The reviews are rolling in for the Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler's Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, which opened at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre March 26 after beginning previews February 26. Josh Groban and Tony winner Annaleigh Ashford star as Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett, and Tony-winning Hamilton director Thomas Kail is at the helm.
The revival features Jonathan Tunick's full, 26-piece orchestration for the first time on Broadway since the 1979 original production, under the baton of three-time Tony winner Alex Lacamoire.
Groban and Ashford share the stage with Jordan Fisher (Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen) as Anthony, Gaten Matarazzo (Stranger Things) as Tobias, Tony Award winner and Laurence Olivier Award nominee Ruthie Ann Miles (The King and I) as Beggar Woman, Maria Bilbao (On Your Feet!) as Johanna, Jamie Jackson (The Last Ship) as Judge Turpin, John Rapson (Les Misérables) as Beadle Bamford, and Nicholas Christopher (Hamilton) as Pirelli.
READ: Josh Groban Knows He's Not Your Typical Pick For Sweeney Todd
The ensemble includes Galyana Castillo, Jonathan Christopher, Taeler Cyrus, Timothy Hughes, Paul-Jordan Jansen, Alicia Kaori, Raymond J. Lee, Patricia Phillips, Samantha Pollino, Lexi Rabadi, Nathan Salstone, Kristie Dale Sanders, Stephen Tewksbury, Daniel Torres, Felix Torrez-Ponce, and DeLaney Westfall.
Rounding out the company are swings Dwayne Cooper, Kyrie Courter, Michael Kuhn, Megan Ort, Mia Pinero, and Hennessy Winkler; and standby Jeanna De Waal.
Read the reviews here.
Entertainment Weekly (Emlyn Travis)
New York Daily News (Chris Jones)
The New York Post (Johnny Oleksinski)
New York Stage Review (Bob Verini, Melissa Rose Bernardo)
New York Theatre Guide (Joe Dziemianowicz)
The New York Times (Jesse Green)*
TheaterMania (Zachary Stewart)
TheaterPizzazz (Carol Rocamora)
The Wall Street Journal (Charles Isherwood)*
The Washington Post (Peter Marks)*
*This review requires creating a free account or a paid subscription.
Playbill will continue to update this list as reviews come in.
Based on the Christopher Bond play of the same name, Sweeney Todd centers on its titular barber who seeks revenge on a corrupt judge and turns to murder, with neighbor and accomplice Mrs. Lovett ultimately discovering they can dispose of the evidence by serving up the most unsettling meat pies to the people of London.
The original production, which debuted on Broadway in 1979, won eight 1980 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, along with Best Actor and Actress nods for original stars Len Cariou and Angela Lansbury. The work has gone on to be regarded by many as one of Sondheim's masterpieces, with its epic, operatic scale letting it be equally at home on the musical theatre stage as it is at the opera house. The musical was revived on Broadway in 1989 and 2005, and Off-Broadway in 2017, all presenting the work on a smaller scale with dramatically smaller orchestrations. A film adaptation, directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter, was released in 2007.
The production features choreography by Steven Hoggett, scenic design by Mimi Lien, costume design by Emilio Sosa, lighting design by Natasha Katz, sound design by Nevin Steinberg, special effects design by Jeremy Chernick, and wig, hair, and make-up design by J. Jared Janas. Casting is by The Telsey Office, and Baseline Theatrical's Nick Lugo and James Hickey serve as general managers. Cody Renard Richard is production stage manager.
Jeffrey Seller leads the producing team, which also includes Bob Boyett, Diana DiMenna & Plate Spinner Productions/Aaron Glick, Eastern Standard Time, Roy Furman, Thomas Kail, Jim Kierstead/Benjamin Leon IV, and Tourdforce Theatrical. Maggie Brohn and Andy Jones are executive producers.
Visit SweeneyToddBroadway.com.
Annaleigh Ashford and Josh Groban in Sweeney Todd
Ruthie Ann Miles in Sweeney Todd
Jordan Fisher and Maria Bilbao in Sweeney Todd
Gaten Matarazzo, Annaleigh Ashford, Alicia Kaori, DeLaney Westfall, and Kristie Dale Sanders in Sweeney Todd
Nicholas Christopher and cast in Sweeney Todd
Jamie Jackson and John Rapson in Sweeney Todd
Annaleigh Ashford in Sweeney Todd
Josh Groban in Sweeney Todd
Gaten Matarazzo, Annaleigh Ashford, Josh Groban, Nathan Salstone, and cast of Sweeney Todd
Josh Groban and Annaleigh Ashford in Sweeney Todd
Josh Groban, Annaleigh Ashford, and cast of Sweeney Todd
