louise as the Beggar Woman,Ken Jennings as Tobias,Edmund Lyndeck as Judge Turpin, Joaquin Romaguera as Pirelli, andJack Eric Williams as Beadle Bamford. The production was nominated for nineTony Awards, winning eight includingBest Musical.Dorothy Loudon andGeorge Hearn replaced Lansbury and Cariou on March 4, 1980. Other replacements includeCris Groenendaal as Anthony andBetsy Joslyn as Johanna.[12]
The first national U.S. tour started on October 24, 1980, in Washington, D.C. and ended in August 1981 inLos Angeles, California. Lansbury was joined by Hearn[13] and this version was taped during the Los Angeles engagement and broadcast on The Entertainment Channel (one of the predecessors of today'sA&E) on September 12, 1982. This performance would later be repeated onShowtime andPBS (the latter as part of itsGreat Performances series);[14] It was later released on home video throughTurner Home Entertainment, and onDVD fromWarner Home Video. The taped production was nominated for fivePrimetime Emmy Awards in 1985, winning three includingOutstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (forGeorge Hearn).[15]
A North American tour started on February 23, 1982, inWilmington, Delaware, and ended on July 17, 1982, inToronto,Ontario.June Havoc andRoss Petty starred.[16]
The first London production opened on July 2, 1980, at theWest End'sTheatre Royal, Drury Lane, starringDenis Quilley andSheila Hancock along with Andrew C. Wadsworth as Anthony, Mandy More as Johanna,Michael Staniforth as Tobias, Austin Kent as Judge Turpin,Dilys Watling as the Beggar Woman, David Wheldon-Williams as Beadle Bamford,Oz Clarke as Jonas Fogg, and John Aron as Pirelli. The show ran for 157 performances. Despite receiving mixed reviews, the production won theOlivier Award for Best New Musical in 1980. The production closed on November 14, 1980.
The first Broadway revival opened on September 14, 1989, at theCircle in the Square Theatre, and closed on February 25, 1990, after 189 performances and 46 previews. It was produced byTheodore Mann, directed bySusan H. Schulman, with choreography by Michael Lichtefeld. The cast featuredBob Gunton (Sweeney Todd),Beth Fowler (Mrs. Lovett),Eddie Korbich (Tobias Ragg),Jim Walton (Anthony Hope) and David Barron (Judge Turpin). In contrast to the original Broadway version, the production was designed on a relatively intimate scale and was affectionately referred to as "Teeny Todd." It was originally produced Off-Broadway by theYork Theatre Company at the Church of the Heavenly Rest from March 31, 1989, to April 29, 1989.[17] This production received fourTony Award nominations: for Best Revival of a Musical, Best Actor in a Musical, Best Actress in a Musical and Best Direction of a Musical, but failed to win any.
In 1993, the show received its first London revival at theRoyal National Theatre. The production opened at the Cottesloe Theatre on June 2, 1993, and later transferred to the Lyttleton Theatre on December 16, 1993, playing in repertory and closing on June 1, 1994. The show's design was slightly altered to fit a proscenium arch theatre space for the Lyttleton Theatre. The director wasDeclan Donnellan and the Cottesloe Theatre production starredAlun Armstrong as Todd andJulia McKenzie as Mrs. Lovett, withAdrian Lester as Anthony, Barry James as Beadle Bamford andDenis Quilley (who had originated the title role in the original London production in 1980) as Judge Turpin. When the show transferred to the Lyttleton, Quilley andChristopher Benjamin took over the roles of Todd and Turpin respectively.[18] The production won Olivier Awards for Best Musical Revival, Best Actor (Armstrong) and Actress in a Musical (McKenzie), and Best Director of a Musical for Donnellan. Adrian Lester and Barry James received nominations in the category of Best Supporting Performance in a Musical as Anthony and Beadle Bamford respectively.[19]
