“Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” is one of the most critically acclaimed Broadway musicals ever made. Originally turned into a musical by Broadway legend Stephen Sondheim, the show reached wider audiences in 2007 when it was adapted for the screen by Tim Burton.
Now New Trier, under the guiding hand of David Ladd, has produced its own version of the wildly popular musical.
Both casts shared one thing: the NT Chamber Orchestra. They were absolutely incredible, perfectly shifting from moody and atmospheric to light and peppy at a moment’s notice, helping to provide the sense of beauty that shown through at even the darkest moments of the musical. And believe me, there was no shortage of dark moments.
“We’ve done dark plays before, though this is a school edition of it, so it’s modified slightly,” said Director Ladd. I don’t know what got cut, as this was the first version I’ve seen, but it must be pretty twisted, as everything from rape to cannibalism got through in this version.
“Sweeney Todd” tells the story of a barber returned to London in disguise, having been banished by a corrupt judge fifteen years prior. When he returns his wife is dead by suicide – she was raped by the Judge while mocked by onlookers, and his daughter is in the care of the very same Judge. Oh, and the Judge wants to marry the daughter as well.
Needless to say, Sweeney Todd”does not take the news well, and he vows revenge. He and Mrs. Lovett, a baker who lives below him, begin to murder his customers and bake them into pies.
Amazingly enough, their antics are also quite funny; I found myself laughing quite a bit, even during some of these darker moments.
The part of Sweeney Todd was played by Patrick O’Conner in cast B, which performed on Friday and Sunday. O’Conner’s performance was overall very good. His singing was excellent, and he truly captured Todd’s wild shifts in mood, as well as the way his dark obsession with revenge was destroying him.
The standout performance was Dina Menegas in the role of Mrs. Lovett. Her singing voice was gorgeous, and she managed to make an incredibly deranged character lovable. But most of all, she brought a real sense of fun to the character.
Her energy was infectious, and she lit up the stage whenever she entered it. Her sense of comedic timing was perfect as well, and she provided most of the laughs of the evening.
Oddly enough, the only true romance in the musical was a subplot. Anthony Hope, a bright-eyed young sailor who rescued Todd when he was lost at sea, falls in love with Todd’s daughter, Johanna. These two characters also provide my only real complaint about the musical. While both parts were played excellently by Billy Sefton and Danielle Newmark, I never really cared about either of them.
Sure, they helped drive the plot forward, but that’s all they ever felt like: plot devices. They fall in love as quickly as possible, and then they stay that way the rest of the musical. They have some of the most beautiful songs in the musical, and Sefton had the best voice, but I still found myself kind of bored when the play focused on them.
The musical ends with quite the twist. While some might have seen it coming – like the rather loud girl next to me – I was genuinely surprised. Looking back, the foreshadowing was all there, which makes the writing even better.
Now, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the stage design for the musical. Once again, the set crew utilized New Trier’s rotating stage to spectacular effect, managing to create three different backgrounds with one structure. This allowed for almost seamless scene changes, and I was continually impressed with it.
Overall, New Trier’s production of “Sweeney Todd” was excellent, with my only complaint coming from the musical itself. Although New Trier’s production isn’t showing anymore, I still recommend viewing the masterpiece. Pick up the Tim Burton version and enjoy Captain Jack Sparrow, Severus Snape, and Bellatrix Lestrange in a much different context.