Steadstyle Chicago
	April 2008 Theatre Review by Ruth Smerling
	Looking for a Ticket Broker? Check out the hottest broadway tickets from Gotickets.com Sweeney Todd Critical Evaluation: *** out of **** Broadway in Chicago presents Judy Kaye and David Hess in the National Tour of "Sweeney Todd" at the Cadillac Palace Theatre.  Photos by DavidAllenStudio.com. "Sweeney Todd", winner of countless awards, Stephen Sondheim’s hit Broadway musical has made its way to Chicago’s opulent Cadillac Palace Theatre.  "Sweeney Todd" is a gothic tale that’s been around in one form or another for nearly two hundred years.  It’s the story “with a little bit of truth” of the infamous English barber (David Hess) whose life is turned upside down when his wife and child catch the eye of a corrupt Judge (Keith Butterbaugh).  Soon Todd is sentenced to a long term in prison on a trumped up charge and his wife and daughter are taken in by the diabolical Judge Turpin.  Once out of prison, drained of all semblance of humanity, like a wild beast, Todd vows to get revenge on the Judge and take his family back.  He visits the shop below his former home and meets Mrs. Lovett (Judy Kaye).  Mrs. Lovett makes “the worst pies in London” and informs him that his daughter is still alive, but his wife, no longer able to cope with her despair, has killed herself.  But the good news is that Mrs. Lovett has saved his barber kit.  Soon he’s back in business.  But instead of giving his customers a close shave, he cuts the throats of all who have wronged him.  Mrs. Lovett at first appalled by the sight of the gore, soon makes lemons into lemonade and grinds the bodies into meat for what soon become known as the tastiest pies.  So Sweeney Todd gets revenge and Mrs. Lovett gets the business boost she’s been needing so desparately, the best of both worlds.  "Sweeney Todd" combines a wonderful cast, haunting music and an eerie, creepy story that will thrill, terrify and delight theatergoers.  As a musical comedy, it’s very tongue and cheek, but the characters of Sweeney Todd and Mrs. Lovett played respectively by David Hess and Judy Kaye with their brilliant voices, resonate for a long time.  The common British vernacular is a bit thick, and even worth a trip to the internet for a glossary because the phrasing is interesting and delivered naturally by these fine actors.  "Sweeney Todd" has won countless awards throughout the theatre going world because it is original an audacious.  It dares to challenge an audience and lead them to thoughts that will shake them up forever.  For those who dare, "Sweeney Todd" will run through May 4 at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 West Randolph Street.  Tickets are available in the reasonable price range of $25 to $75 and can be purchased at all Broadway in Chicago Box Offices, or by phoning Ticketmaster, 312-902-1400.    Sweeney Todd Review by Alan Bresloff Most of my regular readers know that I am a lover of the works of Stephen Sondheim and one of my favorite works is "Sweeney Todd".  This musical with a book by Hugh Wheeler dates back to 1979 and audiences were amazed at this spectacular production done in a converted warehouse with a full scale orchestra and a cast of 30 who sang this almost operatic score while portraying the wretched characters of Fleet Street in 19th century London.  In 2005, British director John Doyle pared this production down allowing for smaller stages and casts of  a much lower number. In fact the touring production currently at the Cadillac Palace Theatre is just that, a 10 member multi-talented cast of actors/musicians/singers who tell the tale of Sweeney Todd in a much more intimate way, almost concert style.  And although this is a superb production that will blow your mind, it belongs on a smaller stage in a more intimate theater.  While this production has cut down the size of the stage and the talent is gigantic, it would be much more enjoyable on a smaller stage. The audience does not get cheated by this smaller version of this classic musical as they get the full drama and emotion that Sondheim's score was meant to produce.  In fact without the large orchestra, there is never a time when the sound of the music overpowers the voices and the story itself.  With no real set, but the use of a great number of props we get the picture of what the story is all about.  If you do not know the story (many have seen the recent film), it is one of revenge and love.  Sweeney Todd was a barber on Fleet Street with a wife and daughter.  The local Judge was in love with his wife and had the barber sent to prison.  The judge moved the wife into his home with her daughter, but she escaped.  The daughter became the Ward of the Judge and as she matured he wanted her as his bride.  It is a charming story despite the revenge and blood/gore and the music is both haunting and beautiful with marvelous melodies such as "Johanna" and "Not While I'm Around" and comic numbers like " A Little Priest" and "Kiss Me". When Todd returns for his revenge he opens his new shop above Mrs. Lovett's restaurant where her meat pies are mostly meatless.  But they share a secret that I will not divulge and she has fresh meat daily as her shop becomes the hit of the town.  "A Little Priest" makes more sense once you get the story.  This cast is dynamic, each playing their own music and instrument (with the exception of the keyboard) being used almost as a prop.  In fact, some of the instruments become near characters.  Most of these players are from the New York revival of 2006 and are fun to watch.  Judy Kaye is a strong Mrs. Lovett with great comic timing and you could not ask for a better actor/singer than David Hess as Sweeney. Edmund Bagnell , Katrina Yaukey, Steve McIntyre, Benjamin Magnuson (a fine tenor), Keith Buterbaugh, Diana DiMarzio, Benjamin Eakeley and Lauren Molina (Johanna at her best) are the rest of the cast members/musicians.  These ten people are a perfect group to bring this story to life in a very enjoyable theatrical experience. An experience that should not be missed. It's a shame you only have until May 4th to catch this production at The Cadillac Palace Theatre located at  151 West Randolph Street. Performances are Tuesday,Wednesday and Thursday at 7: 30 p.m., Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m.  Tickets range from $25 to $75 and are available at all Broadway in Chicago box offices, through the Broadway in Chicago Ticketline at 312-902-1400, at all Ticketmaster outlets or online at www.ticketmaster.com.   About Alan Bresloff Alan Bresloff, once an actor himself, has been covering the Chicago Theater Scene since 1993, first as the Theater and Arts critic for LaRaza newspaper, then with Salsachicago.com and then onto Extra Newspaper and The EpochTimes.  He also writes for ElImparcial and TeleGuia.  His reviews can also be seen on www.theatreinchicago.com.  Alan does not call himself a "critic" but a "reviewer" as he tries to educate the reader about theater itself, what is a good value, what to look for in a play or musical and more.  "Exposure to theater is a very important part of a young person's life" he says. "Learning about the arts and culture is in fact learning about life" and he tries to explain more in his reviews than just if it is good or bad.  Even some of the poor productions have some value, he often says and he would love your feedback on shows that you have seen.  You can write him here or at albresloff@sbcglobal.net.