In 2004,John Doyle directed the musical at theWatermill Theatre inNewbury, England, running from July 27 until October 9, 2004. This production transferred to the West End's Trafalgar Studios and then theAmbassadors Theatre. The 10-person cast played the score themselves on musical instruments that they carried onstage. It starred Paul Hegarty as Todd, Karen Mann as Mrs. Lovett, Rebecca Jackson as The Beggar Woman, Sam Kenyon as Tobias, Rebecca Jenkins as Johanna, David Ricardo-Pearce as Anthony and Colin Wakefield as Judge Turpin. This production closed February 5, 2005.[20] In early 2006, the production toured the UK withJason Donovan as Todd andHarriet Thorpe as Mrs. Lovett.[21]
A version of the same production transferred to Broadway, opening on November 3, 2005, at theEugene O'Neill Theatre with a new cast, all of whom played their own instruments, as had been done in London. The cast consisted ofPatti LuPone (Mrs. Lovett/Tuba/Percussion),Michael Cerveris (Todd/Guitar),Manoel Felciano (Tobias/Violin/Clarinet/Piano),Alexander Gemignani (Beadle/Piano/Trumpet),Lauren Molina (Johanna/Cello), Benjamin Magnuson (Anthony/Cello/Piano),Mark Jacoby (Turpin/Trumpet/Percussion),Donna Lynne Champlin (Pirelli/Accordion/Flute/Piano), Diana DiMarzio (Beggar Woman/Clarinet) and John Arbo (Fogg/Double bass). After 35 previews, the production ran for 349 performances and was nominated for six Tony Awards, winning two (Best Direction of a Musical for Doyle andBest Orchestrations forSarah Travis). Because of the small scale of the musical, it cost $3.5 million to make, a sum small in comparison to many Broadway musicals, and recouped the investment in nineteen weeks.[22] A national tour based on the production began on August 30, 2007, withJudy Kaye (who had temporarily replaced LuPone in the Broadway run) as Mrs. Lovett and David Hess as Todd. Gemignani played the title role for the Toronto run of the tour in November 2007.[23]
Michael Ball andImelda Staunton starred in a new production of the show that played atThe Chichester Festival Theatre, running from September 24 to November 5, 2011. Directed by Jonathan Kent, the cast included Ball as Todd, Staunton as Mrs. Lovett, James McConville as Tobias,John Bowe as Judge Turpin, Robert Burt as Pirelli, Luke Brady as Anthony, Gillian Kirkpatrick as Lucy Barker,Lucy May Barker as Johanna andPeter Polycarpou as Beadle Bamford. It was notably set in the 1930s instead of 1846 and restored the oft-cut song "Johanna (Mea Culpa)".[24] The production received positive reviews and transferred to theAdelphi Theatre in theWest End in 2012 for a limited run from March 10 to September 22, 2012.[25] ComedianJason Manford made his musical debut as Pirelli from July 2 to 28 and August 15, 18 and 24, 2012 while Robert Burt appeared atGlyndebourne Festival Opera. The West End transfer received six Laurence Olivier Award nominations of which it won the three:Best Musical Revival,Best Actor in a Musical for Ball andBest Actress in a Musical for Staunton.[26]
The musical began previews on February 26 and opened on March 26, 2023, at theLunt-Fontanne Theatre, starringJosh Groban as Sweeney Todd,Annaleigh Ashford as Mrs. Lovett,Jordan Fisher as Anthony,Gaten Matarazzo as Tobias, Maria Bilbao as Johanna,Jamie Jackson reprising the role of Judge Turpin,Ruthie Ann Miles as the Beggar Woman, John Rapson reprising the role of Beadle Bamford, and Nicholas Christopher as Pirelli. The production was directed byThomas Kail, with restored original orchestrations byJonathan Tunick, musical supervision byAlex Lacamoire and choreography bySteven Hoggett.[27] Matarazzo departed on November 5.[28] Groban and Ashford were replaced byAaron Tveit andSutton Foster for a 12-week limited run starting February 9 until the closing.[29]Joe Locke took over the role of Tobias on January 31, 2024.[30] The production closed on May 5, 2024.[31]
