Dark musical ‘Sweeney Todd’ shows extreme behavior

    A throat-slashing barber who disposes of his victims with the help of an immoral cook and some unusual meat pies might seem more like a police report than the description for a musical.

    However, “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” is just that, and Polytech Alumni Drama will portray that dark side of human nature with some tongue-in-cheek humor this weekend at the Schwartz Center for the Arts.

    Director Sharon Crossen said the musical gives its young actors an opportunity to stretch themselves by its very unusualness.

    Sweeney Todd is a barber who returns to London after years of exile to discover his wife and daughter have been stolen by Judge Turpin. To get his revenge, he sets up a plan with Mrs. Lovett, who owns a pie shop, to slice the throats of the unsuspecting public while giving them a shave and then bake the bodies into the pies — all in the hopes of getting the judge in his chair.

    Crossen got the idea to perform “Sweeney Todd” after she and many of her students, former and current, saw the musical last year at the University of Delaware, and she’s very proud of how it has come together in the six weeks they’ve had to rehearse.

    The cast is approximately half alumni and half current Polytech High School students.

    The play is supposedly based on fact, which Crossen said piques the interest of everyone.

    “This drama is popular with actors and audiences for the same reasons they find Poe, Stephen King, Dean Koontz and others appealing,” she said. “They bring us to the edge emotionally with characters who, often, are not sympathetic and they do that in the context of a dark mood.”

    Eric Hamilton, 20, said this is his first title role and “Sweeney Todd” is one of his favorite shows. When he worked nights at Dover Downs Hotel & Casino and had downtime he learned the lines so playing the barber was a perfect fit.

    “I think it appeals to people like myself that don’t like the campy-ness of Broadway,” he said.

    He’s planning on playing Todd with characterization from both the Broadway play and the 2007 Tim Burton movie. Hamilton said he’s using the dark brooding of Johnny Depp from the movie — as well as the crazy hair — and the angry, loudness of George Hearn from the play.

    Polytech 2007 graduate Kara Boland plays the strong-willed Mrs. Lovett, which is a departure for her from her recent roles as an acting major at Arcadia University in Philadelphia.

    “It’s intriguing because she’ll do absolutely anything to get what she wants,” Boland said, adding, “I’ve never played anyone who would put someone in a meat pie.”

    The play is so dark that Boland said her mom wasn’t sure if she would want to see it, but now after watching part of the movie, she is more receptive.

    “You see the extreme sides of people,” Boland said, while the music drives everything that goes on.

    Hamilton said learning the songs has been challenging for many because they might sing the same song three times throughout the play but each time with slightly different tone and words.

    Both Boland and Hamilton pointed to how having the elaborate sets to rehearse with has been very helpful.

    “Using that chair, using all of that brought it all together,” Boland said, pointing to Sweeney Todd’s notorious barber chair.

    Crossen said audiences shouldn’t be scared away by dark tone; there’s still romance, relationships, choreography, beautiful melodies, comedy and drama.

    “The macabre theme attracts people even as it repulses them,” she said.

Email Jayne Gest at jayne.gest@doverpost.com

IF YOU GO
WHAT: “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”
WHEN: 7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 29, 2 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 30
WHERE: Schwartz Center for the Arts, 226 S. State St., Dover
ADMISSION: $10
MORE INFO: Visit www.schwartzcenter.com or call 678-5152