Sweeney Hyde
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Did anyone get to see Norm Lewis as Sweeney Todd?Norm Lewis, who recently played Javert in the Les Miserables revival and is currently King Trident in The Little Mermaid, played Sweeney Todd at Arlington, Virginia's Signature Theatre, with that theatre's regular Donna Migliaccio as Mrs. Lovett, in 1999.
I know the chances are slim, but, if anyone saw him perform it, would you please tell me about how he was?
Thanks.
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filmphan821
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Wow, I never pictured him in that role but that would be awesome to see.
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what_the_heck013
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| filmphan821 wrote: | | Wow, I never pictured him in that role but that would be awesome to see. |
really? I imagine his voice would be perfect for it.
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Trevor reincarnate
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Was Johanna black?
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Sweeney Hyde
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I do not know.
I only know he was even in it becuase in my program from that company's Into the Woods production last year there was a sort of a "name the Signature Show" game...basically a picture with a caption and then muliple answers...there was one of Donna Migliaccio and Norm Lewis in the famous Little Priest pose with a caption that reads "Donna Migliaccio and Norm Lewis appeared in this show in 1999."
I know some people that saw it...I guess I should ask them...haha.
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mastachen
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| Trevor reincarnate wrote: | | Was Johanna black? |
Brian Stokes Mitchell was Sweeney and Celia Keenan Bolger was the Johanna once.
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Sweeney Hyde
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| mastachen wrote: | | Trevor reincarnate wrote: | | Was Johanna black? |
Brian Stokes Mitchell was Sweeney and Celia Keenan Bolger was the Johanna once. |
Stokes Mitchell isn't completely black though...he's also got cacausian and hispanic relatives.
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Salome
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no way could norm lewis qualify for "his skin was pale and his eye was odd"
besides he's an awful actor.
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what_the_heck013
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| Trevor reincarnate wrote: | | Was Johanna black? |
I saw an all-Asian production once. They sang "burried sweetly in your raven hair".
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mastachen
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^Where did you see that?
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what_the_heck013
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The East West Players here in LA. You would LOVE it!
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Trevor reincarnate
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Like Sweeney Hyde said... Stokes Mitchell can look any race he pleases. lol
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Orestes Fasting
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| Trevor reincarnate wrote: | | Was Johanna black? |
Does it matter? Last I checked, Sierra Boggess is white as a sheet, but she's still playing Norm's daughter in the Little Mermaid.
By the way, the Signature's cast was:
Norm Lewis (Sweeney Todd)
Donna Migliaccio (Mrs Lovett)
Chad Kimball (Anthony)
Jennifer Royall (Johanna)
Lawrence Redmond (Judge Turpin)
Jimmy Smagula (Beadle Bamford)
Dana Krueger (Beggar Woman)
John Kaczynski (Pirelli)
Michael Sharp (Tobias)
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theatre_grl
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^it only matters because she's supposed to be "beautiful and pale with yellow hair," Todd's "face was pale and his eye was odd," and they're supposed to be English.
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broadwayderrick
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Norm Lewis as Sweeney ToddI saw that production. It was a long time ago, so I don't remember it all that well, but my general impression was that it was too low for Lewis and he was a little one-note in the acting. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE him, particularly his voice, and there were parts of it that sounded great. I think I also saw a performance in which both he and Donna Migliaccio were showing some signs of vocal strain. But also, IIRC the show seemed to be directed to really play against humor and there was a lot of crying going on in the second act, which may have been part of why Lewis seemed a little one-note. Migliaccio suffered from the direction too even though she's pretty much perfect casting and was very very good anyway. I still liked it; Signature's combination of a real orchestra in this tiny claustrophobic space where chorus members would pop up literally a foot away from you was perfect for the show. Very scary.
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Orestes Fasting
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| theatre_grl wrote: | | ^it only matters because she's supposed to be "beautiful and pale with yellow hair," Todd's "face was pale and his eye was odd," and they're supposed to be English. |
Everyone in Les Mis is supposed to be French, and Fantine is supposed to have blonde hair, but nobody in the audience bats an eye when a black Fantine is the mother of a white Young Cosette who grows up into an Asian adult Cosette. I just don't see what the problem is unless race is an important issue in the show.
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Sweeney Hyde
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Re: Norm Lewis as Sweeney Todd | broadwayderrick wrote: | | Signature's combination of a real orchestra in this tiny claustrophobic space where chorus members would pop up literally a foot away from you was perfect for the show. Very scary. |
They actually have a completely new building with two theatres in it. It's not claustrophobic at all any more! ^_^
Thanks for the information about the topic though!
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javertim
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| Orestes Fasting wrote: | | theatre_grl wrote: | | ^it only matters because she's supposed to be "beautiful and pale with yellow hair," Todd's "face was pale and his eye was odd," and they're supposed to be English. |
Everyone in Les Mis is supposed to be French, and Fantine is supposed to have blonde hair, but nobody in the audience bats an eye when a black Fantine is the mother of a white Young Cosette who grows up into an Asian adult Cosette. I just don't see what the problem is unless race is an important issue in the show. |
I think what Theatre_Grl meant is that when a line or lyric from the show specifically calls for a character to look a certain way, it's a little silly to cast someone who doesn't match that description. Fantine isn't given a lyrical/book description, so it doesn't matter as much.
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