The production began a workshop three days after Sondheim's death in November 2021; he had planned to attend the workshop's final day. The production had a budget of $14 million.[32]
TheState Opera of South Australia presented Australia's first professional production in Adelaide in September 1987. Directed byGale Edwards, it featuredLyndon Terracini as Todd,Nancye Hayes as Mrs. Lovett andPeter Cousens as Anthony. The following month,Melbourne Theatre Company's version opened at thePlayhouse in Melbourne, directed byRoger Hodgman withPeter Carroll as Sweeney Todd,Geraldine Turner as Mrs. Lovett andJon Ewing as Judge Turpin. The Melbourne production toured to Sydney and Brisbane in 1988.[33]
The musical opened in June 1992, at theErkel Theater inBudapest, Hungary. The play was translated into Hungarian by Tibor Miklós and György Dénes. The cast starred Lajos Miller as Sweeney Todd and Zsuzsa Lehoczky as Mrs. Lovett.[34]
In 1994,East West Players in Los Angeles staged the show directed by Tim Dang, featuring a largely Asian Pacific American cast. It was also the first time the show had been presented in an intimate house (Equity 99-seat).Josh Groban, the original 2023 Sweeney Todd, saw that production. The production received 5 Ovation Awards including the Franklin Levy Award for Best Musical (Smaller Theatre) and Best Director (Musical) for Dang.[citation needed]
On April 5, 1995, it premiered in Catalan at the theater Poliorama of Barcelona (later moving to the Apollo), in a production of the Drama Centre of the Government of Catalonia. The libretto was adapted by Roser Batalla Roger Pena, and was directed by Mario Gas. The cast consisted ofConstantino Romero as Sweeney Todd,Vicky Peña as Mrs. Lovett, Maria Josep Peris as Johanna, Muntsa Rius as Tobias, Pep Molina as Anthony, Xavier Ribera-Vall as Judge Turpin & Teresa Vallicrosa as The Beggar Woman. It later moved to Madrid. The show received over fifteen awards.
The 1997Finnish National Opera production premiered on September 19, 1997.Directed by Staffan Aspegren and starting Sauli Tiilikainen (Sweeney Todd) and Ritva Auvinen (Mrs. Lovett). Translated byJuice Leskinen[35]
As part of theKennedy Center Sondheim Celebration,Sweeney Todd ran in May and June 2002 at the Eisenhower Theatre, starringBrian Stokes Mitchell as Sweeney Todd andChristine Baranski as Mrs. Lovett, withHugh Panaro as Anthony,Walter Charles (an original cast member), as Judge Turpin,Celia Keenan-Bolger as Johanna andMary Beth Peil as The Beggar Woman. It was directed byChristopher Ashley with choreography by Daniel Pelzig.[36]
David Shannon starred as Todd in production of the show at theGate Theatre in Dublin, Ireland, which ran from April through June 2007. The production employed a minimalistic approach: the cast consisted of a small ensemble of 14 performers, and the orchestra was a seven-piece band. The look of the production was abstract.The Sunday Times wrote that "The black backdrop of David Farley's rough hewn set and the stark minimalism of Rick Fisher's lighting suggest a self-conscious edginess, with Shannon's stylised make-up, long leather coat and brooding countenance only adding to the feeling."[37][38] When a character died, flour was poured over them.[39]
