SWEENEY TODD
THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET
Gateway Theatre
A Victorian-era barber, wrongfully imprisoned for 15 years, returns to London hungry for revenge on the corrupt judge who ruined his life. But when his prey eludes him, Sweeney swears vengeance on all humanity, murdering indiscriminately while his associate Mrs. Lovett bakes the bodies into meat pies to sell to the unsuspecting public. One of the darkest musicals ever written, Sweeney Todd may be Sondheim's most perfect score, full of soaring beauty, pitch-black comedy and stunning terror.
TRICK BARBER CHAIR design by David Esler
engineering & construction by Andrew Mingino & Mark Frederick
finish carpentry by Ryan Brooke
paint treatment by Keeley Dorwart
MEAT GRINDER design by David Esler
construction by Rob Bursztyn
paint treatment by Keeley Dorwart
BAKE OVEN design by David Esler
construction by Ryan Brooke
paint treatment by Keeley Dorwart
concept rendering
SWEENEY TODD
book by Hugh Wheeler, music & lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Gateway Theatre
director Dom Ruggiero
musical director Jeff Hoffmann
scenic design David Esler
lighting design Brian Loesch
costume design José M. Rivera
cast: Nathan Anderson, Derek Basthemer, Kristine Bennett, Ken Clark, Peyton Crim, Scott Emerson, Caitlin Fischer, Bonnie Fraser, Kevin Gutches, Matthew Hoffman, Alicia Irving, Jamie Jackson, Robert Anthony Jones, Ryan Koerber, Madison Mulvey, Jessica Norland, Matthew Nowak, Kimberly Sherbach, Jodi Stevens, Ian Michael Stuart, Brian C. Veith, Megan Wean, Bryan Welnicki, Miles Whittaker, Bruce Winant
photos by Jeff Bellante, David Esler
A thumping good theatrical event featuring soaring voices, twisted comedy, gripping melodrama and ample amounts of squirting blood. The production, directed by Dom Ruggiero, finds its own way into the musical’s heart of darkness. A ten-piece orchestra, under Jeff Hoffman’s direction, perches on a platform above the stage and provides sumptuous accompaniment. The platform is part of David Esler’s excellent set, which also includes rolling staircases and a movable pie shop with Sweeney’s tonsorial parlor above it. The set is greatly enhanced by Brian Loesch’s smoky lighting and Jose M. Rivera’s varied costumes."
–Aileen Jacobson, New York Times
Gateway’s Sweeney Todd is bloody good! It’s taken three decades for the dark but droll Sondheim masterpiece to make its debut at Gateway Playhouse. It's worth the wait. ... 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) — [director Dom] 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."
–Steve Parks, Newsday
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. Gateway Playhouse has delivered the full package — the music remains chilling, the sets and the costumes are well-done and believable ... In the theater's final production of the summer, they conquer a challenging musical and connect with their audience in a way that would make Sondheim proud.
–Estelle Hallick, BroadwayWorld.com
I am in danger of running out of superlatives. The cast is perfection. 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. [Sweeney Todd] at Gateway is absolutely first class.
–Roy Bradbrook, Dan's Hamptons