REVIVAL--one user's review

kindofblue1926 · REVIVAL--one user's review

Saw the revival last night. A totally different and effective SWEENEY. There is a ton that I could tell you; here are some of the more interesting points:

*As you may know, all of the actors are also playing instruments onstage. You kind of forget about this after a little while. And they're all pretty damn good players. Here's the breakdown if you're interested:

Todd: guitar
Mrs. Lovett: tuba
Judge Turpin and the Beadle: trumpets (almost always muted)
Pirelli: accordion (a brilliant and atmospheric touch) and, I think, flute
Johanna and Anthony: cellos
Tobias: violin
Beggar Woman: clarinet
Jonas Fogg: bass

Plus, several characters took turns at the keyboard and everyone played hand percussion.

*As mentioned in earlier posts, the entire action takes place in what appears to be an insane asylum, with the characters telling the story with whatever means are at hand. So, most props are improvised, usually very well, sometimes less so.

*Tobias starts and ends the show in a straitjacket, so perhaps we are seeing the story from his point of view?

*Certain small scenes have been removed, largely due to the minimalism stated above: the Anthony birdseller scene, the tooth-pulling contest, a verse or two from a couple of the other songs. The judge's "Johanna" is included, but he does not flagellate himself. The omissions occasionally lead to some small confusion in the lyrics, as when Todd asks Tobias (about Pirelli's elixir:) "What about the money" when no one has bought anything.

*This, in my view, is a revival that will be most effective for those who have seen or done the show before. There are necessarily no scene changes, so it can be hard for newbies to understand where the action is supposed to be taking place. My wife, who is no fool, had never seen SWEENEY and felt a bit lost.

*This is not the best-sung SWEENEY that you will ever see...only Tobias, in my opinion, was as good a singer as in earlier casts. Cerveris can sing, as we've seen in TOMMY and TITANIC, but he doesn't have kind of big ol' baritone pipes that we're used to hearing in the role...Lupone garbles much of her diction, again a reason that this will work best for SWEENEY veterans...BUT, the characters are as well-realized as anyone could want, and are mostly completely believable. There are several roles that are done very differently than in the past, with astonishing results (not wanting to give away too much here...)

*Pirelli is indeed played by a woman, I didn't care for the way she sung the role, but there you go.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for Sweeney fans, as if you needed further reason to see it! I wonder how long it will run, as it doesn't seem like the kind of show to attract a ton of tourist traffic...but, the minimal sets, small cast, etc. will maybe make the price right to go on as long as possible.

Would be happy to try and answer any questions you have about how the show was done...ask soon while I still remember!

Happy Holidays--

blue

Sweeney Todd

I saw the show, too, and I agree with most of what you said. The way I understood it was that Tobias had been sent to an asylum (probably Fogg's) after he killed Sweeney Todd. So then the story is told from his point of view in the asylum.
I do agree that it was very confusing at times. I often felt like something was missing at times but didn't realize exactly which scenes were cut until I read your review.

IvanP

Dude... I saw the show on Monday... I was on the very left end of row K in the balcony, and you?

mizzie

I can't wait to see this show, only I'm Canadian and have to wait until the summer to go to New York! Great review, and since you only have one post, welcome to the site!

kindofblue1926 · seats

Ivan--we were in the very last row of the balcony, on the left-hand aisle--a funny little section with only two seats in it! You were probably about 10 feet away from us.

--blue

Sweeney Todd

I saw the matinee on November 25th. I was in one of the middle seats of the middle row of the orchestra section. It was rather expensive but soooo worth it as this is my favorite musical.

IvanP

I was the tall adolescent in the brown sweater; I'm assuming you were one of the people who said, "Yay! We get to sit in the very back and make out!" when you found your seats. Confused

This is surreal...

kindofblue1926	REVIVAL--one user's review Saw the revival last night. A totally different and effective SWEENEY. There is a ton that I could tell you; here are some of the more interesting points: As you may know, all of the actors are also playing instruments onstage. You kind of forget about this after a little while. And they're all pretty damn good players. Here's the breakdown if you're interested: Todd: guitar Mrs. Lovett: tuba Judge Turpin and the Beadle: trumpets (almost always muted) Pirelli: accordion (a brilliant and atmospheric touch) and, I think, flute Johanna and Anthony: cellos Tobias: violin Beggar Woman: clarinet Jonas Fogg: bass Plus, several characters took turns at the keyboard and everyone played hand percussion. As mentioned in earlier posts, the entire action takes place in what appears to be an insane asylum, with the characters telling the story with whatever means are at hand. So, most props are improvised, usually very well, sometimes less so. Tobias starts and ends the show in a straitjacket, so perhaps we are seeing the story from his point of view? Certain small scenes have been removed, largely due to the minimalism stated above: the Anthony birdseller scene, the tooth-pulling contest, a verse or two from a couple of the other songs. The judge's "Johanna" is included, but he does not flagellate himself. The omissions occasionally lead to some small confusion in the lyrics, as when Todd asks Tobias (about Pirelli's elixir:) "What about the money" when no one has bought anything. This, in my view, is a revival that will be most effective for those who have seen or done the show before. There are necessarily no scene changes, so it can be hard for newbies to understand where the action is supposed to be taking place. My wife, who is no fool, had never seen SWEENEY and felt a bit lost. This is not the best-sung SWEENEY that you will ever see...only Tobias, in my opinion, was as good a singer as in earlier casts. Cerveris can sing, as we've seen in TOMMY and TITANIC, but he doesn't have kind of big ol' baritone pipes that we're used to hearing in the role...Lupone garbles much of her diction, again a reason that this will work best for SWEENEY veterans...BUT, the characters are as well-realized as anyone could want, and are mostly completely believable. There are several roles that are done very differently than in the past, with astonishing results (not wanting to give away too much here...) *Pirelli is indeed played by a woman, I didn't care for the way she sung the role, but there you go. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for Sweeney fans, as if you needed further reason to see it! I wonder how long it will run, as it doesn't seem like the kind of show to attract a ton of tourist traffic...but, the minimal sets, small cast, etc. will maybe make the price right to go on as long as possible. Would be happy to try and answer any questions you have about how the show was done...ask soon while I still remember! Happy Holidays-- blue
Sweeney Todd	I saw the show, too, and I agree with most of what you said. The way I understood it was that Tobias had been sent to an asylum (probably Fogg's) after he killed Sweeney Todd. So then the story is told from his point of view in the asylum. I do agree that it was very confusing at times. I often felt like something was missing at times but didn't realize exactly which scenes were cut until I read your review.
IvanP	Dude... I saw the show on Monday... I was on the very left end of row K in the balcony, and you?
mizzie	I can't wait to see this show, only I'm Canadian and have to wait until the summer to go to New York! Great review, and since you only have one post, welcome to the site!
kindofblue1926	seats Ivan--we were in the very last row of the balcony, on the left-hand aisle--a funny little section with only two seats in it! You were probably about 10 feet away from us. --blue
Sweeney Todd	I saw the matinee on November 25th. I was in one of the middle seats of the middle row of the orchestra section. It was rather expensive but soooo worth it as this is my favorite musical.
IvanP	I was the tall adolescent in the brown sweater; I'm assuming you were one of the people who said, "Yay! We get to sit in the very back and make out!" when you found your seats. This is surreal...

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