The 2008 Gothenburg production played in May and June atThe Göteborg Opera. The show was a collaboration with West End International Ltd. The cast featuredMichael McCarthy as Sweeney Todd andRosemary Ashe as Mrs Lovett and David Shannon this time as Anthony.[40] An equity tour of the UK and Ireland began in 2009. To disassociate itself from West End backlash at the time regarding stunt casting, the tour was cast through an open call audition process.[citation needed] It ran for 8 months, starring Barry Howell as Sweeney Todd and Isabell Wyer as Mrs. Lovett.[citation needed]
In 2010, fifty members of theNational Youth Music Theatre staged a production at the Village Underground as part of Stephen Sondheim's 80th birthday celebrations in London. Directed by Martin Constantine, NYMT staged the show in a converted Victorian warehouse in the city'sEast End.[41] The company revived the show in 2011 for the International Youth Arts Festival at theRose Theatre inKingston upon Thames.[42]
A production opened in April 2011 at theThéâtre du Châtelet (Paris), which had produced the first Sondheim show in France (A Little Night Music). The director wasLee Blakeley with choreography by Lorena Randi and designs by Tanya McAllin. The cast featuredRod Gilfry and Franco Pomponi (Sweeney Todd) andCaroline O'Connor (Mrs Lovett).[43]
The Lyric Stage Company of Boston produced a run in September and October 2014 with the company's Artistic Director Spiro Veloudos directing the show. The cast starred Christopher Chew as Sweeney Todd and Amelia Broome as Mrs. Lovett.[44] Quebec City-based Théâtre Décibel produced the first French-language production of the show. Translated by Joëlle Bond and directed by Louis Morin, the show played from October 28 to November 8, 2014, at theCapitole de Québec. The cast includes Renaud Paradis as Sweeney Todd and Katee Julien as Mrs. Lovett.[45]
Washington D.C.'s Landless Theatre Company orchestrates aprog metal version ofSweeney Todd.[46] The production played at DC's Warehouse Theatre in August 2014, directed by Melissa Baughman with music direction by Charles W. Johnson and prog metal orchestration by The Fleet Street Collective (Andrew Lloyd Baughman, Spencer Blevins, Charles Johnson, Lance LaRue, Ray Shaw, Alex Vallejo, Andrew Siddle).[47] The cast featured metal band front singersNina Osegueda (A Sound of Thunder) as Mrs. Lovett, Andrew Lloyd Baughman (Diamond Dead) as Sweeney Todd, Rob Bradley (Aries and Thrillkiller) as Pirelli, and Irene Jericho (Cassandra Syndrome) as Beggar Woman. The show received three 2015Helen Hayes Awards nominations for Best Musical, Outstanding Director of a Musical (Melissa Baughman), and Outstanding Music Director (Charles W. Johnson). The adaptation was revived by Landless Theatre in 2023 with Osegueda, Baughman, and Bradley reprising their roles.[48]
Welsh National Opera performed the musical as part of their 2015 "Madness" season. Directed by James Brining and designed by Colin Richmond, the production was set in the 1970/1980s and was performed at theWales Millennium Centre, Cardiff, before touring to England and returning to Cardiff. It was based on Brining's previous productions in 2010 and 2013. The cast included David Arnsperger as Todd,Janis Kelly as Mrs. Lovett, andJamie Muscato as Anthony.[citation needed]
Pieter Toerien and KickstArt produced the show at the Pieter Toerien Monte Casino Theatre in Johannesburg from October to December 2015, before transferring to the Theatre on the Bay in Cape Town from February to April 2016. Directed by Steven Stead and designed by Greg King, the production starredJonathan Roxmouth (Sweeney Todd) and Charon Williams-Ros (Mrs Lovett).[49]
