I must confess that until last summer I was pretty unfamiliar with most of Sondheim's output; I had seen the Tim Burton film of Sweeney Todd, and knew some of his more famous numbers, but that was about it. However, I was lucky enough to be involved in the original Chichester run of Sweeney Todd that Tom Service mentions in his blog, directed by Jonathan Kent, and that is now previewing at the Adelphi.
It's a fine line, I think, between Sondheim at his best and serious opera. The "Epiphany" scene in ST, where the character pretty much decides to become a serial killer, sent shivers down my spine at every performance. The power of the music, allied to superb performances from Michael Ball and Imelda Staunton, had packed houses on their feet at every performance. The music is on a different level from that of, say, Andrew Lloyd Webber, probably the most well-known of musical theatre composers.
I also had the privilige of meeting Mr. Sondheim when he came to see the show at Chichester. He was charming, and loved the production so much that he changed his plans, stayed in Chichester, and came to see it a second time.
I am of course, somewhat biased, but I would urge you to try and see this production if you possibly can.
). A pupil of Milton Babbitt, by the way.
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