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Sweeney Todd 2023 Broadway Revival
Apr. 2nd, 2023 03:39 pmI saw the current Broadway revival of Sweeney Todd (this is its third Broadway revival since the original 1979 run). If you have never seen Sweeney Todd, I would definitely recommend. I mean, it’s my favorite musical. I’m going to recommend it.
If you have seen Sweeney Todd before and are wondering if this is the version to see—I would say it depends on whether you prefer the original cast recording with full orchestra or one of the “teeny Todds” with stripped back orchestration. This is the first time Sweeney Todd has been brought back with a full chorus (25 actors total) and full orchestra (26 players, including 3 trombones). To my ear, “Epiphany” doesn’t sound right without three trombones. This is as close as you’re going to get to the experience of the original production.
( More detail, including spoilers )
To sum up—I was obsessed with Sweeney Todd in high school, based just off of the original Broadway cast recording. When I say that no version ever lives up to the version in my head, that’s literally true. I fell in love with what I imagined, not any performed version of it. I really didn’t like the previous two revivals. The 2005 was too Brechtian. It wanted to comment on itself and put an ironic distance to the melodrama, which is the wrong choice. The 2017 off-Broadway (in a pie shop) I think was just too small for me to fully engage with.
This version is pretty dang close to the version in my head. Having the full orchestra and the full staging really makes a difference, even though I was in row XX of the orchestra and so far under the balcony overhang it sounded a bit like it was in a bathtub. This version is also engaging with the melodrama fully. I kept thinking—gosh, I’m watching an opera. This is an opera. (And it has been performed by opera companies many times.) Not just because it’s mostly sung, but because the emotions have far more similarity to Carmen than they do to Company.
Definitely go see it if you’re inclined to a musical thriller, but be prepared, both for the content and the butt-numbing length.
If you have seen Sweeney Todd before and are wondering if this is the version to see—I would say it depends on whether you prefer the original cast recording with full orchestra or one of the “teeny Todds” with stripped back orchestration. This is the first time Sweeney Todd has been brought back with a full chorus (25 actors total) and full orchestra (26 players, including 3 trombones). To my ear, “Epiphany” doesn’t sound right without three trombones. This is as close as you’re going to get to the experience of the original production.
( More detail, including spoilers )
To sum up—I was obsessed with Sweeney Todd in high school, based just off of the original Broadway cast recording. When I say that no version ever lives up to the version in my head, that’s literally true. I fell in love with what I imagined, not any performed version of it. I really didn’t like the previous two revivals. The 2005 was too Brechtian. It wanted to comment on itself and put an ironic distance to the melodrama, which is the wrong choice. The 2017 off-Broadway (in a pie shop) I think was just too small for me to fully engage with.
This version is pretty dang close to the version in my head. Having the full orchestra and the full staging really makes a difference, even though I was in row XX of the orchestra and so far under the balcony overhang it sounded a bit like it was in a bathtub. This version is also engaging with the melodrama fully. I kept thinking—gosh, I’m watching an opera. This is an opera. (And it has been performed by opera companies many times.) Not just because it’s mostly sung, but because the emotions have far more similarity to Carmen than they do to Company.
Definitely go see it if you’re inclined to a musical thriller, but be prepared, both for the content and the butt-numbing length.