In 2015,Victorian Opera's production was performed at theMelbourne Arts Centre.[50] The production was revived for New Zealand Opera in 2016, visitingAuckland,Wellington andChristchurch.[51] The production starredTeddy Tahu Rhodes as Sweeney Todd andAntoinette Halloran as Mrs. Lovett, withKanen Breen as Beadle Bamford.[52][53]
The Tooting Arts Club presented a site-specific production at Harrington's Pie Shop inTooting, London in October and November 2014.[54] Sondheim attended and enjoyed the production and told producerCameron Mackintosh who later produced aWest End transfer at a pie shop recreated inShaftesbury Avenue and ran from March 19 to May 16, 2015. The cast includedJeremy Secomb as Sweeney Todd,Siobhán McCarthy as Mrs. Lovett,Nadim Naaman as Anthony, Ian Mowat as the Beadle, Duncan Smith as the Judge, Kiara Jay as Pirelli and the Beggar Woman, Joseph Taylor as Tobias and Zoe Doano as Johanna.[55]
The Tooting Arts Club production transferredOff-Broadway, transforming theBarrow Street Theatre into a re-creation of Harrington's pie shop. Previews began February 14, 2017, before an opening on March 1. It was also directed by Bill Buckhurst, designed by Simon Kenny and produced by Rachel Edwards, Jenny Gersten, Seaview Productions and Nate Koch in association with Barrow Street Theatre.[56] The cast featured four members of the London cast: Secomb as Todd, McCarthy as Mrs. Lovett, Duncan Smith as the Judge and Taylor as Tobias, alongsideBrad Oscar as the Beadle, Betsy Morgan as Pirelli and the Beggar Woman,Matt Doyle as Anthony and Alex Finke as Johanna. From April, replacements includedNorm Lewis as Todd,Carolee Carmello as Mrs. Lovett andJamie Jackson as Turpin. Later replacements includedHugh Panaro as Todd,Sally Ann Triplett as Johanna andMatt Leisy as Beadle Bamford. The production closed on August 26, 2018.[57][58][59]
Valtru produced the first Mexican production ofSweeney Todd. Opened on July 7, 2018, at the Foro Cultural Coyoacanense's starring Lupita Sandoval and Beto Torres.[citation needed]
In June 2019, a limited run of the production was presented byLife Like Company atHer Majesty's Theatre, Melbourne andDarling Harbour Theatre, ICC Sydney. It starredAnthony Warlow as Sweeney Todd,Gina Riley as Mrs. Lovett,Debra Byrne as the Beggar Woman andMichael Falzon as Pirelli.[60]
Produced by Atlantis Theatrical Entertainment Group and directed by Bobby Garcia with musical direction byGerard Salonga, it starredJett Pangan as Sweeney Todd,Lea Salonga as Mrs. Lovett, withGerald Santos as Anthony andNyoy Volante as Pirelli. The production debuted in October 2019 at The Theater atSolaire.[61][62]
A production at theBirmingham Rep is scheduled to play from 4 July to 9 August 2026, directed by Rep artistic director Joe Murphy.[63]
The first opera company to mountSweeney Todd was theHouston Grand Opera in a production directed by Hal Prince, which ran from June 14, 1984, through June 24, 1984, for a total of 10 performances. Conducted byJohn DeMain, the production used scenic designs byEugene Lee, costume designs byFranne Lee, and lighting designs byKen Billington. The cast includedTimothy Nolen in the title role,Joyce Castle as Mrs. Lovett,Cris Groenendaal as Anthony, Lee Merrill as Johanna, Will Roy as Judge Turpin, and Barry Busse as The Beadle.[64]
In 1984 the show was presented by theNew York City Opera. Hal Prince recreated the staging using the simplified set of the 2nd national tour. It was well received and most performances sold out. It was brought back for limited runs in 1986 and 2004. Notably the 2004 production starredMark Delavan andElaine Paige.[65] The show was also performed byOpera North in 1998 in the UK starring Steven Page and Beverley Klein, directed byDavid McVicar and conducted by James Holmes.
