The New York Times

Aileen Jacobson
September 2, 2011

An Unbalanced Barber Returns, With Ample Blood

...it’s a thumping good theatrical event featuring soaring voices, twisted comedy, gripping melodrama and ample amounts of squirting blood. (Read complete review here)

Newsday

Gateway's 'Sweeney Todd': It's bloody good
August 30, 2011
Steve Parks

It's taken three decades for "Sweeney Todd," the dark but droll Sondheim masterpiece, to make its debut at Gateway Playhouse.

It's worth the wait.

Premiering in 1979, the American musical based on a British fable has become a regional theater staple throughout the English-speaking world.

Smartly directed by Dom Ruggiero, this "Demon Barber of Fleet Street" hews closer to Harold Prince's Broadway original than the 2005 revival in which each actor also played an instrument, and veers far from the 2007 movie in which Johnny Depp turned the angry barber into a matinee idol. Deploying a visual theme of staircases to nowhere -- wheeled about David Esler's grim set (soot-suggestive lighting by Brian Loesch, Victorian costumes by José Rivera) -- Ruggiero implies a second-story path to oblivion. That's the path Todd chooses when he restores his barbershop above Mrs. Lovett's squalid meat-pie emporium.

Todd, played by Jamie Jackson with a maniacal sneer that melts whenever fond memories breech his guard, returns to London following a 15-year banishment on false charges. His landlady informs him that his wife poisoned herself after the judge who exiled Todd raped her. Judge Turpin now means to force Todd's daughter, Johanna, to marry him.

Mrs. Lovett feeds Todd what she gleefully calls "The Worst Pies in London" before she recognizes him as her former tenant and fetches his gleaming razors. Seeking vengeance by means of a too-close shave, Todd conspires with Mrs. Lovett to increase her meat supply at a cutthroat rate.

Alicia Irving's operatic lilt contrasts harmoniously with Jackson's baleful bellow as their menu expands with each verse of "A Little Priest," the cleverest song about cannibalism ever devised. Bonnie Fraser as Johanna and Ken Clark as the suitor who plots her rescue are vocal chemistry mates, while Bruce Winant as Judge Turpin presents a pitiable, self-flagellating villain. Bryan Welnicki as the street urchin Mrs. Lovett takes in shows heartfelt gratitude in "Not While I'm Around."

Jodi Stevens as a pesky beggar, Robert Anthony Jones as the judge's sidekick and Scott Emerson as Todd's shaving rival round out a melodious cast accompanied with flawless exuberance by Jeff Hoffman's 10-piece orchestra. For those who've not seen any of myriad "Sweeney Todd" predecessors to Gateway's, be warned: The razor drips with blood.

Dans Hamptons

August 27, 2011
Roy Bradbrook

(print version in Dans Papers awaiting publication)

Perhaps it is as well that this was the last production of the 2011 series because I am in danger of running out of superlatives. Just when I thought nothing could beat their last production of ‘Sunset Boulevard’, lo and behold, Gateway did it with their first ever production of Stephen Sondheim’s ‘Sweeney Todd’.

Despite the macabre nature of the story, for me, Sondheim created the best ever musical when he wrote the music and lyrics back in 1979. He also created one of the most difficult to perform with its intricate musical changes of meter and keys plus Sondheim’s inimitably intricate verses that demand absolute precision in performance.

The casting for this show is perfection. All major and minor characters are played by actors with great voices and astounding acting ability. Sweeney Todd is a poor barber transported to Australia on trumped up charges by a corrupt judge who desires his wife. Sweeney manages to escape after fifteen years and returns to London intent on wrecking vengeance on the judge. His downward progress into the depths of depravity is chronicled by a ‘street chorus’ who add so much to the tensions and darkness of the story as it unfolds from the opening moment when they declaim, ‘Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd, he served a dark and a vengeful god’. Sweeney is played by Jamie Jackson, whose brilliant acting and great voice fill the role with scary passion, especially in the intense ‘Epiphany’ when Sweeney transforms from a husband seeking revenge for what happened to his wife to a demon filled crazed man intent on randomly killing his unsuspecting customers, who come in for a shave and never leave through the front door, as he works to satisfy his dark and vengeful god. Sweeney is aided and abetted by Mrs. Lovett whose meat pie business is facing ruin because of a meat shortage. The availability of a ready supply of a different type of meat seems to her too good to miss and ‘The Best Pies in London’ are the result! Only Sondheim could make this macabre Grand Guignol affair into a demonic yet comedic duet where Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett discuss the relative merits of pies made from amongst others, priests, lawyers and the one I love best, the ‘Shepherds pie with genuine shepherd on top’. Alicia Irvine is wonderful as Mrs. Lovett. She has the voice to hold its own against the powerful Jamie Jackson and she runs the whole gamut of emotions from her growing sexual feelings for Sweeney as she wishes for a day ‘By the Sea’ to her almost maternal feelings for the half witted Tobias (Brian Welnicki), who eventually proves to be their nemesis as she too slowly disintegrates into the madness that engulfs Sweeney, while the pair rush to their mutual self destruction.

Bruce Winant as the evil Judge Turpin and Robert Anthony Jones as his side kick the loathsome Beadle Bamford make you understand something of the horrors that have affected Sweeney especially as the judge lusts after Johanna, (Bonnie Fraser), his young ward, Sweeney’s daughter left alone after her mother Lucy had been raped by the judge and becomes a madwoman. Anthony (Ken Clark) the young sailor who meets and falls in love with Lucy provides the sweet moments of the show, especially as Anthony sings ‘Johanna’ and they both express their growing love in the duet ‘Kiss Me’.

