So I've been really lazy about getting these posts up - but here goes!
GW's Department of Theater and Dance certainly did not hold anything back with this year's musical production of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Everything this department has to offer - from powerhouse actors to top-notch designers - got poured into this production, and it shows. While I might not go so far as to call the musical a "thriller" as the poster proclaims, the grit and grime thrown onto the stage made the Dorothy Betts Marvin Theater just the right kind of disgusting.
Sweeney has been a long run. With casting back in May, and rehearsals beginning early this semester, the team has been at it for several months. But, rather than resulting in a stale, over-rehearsed, performance, the cast put all they had into it. And, despite the many difficulties the technical side faced (a finicky automation device, hurricane, low man power, a hurricane, a fire alarm, and not being allowed to use their hazer), they managed to pull off a beautifully designed, nearly flawless technical production.
Company Presentation:
With two departments promoting the musical every year (TRDA and Music), it's easy to see why seeing Sweeney has been such a pervasive thought amongst the performance community at GW. Department musicals are always heavily advertised, and this production was no exception. Posters littered the Marvin Center and Rome/Phillips. But, then again, with a poster that gorgeous why wouldn't you want it everywhere? Sure, it may be a little text heavy - but considering the amount of nonsense you're legally required to put on advertisement for a Sondheim production, Kirk did damn good.
Set:
Simple design, excellent set dressing - gorgeous. When I says simple though, what I really mean is simply to look at. In reality, it was rather complex. Beautifully constructed back drops filled the gaping chasm that can, at times, be the betts stage. Not to mention that automated cube. Seriously, who puts a completely automated, rotating cube on stage? The GW Department of Theater and Dance that's who. And despite the troubles they had with it during tech week - it was extremely effective. Having seen the evolution of the set from bare stage through final construction, I was impressed with the changes everyday. The final touch, which was probably my favor part of the set, was the newspapers and ads pasted all over the walls creating the feel of a well lived in London.
Lights:
Any theater professional would love this light design, but if you don't know the intricacies of lighting design it may have been a little tough. The pattern work and colors were expertly chosen by Department Producer Carl Gudenis. But, for those hoping to see the glitz and glam of a big musical, you would have been disappointed. Carl's design was not about looking pretty, if anything it was the exact opposite. In fact, it was one of the few places where the grit and grime I was looking for really came through. Personally, I loved Carl's design. I thought it was intricate and exciting and that his selective lighting choices were perfectly done.
Acting:
Boy are there some things to say about the acting in this show. It might be worth it for you to skip ahead, read my directing section, and then come back though. I'm going to break it down now by pulling out a few people:
Chorus: Ok, I know the chorus isn't a singular person, but they deserve a section all their own. For me, the chorus was a little lackluster. That's not say they did poorly, just that they didn't have the force and strength they needed to overcome the micing of the leads. But in "city on fire" all the sudden they were THERE. That number was far and away the best piece of work the chorus did with "God that's good" being a close second. It was, however, fun to watch the inner relationships that the chorus created. It seemed each one of them had a little back story of their own.
Lizzy Marmon: Bias warning, Lizzy is my roommate and my favorite person in the world to make art with. This was one of Lizzy's best performances by far. What amazes me about her as an actress is the fact that I know her in real life. What I mean by that, is Lizzy turns into a completely different person on stage like no one else I know. Her Mrs. Lovett was deeply layered, funny, and most importantly honest. Every word that came out of her mouth I believed. To highlight a single moment: the end of the show, with Lucy dead and Sweeney enraged, Lovett sinks to her knees singing "I love you." And it was breathtaking. All of Lovett's hopes and failings were summed up in one single line. Even if you didn't like a single other moment of the show, it was worth it for this.
Mike Noel: Mike was actually acting! While I might describe his performance as "not quite crude enough" I was still rather impressed. His voice was fantastic and his acting more than acceptable. In has grand epiphany that we "all deserve to die", he was truly frightening - challenging the audience and Lovett alike. The moment gave credence to the phrase "perhaps today you gave a nod, to sweeney todd" and made it a terrifying prospect.
Kevin Frye: Dayum voice. That is all. Good job.
John Gearhart: John stuck out like a sore thumb in this production. While I empathize with him, in that he was playing one of the campiest and cheesiest roles musical theater has to offer - I was still disappointed in his performance. His facial expressions were flat and his emotion, at times, resembled that of a toaster someone had drawn a smiley face on. What got me the most though, is that the idea of motivated movement seemed to go entirely over his head - though this may be a problem with the directing more than anything else. I don't particularly know John personally, and don't mean to be offensive - but I had hoped for a lot more.
Directing:
Director Muriel Von Villas is an opera director, and that's what she should stick to. While the music was done beautifully (likely a credit to music director Patrick O'Donnell), the rest of the show displayed a lack of power that clearly came down from the director. Muriel is a master of creating a stage picture. But she's not so good at getting people into it. At best the blocking was boring or clearly driven by the actor, at worst it was unmotivated and awkward. But, what hurt most about the directing was the lack of depth. Sweeney Todd has the opportunity to be a complex, dramatic, and powerful production. It should have knocked me back into my seat (and with some of these performers, I suppose it did at times). The problem was that it just wasn't quite in your face enough. The general M.O. of this production seemed to be "stand here, sing this". Character didn't seem to be a huge concern for Muriel either, allowing several performers to slide by on simply the bare essentials. In general, the production simply lacked a layer of depth that only a director could provide - and she simply let it slide.