In the early 2000s,Sweeney Todd gained acceptance with opera companies throughout the United States, Canada, Japan, Germany,Israel, Spain, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Australia.Bryn Terfel, the popular Welshbass-baritone, performed the title role atLyric Opera of Chicago in 2002, with Judith Christian, David Cangelosi,Timothy Nolen,Bonaventura Bottone, Celena Shaffer andNathan Gunn. It was performed at theRoyal Opera House in London as part of the Royal Opera season (December 2003 – January 2004) starring SirThomas Allen as Todd,Felicity Palmer as Mrs. Lovett and a supporting cast that includedRosalind Plowright,Robert Tear and Jonathan Veira as Judge Turpin. The Finnish National Opera performed Sweeney Todd in 1997–98. The Israeli National Opera has performedSweeney Todd twice. The Icelandic Opera performed Sweeney Todd in the fall of 2004, the first time inIceland. On September 12, 2015,Sweeney Todd opened at theSan Francisco Opera withBrian Mulligan as Todd,Stephanie Blythe as Mrs. Lovett, Matthew Grills as Tobias, Heidi Stober as Johanna, Elliot Madore as Anthony andElizabeth Futral as the Beggar Woman/Lucy. In 2019,Sweeney Todd opened at theCopenhagen Opera House.[66]
A "Reprise!" Concert version was performed at Los Angeles'Ahmanson Theatre on March 12–14, 1999 withKelsey Grammer as Todd,Christine Baranski as Mrs. Lovett,Davis Gaines as Anthony,Neil Patrick Harris as Tobias,Melissa Manchester as The Beggar Woman, Roland Rusinek as The Beadle, Dale Kristien as Johanna andKen Howard as Judge Turpin.
London'sRoyal Festival Hall hosted two performances on February 13, 2000, starringLen Cariou as Todd,Judy Kaye as Mrs. Lovett, andDavis Gaines as Anthony. A 4-day concert took place in July 2007 at the same venue withBryn Terfel,Maria Friedman,Daniel Boys andPhilip Quast.
DirectorLonny Price directed a semi-staged concert production of "Sweeney Todd in Concert" on May 4–6, 2000 atAvery Fisher Hall atLincoln Center, New York with theNew York Philharmonic. The cast includedGeorge Hearn (a last-minute substitute forBryn Terfel) in the title role, alongsidePatti LuPone (Mrs. Lovett),Neil Patrick Harris (Tobias), Davis Gaines (Anthony),John Aler,Paul Plishka,Heidi Grant Murphy (Johanna),Stanford Olsen (Pirelli) andAudra McDonald (Beggar-Woman/Lucy). This concert also played inSan Francisco, from July 19–21, 2001, with theSan Francisco Symphony. Hearn and LuPone were joined once again by Harris, Gaines, Aler and Olsen as well as new additionsVictoria Clark,Lisa Vroman and Timothy Nolen. This production was taped forPBS and broadcast in 2001, and won thePrimetime Emmy Award forOutstanding Classical Music-Dance Program.[67] The same production played at theRavinia Festival inChicago on August 24, 2001, with most of the cast from the preceding concerts, except for Plishka and Clark, who were replaced bySherrill Milnes and Hollis Resnik.[68]
In 2014, Price directed a new concert production, returning toAvery Fisher Hall with theNew York Philharmonic on March 5–8 withBryn Terfel as Todd,Emma Thompson as Mrs. Lovett,Philip Quast as Judge Turpin,Jeff Blumenkrantz as The Beadle,Christian Borle as Pirelli, Kyle Brenn as Tobias, Jay Armstrong Johnson as Anthony,Erin Mackey as Johanna[69] andAudra McDonald and Bryonha Marie Parham sharing the role of The Beggar Woman.[70] McDonald was not announced as the Beggar Woman: she was a surprise, her name only being revealed at the time of the first performance. On the Saturday performances, Bryonha Marie Parham played the role of the Beggar Woman, while McDonald played it at the other performances. The concert was again filmed for broadcast onPBS as part of theirLive from Lincoln Center[71] series and was first aired on September 26, 2014. The production was nominated for threePrimetime Emmy Awards, winning one forOutstanding Special Class Program.[72] This production transferred to LondonColiseum Theatre for 13 performances from March 30 through April 12, 2015. The cast included original members like Terfel, Thompson and Quast, as well as new actors likeJohn Owen-Jones andRosalie Craig.[73]
Afeature film adaptation ofSweeney Todd, directed byTim Burton with a screenplay byJohn Logan, was released on December 21, 2007. It starsJohnny Depp as Todd (Depp received anOscar nomination and aGolden Globe Award for his performance),Helena Bonham Carter as Mrs. Lovett,Alan Rickman as Judge Turpin,Sacha Baron Cohen as Signor Pirelli,Jamie Campbell Bower as Anthony Hope,Laura Michelle Kelly as The Beggar Woman,Jayne Wisener as Johanna,Ed Sanders as Tobias, andTimothy Spall as Beadle Bamford. The film was well received by critics and theatregoers and also won theGolden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.[74]