The sets by David Esler are strikingly minimalist and perfectly fit the style of the show as do the costumes designed by Jose M. Rivera. The orchestra under Jeff Hoffman plays this very difficult score superbly and Dom Ruggiero’s expertise in direction and staging is seen to the full in this production.

Stephen Sondheim is on record as saying that he always ‘wanted to see if you could scare people with music, especially a 20th century audience which just came off the streets where there are much worse things going on’. Well he succeeded and in doing so created a masterpiece that anyone who loves the musical theater should see at least once. This production at Gateway is absolutely first class and will enthrall you for the whole evening. Go and see this show and be thankful that we have on Long Island Gateway, this exceptional company, that has brought us season after season of wonderful productions that regularly rival Broadway and London for quality.

The show runs until September 11th and tickets are available at 631 286 1133

Broadway World

SWEENEY TODD Slays at Gateway Playhouse
Estelle Hallick
August 31, 2011


It wasn't until we were in the deep depths of the first act of Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street at the Gateway Playhouse that I realized something. Stephen Sondheim has a way of evoking strange emotions out of his audience: creating human ties to men (and women) plotting to kill the Presidents of the United States (Assassins); evoking comedy as a young woman hysterically decides she's not ready to marry the morning of her wedding (Company); and moving a crowd as an artist triumphantly tops off his painting with a hat, as he mutters to himself (Sunday in the Park with George).

And here it was happening again on a muggy Friday evening in Bellport.

The audience was beside themselves with laughter as Mrs. Lovett joyously proclaimed she would be using human remains to improve "the worst pies in London." Under normal circumstances, we would be disgusted and steer clear of that establishment. (In New York, a brightly-colored F would adorn her front window.) And even though we think it's disgusting, we laugh and grin. Sondheim is always able to toy with our emotions, and we want him to!

Sweeney Todd, originally a play by Christopher Bond, tells the dark and twisted tale of a barber, Benjamin Barker, who returns to London under the guise of Sweeney Todd after being falsely accused of a crime and banned to Australia. While hoping to reunite with his wife and daughter, he soon finds out from Mrs. Lovett, his old neighbor and the pie-shop owner, that his wife poisoned herself after she was raped by the judge amongst a crowd, the same judge who sent Sweeney away and now has possession of his daughter. Immediately, Sweeney is out for revenge, revitalizing his barber business and waiting for the chance to make the judge pay. Of course, things get complicated quickly. Throw in contemptuous coincidences, an innocent love story, and some blood and you have yourself quite a dark comedy.

If the ability to sway an audience from shock to happiness to horror to sympathy and back again is the measure of a show's success, I'd say Gateway's current production of Sweeney Todd scores off the charts. Add in the eerie orchestrations, the impressive sopranos, and an electrifying chemistry amongst the actors, as well as the well-crafted and swiftly moving set, and you have yourself a fine cut. In the theater's final production of their summer series, they conquer a challenging musical and connect with their audience in a way that would make Sondheim proud.

Jamie Jackson's portrayal of Sweeney is a full body event -- the penetrating eyes, the aggressiveness of his movements, and the ability to transform seamlessly from heartbroken husband and father to vengeful monster. He is a tough character to crack. While Jackson could have easily made Sweeney a person to fear, he makes it impossible for the audience not to feel compassion for him. And of course there is Mrs. Lovett, played by Alicia Irving, who trots and twirls around the stage like a young school girl eager to please Mr. Todd. Carefully and subtly, her darker side reveals itself -- most effectively as she rocks a young Tobias during "Not When I'm Around."

Together, Jackson and Irving form a strong team as they ride a delicate line between triumph and destruction.

Something also has to be said about the magic of live theater. During the rousing performance of "By the Sea", there was a minor blip when Ms. Irving's chair arm broke off under her. Never once did she break character or miss a note. She heroically played up the comedy. Those little moments remind us why theater is so special -- no two performances are ever the same.

Most moving, though, were the performances of Bonnie Fraser (Johanna), Bryan Welnicki (Tobias) and Jodi Stevens (Beggar Woman). Ms. Fraser fit the mind, body, soul, and sound of Joanna -- innocent, caged, and confused, while Welnicki dutifully played the purest heart of the entire show with a strong, beautiful voice and devastingly convincing demise as the production moved to a close. Even those who are not familiar with Sweeney Todd can't help but be drawn to the Beggar Woman, whether it be for her down and dirty comedy or sudden melodies. Nonetheless, Ms. Stevens serves as the conscience of the play, the reminder that your heart is still ticking under the engrossing storyline.

In the end, it takes more than a strong story to ensure a satisfied audience. Gateway Playhouse has delivered the full package with Sweeney Todd -- the music remains chilling, the sets and the costumes are well-done and believable, and most importantly, they have taken a musical first staged thirty-two years ago on Broadway and made it just as relevant today. There is no doubt audiences left the theatre discussing the implications and true meanings behind this story, and just like I did, continued to hum the music for the rest of the weekend and beyond.

Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is playing now through September 11th at the Gateway Playhouse in Bellport, NY. For scheduling and tickets, please visit www.gatewayplayhouse.org.