Sondheim's Sweeney Todd in Concert - My Friends - 2001
George Hearn (Sweeney Todd),
Patti LuPone (Mrs. Lovett),
Davis Gaines (Anthony),
Lisa Vroman (Johanna),
Victoria Clark (Beggar Woman),
Neil Patrick Harris (Tobias),
John Aler (Beadle),
Stanford Olsen (Pirelli),
Timothy Nolen, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra and Chorus
Stage Production Notes
With music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Hugh Wheeler, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a “dark operetta” that tells the story of a London barber who seeks revenge on the judge who destroyed his life by slaughtering his customers and turning them into pies.
Unlike other shows of the period, Sweeney Todd did not have an out-of-town try-out before its Broadway opening. Following 19 previews, the show opened at the Uris Theatre on March 1, 1979. The production was directed by Harold Prince, and starred Len Cariou and Angela Lansbury.
Sweeney Todd received mixed reviews. Writing for the New York Times, Walter Kerr stated that the “performances can scarcely be faulted” though claimed the music got in the way of the story. While lamenting there was “no serious social message” in the show, critic Richard Eder described the score as “fascinating… wicked, witty, [and] muscular” and claimed that Sweeney “is the kind of work… that makes second‐thinking obligatory.”
Despite whatever the critics thought, Sweeney Todd was nominated for multiple awards. Amongst its many accolades, the production won 8 Tony Awards, including the awards for Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, Best Original Score, Best Actor in a Musical (Len Cariou), Best Actress in a Musical (Angela Lansbury), Best Scenic Design (Eugene Lee), Best Costume Design (Franne Lee), and Best Director (Harold Prince).
After 557 regular performances, the original Broadway production of Sweeney Todd closed on June 29, 1980.
Although deemed a commercial flop, Sweeney Todd has become a staple in the musical theatre canon, widely performed at professional and amateur levels. The show has been twice revived on Broadway, received five productions on the West End, and played in countless full-scale and concert versions around the world.
A movie version directed by Tim Burton, and starring Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter was released 2007.
Seven productions of Sweeney Todd have been filmed live for distribution.
North American National Tour (1982)
Royal National Theatre, BBC (1994)
Barcelona Cast, Spanish television (1995)
Opera North, BBC (1998)
New York City Center production, performance with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Starring George Hearn and Patti LuPone, PBS (2001)
Opera House, BBC (2003)
New York Philharmonic Concert version, PBS (2014)
Filmed Production Notes
The New York Philharmonic staged a concert version of Sweeney Todd in May 2000. Director Lonny Price described the Kabuki-inspired production as “Pacific Overtures meets Sweeney Todd.”
The three performances were completely sold out, and received rave reviews. In an enthusiastic review for the New York Times, music critic Barry Singer stated that the concert “revealed… a musical richness and formal sophistication previously suspected but never before so emphatically confirmed.”
In July 2001, the concert version was re-mounted in San Francisco with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. George Hearn and Patti LuPone reprised their leading roles from the New York concert.
The San Francisco concert was filmed live by PBS. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Concert aired as a Halloween special on October 31, 2001.
The program won an Emmy for Outstanding Musical Program.
Like the concerts, the filmed live recording received rave reviews. In a review for The Washington Post, Megan Rosenfeld stated the concert version “feels anything but stingy, luxuriating in Stephen Sondheim's music and offering a wealth of first-rate performances.” Chris Alexander, writing for ComingSoon.net, extolled “This particular version… is a marvel and, with affectations stripped, gives you the chance to fully appreciate Sondheim’s genius…” One reviewer described it as “the best captured performance out there.”