Stephen Sondheim believed thatSweeney Todd is a story of revenge and how it consumes a vengeful person. He asserted, "what the show is really about is obsession".[75] Unlike most previous representations of the story, the musical avoids a simplistic view of devilish crimes. Instead, the characters' "emotional and psychological depths" are examined, so that Sweeney Todd is understood as a victim as well as a perpetrator in the "great black pit" of humanity.[76]
Sondheim's score is one of his most complex, withorchestrations by his long-time collaboratorJonathan Tunick. Relying heavily oncounterpoint and angular harmonies, its compositional style has been compared toMaurice Ravel,Sergei Prokofiev, andBernard Herrmann. Sondheim also utilizes the ancient "Dies irae" in the ballad that runs throughout the score, later heard in amelodic inversion, and in the accompaniment to "Epiphany". According to Raymond Knapp, "Most scene changes bring back 'The Ballad of Sweeney Todd', which includes both fast and slow versions of the 'Dies Irae'".[77] He also relies heavily onleitmotif – at least twenty distinct ones can be identified throughout the score.
Depending on how and where the show is presented, it is sometimes considered an opera.[78] Sondheim himself has described the piece as a "black operetta",[79] and indeed, only about 20% of the show is spoken; the rest is sung-through.[80]
In his essay for the 2005 cast album,Jeremy Sams finds it most relevant to compare Sondheim's work with operas that similarly explore the psyche of a mad murderer or social outcast, such asAlban Berg'sWozzeck (1925, based on theplay byGeorg Büchner) andBenjamin Britten'sPeter Grimes (1945). On the other hand, it can be seen as a precursor to the later trend of musicals based on horror themes, such asLittle Shop of Horrors (1982),The Phantom of the Opera (1986),Jekyll & Hyde (1997) andDance of the Vampires (1997), which used the description of the trend, "grusical", as its commercial label. Theatre critic and authorMartin Gottfried wrote on this subject: "Does so much singing make it an opera? Opera is not just a matter of everything being sung. There is an operatic kind of music, of singing, of staging. There are opera audiences, and there is an opera sensibility. There are operahouses.Sweeney Todd has its occasional operatic moments, but its music overall has the chest notes, the harmonic language, the muscularity, and the edge of Broadway theater."[81]
Donal Henahan wrote an essay inThe New York Times concerning the 1984 New York City Opera production: "The difficulty withSweeney was not that the opera singers were weaklings incapable of filling the State Theater with sound – Miss Elias, who was making her City Opera debut, has sung for many years at the Metropolitan, a far larger house. The other voices in the cast also were known quantities. Rather, it seemed to me that the attempt to actually sing the Sondheim score, which relies heavily on a dramatic parlando or speaking style, mainly showed how far from the operatic vocal tradition the work lies. The score, effective enough in its own way, demanded things of the opera singers that opera singers as a class are reluctant to produce."[82]
| Year | Award ceremony | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best New Musical | Won | |
| Best Actor in a Musical | Denis Quilley | Won | ||
| Best Actress in a Musical | Sheila Hancock | Nominated | ||
| Year | Award ceremony | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Tony Award | Best Revival of a Musical | Nominated | |
| Best Actor in a Musical | Bob Gunton | Nominated | ||
| Best Actress in a Musical | Beth Fowler | Nominated | ||
| Best Direction of a Musical | Susan H. Schulman | Nominated | ||
| Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Revival of a Musical | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Bob Gunton | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Actress in a Musical | Beth Fowler | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Set Design | James Morgan | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Lighting Design | Mary Jo Dondlinger | Won | ||
| Year | Award ceremony | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best Musical Revival | Won | |
| Best Actor in a Musical | Alun Armstrong | Won | ||
| Best Actress in a Musical | Julia McKenzie | Won | ||
| Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical | Adrian Lester | Nominated | ||
| Barry James | Nominated | |||
| Best Director of a Musical | Declan Donnellan | Won | ||
