Bloody awesome
THEATER REVIEW
by KARL SCHEITHEIR Bee Entertained Editor

Lisa Ludwig is Mrs. Lovett and John Fredo is Sweeney Todd in MusicalFare's production of "Sweeney Todd." Photo by Chris Cavanagh

MusicalFare Theatre's production of Stephen Sondheim's "Sweeney Todd" is bloody awesome.

The musical centers on the title character - formerly known as Benjamin Barker.

You learn from the opening song that Barker was a man who had a joyful life with a beautiful wife and baby, stolen from him by a corrupt and lecherous judge.

Barker has escaped from the penal colonies in Australia, where he has spent 15 years on false charges. The legendary Sweeney Todd, the demon barber of Fleet Street, is born - hell-bent on revenge.

Sweeney Todd is portrayed in this production by Buffalo's own John Fredo. This is a truly magnificent, passionate and sinister performance from Fredo.

Todd learns from Mrs. Lovett (Lisa Ludwig), whose meat pies are the worst in London, that his wife, Lucy (Debbie Pappas), poisoned herself after being raped by Judge Turpin (Tom Owen) - the man who wrongly imprisoned him, and that his daughter, Johanna (Eliza Hayes Maher), is the ward of the same Judge Turpin.

Todd vows revenge to all people in his hometown - "a hole in the world [that] is like a great black pit and the vermin of the world inhabit it, and its morals aren't worth what a pin can spit, and it goes by London!"

Todd and Lovett become conspirators in a dark, yet delicious plot that results in mass murder, a booming business for Lovett's shop and ultimately tragedy. Justice is "served" - indeed.

Ludwig's performance as Ms. Lovett is strong and comical - just as it should be. If you've heard Angela Lansbury's original or Patti LuPone's revival soundtracks, she has some pretty big shoes to fill. I think she does a great job.

The cast also includes Christopher M. Howard as Anthony Hope, Loraine O'Donnell as Pirelli, Kurt Guba as Tobias Ragg, Robert E. Tucker as Jonas and Philip Farugia as Beadle.

Sondheim's score is one of his most complex to date. Relying heavily on counterpoint and rich, angular harmonies, its compositional style has been compared to those of Maurice Ravel, Sergei Prokofiev and Bernard Herrmann. Fredo, Ludwig, Howard and Guba handle this music very well. Pianists Theresa E. Quinn and Nathan R. Matthews do an outstanding job throughout the production, too.

Producer/director Randall Kramer's adjustments for the small space of MusicalFare work well with Kathy Weese's choreography, Chris Schenck's sparse set and Chris Cavanagh's eerie lighting and sound design. The sheer curtains separating the actors and audience into different levels also adds to the myster y.

Olivia Ebsary's period costumes and Susan Drozd's makeup and wig designs work well in the production. The use of masks and additions or subtractions from costumes are perfect for a small company.

You'll have a bloody great time at "Sweeney Todd." I can't wait to see more of the three-year Sondheim musical retrospective in store from MusicalFare.

Performances are 7 p.m. Wednesdays, 7:30 p.m. Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays, 4 and 8 p.m. Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays through Sunday, Feb. 10 at MusicalFare Theatre, on the Daemen College campus, 4380 Main St., Amherst. Tickets are $30-$34 and are available by calling 839-8540. For more information, visit www.musicalfare.com.