The department's production of Sweeney Todd was, overall, very enjoyable. It was a GREAT college production. So, I don't want anyone to misunderstand me when I say this department could have done more. I only expected more of this department because of the incredible level of talent centered here. Still, the production was fantastic, and the leads really blew it away - not to mention the absolutely incredible design choices.
Next up is Generic Theater Company's: American Buffalo. Look for that review to be up tomorrow!
See you in the theater,
Ed
Set:
Simple design, excellent set dressing - gorgeous. When I says simple though, what I really mean is simply to look at. In reality, it was rather complex. Beautifully constructed back drops filled the gaping chasm that can, at times, be the betts stage. Not to mention that automated cube. Seriously, who puts a completely automated, rotating cube on stage? The GW Department of Theater and Dance that's who. And despite the troubles they had with it during tech week - it was extremely effective. Having seen the evolution of the set from bare stage through final construction, I was impressed with the changes everyday. The final touch, which was probably my favor part of the set, was the newspapers and ads pasted all over the walls creating the feel of a well lived in London.
Lights:
Any theater professional would love this light design, but if you don't know the intricacies of lighting design it may have been a little tough. The pattern work and colors were expertly chosen by Department Producer Carl Gudenis. But, for those hoping to see the glitz and glam of a big musical, you would have been disappointed. Carl's design was not about looking pretty, if anything it was the exact opposite. In fact, it was one of the few places where the grit and grime I was looking for really came through. Personally, I loved Carl's design. I thought it was intricate and exciting and that his selective lighting choices were perfectly done.
Acting:
Boy are there some things to say about the acting in this show. It might be worth it for you to skip ahead, read my directing section, and then come back though. I'm going to break it down now by pulling out a few people:
Chorus: Ok, I know the chorus isn't a singular person, but they deserve a section all their own. For me, the chorus was a little lackluster. That's not say they did poorly, just that they didn't have the force and strength they needed to overcome the micing of the leads. But in "city on fire" all the sudden they were THERE. That number was far and away the best piece of work the chorus did with "God that's good" being a close second. It was, however, fun to watch the inner relationships that the chorus created. It seemed each one of them had a little back story of their own.
Lizzy Marmon: Bias warning, Lizzy is my roommate and my favorite person in the world to make art with. This was one of Lizzy's best performances by far. What amazes me about her as an actress is the fact that I know her in real life. What I mean by that, is Lizzy turns into a completely different person on stage like no one else I know. Her Mrs. Lovett was deeply layered, funny, and most importantly honest. Every word that came out of her mouth I believed. To highlight a single moment: the end of the show, with Lucy dead and Sweeney enraged, Lovett sinks to her knees singing "I love you." And it was breathtaking. All of Lovett's hopes and failings were summed up in one single line. Even if you didn't like a single other moment of the show, it was worth it for this.
Mike Noel: Mike was actually acting! While I might describe his performance as "not quite crude enough" I was still rather impressed. His voice was fantastic and his acting more than acceptable. In has grand epiphany that we "all deserve to die", he was truly frightening - challenging the audience and Lovett alike. The moment gave credence to the phrase "perhaps today you gave a nod, to sweeney todd" and made it a terrifying prospect.
Kevin Frye: Dayum voice. That is all. Good job.
John Gearhart: John stuck out like a sore thumb in this production. While I empathize with him, in that he was playing one of the campiest and cheesiest roles musical theater has to offer - I was still disappointed in his performance. His facial expressions were flat and his emotion, at times, resembled that of a toaster someone had drawn a smiley face on. What got me the most though, is that the idea of motivated movement seemed to go entirely over his head - though this may be a problem with the directing more than anything else. I don't particularly know John personally, and don't mean to be offensive - but I had hoped for a lot more.
Directing:
Director Muriel Von Villas is an opera director, and that's what she should stick to. While the music was done beautifully (likely a credit to music director Patrick O'Donnell), the rest of the show displayed a lack of power that clearly came down from the director. Muriel is a master of creating a stage picture. But she's not so good at getting people into it. At best the blocking was boring or clearly driven by the actor, at worst it was unmotivated and awkward. But, what hurt most about the directing was the lack of depth. Sweeney Todd has the opportunity to be a complex, dramatic, and powerful production. It should have knocked me back into my seat (and with some of these performers, I suppose it did at times). The problem was that it just wasn't quite in your face enough. The general M.O. of this production seemed to be "stand here, sing this". Character didn't seem to be a huge concern for Muriel either, allowing several performers to slide by on simply the bare essentials. In general, the production simply lacked a layer of depth that only a director could provide - and she simply let it slide.
The department's production of Sweeney Todd was, overall, very enjoyable. It was a GREAT college production. So, I don't want anyone to misunderstand me when I say this department could have done more. I only expected more of this department because of the incredible level of talent centered here. Still, the production was fantastic, and the leads really blew it away - not to mention the absolutely incredible design choices.
Next up is Generic Theater Company's: American Buffalo. Look for that review to be up tomorrow!
See you in the theater,
Ed
I'd like to add a further note on the directing of this production. The concept of this show was gorgeous. As were the stage pictures. Muriel clearly tried to tell a distinct story - and that worked tremendously well. I do not want to be misread to say that I did not like this production. The opposite is true, in fact, I truly enjoyed it. What problems I did have with it come from my own background of heavy movement musicals and extremely intensive character work clashing with an operatic style of directing with which I am unfamiliar.
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