| Year | Award ceremony | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Laurence Olivier Award | Outstanding Musical Production | Nominated | |
| Best Actor in a Musical | Paul Hegarty | Nominated | ||
| Year | Award ceremony | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Tony Award | Best Revival of a Musical | Nominated | |
| Best Direction of a Musical | John Doyle | Won | ||
| Best Actor in a Musical | Michael Cerveris | Nominated | ||
| Best Actress in a Musical | Patti LuPone | Nominated | ||
| Best Featured Actor in a Musical | Manoel Felciano | Nominated | ||
| Best Orchestrations | Sarah Travis | Won | ||
| Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Revival of a Musical | Won | ||
| Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Michael Cerveris | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Actress in a Musical | Patti LuPone | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical | Alexander Gemignani | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Orchestrations | Sarah Travis | Won | ||
| Outstanding Director of a Musical | John Doyle | Won | ||
| Outstanding Set Design | Nominated | |||
| Outstanding Lighting Design | Richard G. Jones | Won | ||
| Outstanding Sound Design | Dan Moses Schreier | Nominated | ||
| Year | Award ceremony | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Evening Standard Award | Best Musical | Won | |
| 2013 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best Musical Revival | Won | |
| Best Actor in a Musical | Michael Ball | Won | ||
| Best Actress in a Musical | Imelda Staunton | Won | ||
| Best Costume Design | Anthony Ward | Nominated | ||
| Best Lighting Design | Mark Henderson | Nominated | ||
| Best Sound Design | Paul Groothuis | Nominated | ||
An originalBroadwaycast recording was released byRCA Red Seal in 1979. It included the Judge's "Johanna" and the tooth-pulling contest from Act I, which had been cut in previews.[83] It was selected by theNational Recording Registry for preservation in 2013.[84]
A performance of the 1980 touring company was taped before an audience in 1981 at theDorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles during the first national tour, with additional taping done in an empty theatre for a television special. The resulting program was televised on September 12, 1982, on The Entertainment Channel.[14] It was later released on both VHS and DVD.[85]
On 2 July 1994, the Royal National Theatre revival production starringDenis Quilley andJulia McKenzie was broadcast by theBBC.[86] Opera North's production was also broadcast by the BBC on March 30, 1998, as was the Royal Opera House production in 2003.
In 1995, theBarcelona cast recorded a cast album sung inCatalan. This production was also broadcast on Spanish television.
The 2000 New York City Concert was recorded and released in a deluxe 2-CD set.[87] This recording was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album.[88]
In 2001, the same concert was held in San Francisco with the same leads and minor cast changes. It was also videotaped and broadcast on PBS, and then was released to VHS and DVD in 2001.[89]
The 2005 Broadway revival also was recorded.[90] The producers originally planned only a single-disk "highlights" version; however, they soon realized that they had recorded more music than could fit on one disk and it was not financially feasible to bring the performers back in to re-record. The following songs were cut: "Wigmaker Sequence", "The Letter", "Parlor Songs", "City on Fire", and half of the final sequence (which includes "The Judge's Return").[91] This recording was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album.[92]
The 2012 London revival was recorded and released on April 2, 2012, in the UK[93] and April 10, 2012, in the United States.[94]
The 2023 Broadway revival cast recording was released on September 8, 2023. This followed the release of eight single tracks from the recording, beginning on May 8 of the same year with "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd (Opening)."[95] The final single, "God, That's Good!" was released on September 7, just one day before the album's full release.[96] The album's full track list, slightly modified from the original cast recording, was released on August 21.[97] The only songs missing from the recording are "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd (Reprises 2-5)," Pirelli's Death," "Wigmaker Sequence," (save for "The Letter"), "Parlor Songs (Parts 2 and 3)", and "Fogg's Asylum." This recording was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album.[98]
