The thrilling portrayal of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street performed by Adams Theatre opened Friday, March 12 and ferociously captured the audience’s attention with their take on the murderously funny musical.  Tickets will be sold in the cafeteria for all three lunches or on showtix4u.com for $10 for students and $12 for adults.  The remaining shows will premiere on Friday, March 18 and Saturday, March 19.

Sweeney Todd is the story of barber Benjamin Barker who is unjustly convicted of foolishness and transported to Australia by a devilish judge who is smitten with his wife. Upon his return, the barber takes the name Sweeney Todd, and enacts his revenge by slitting the throats of his clients, who are then turned into meat pies by his industrious associate, Mrs. Lovett.

Incredibly dark and filled with bloody horror thrills and chills, some have protested the show’s appropriateness for a high school theatre program. To neutralize some of the its dark nature, scenes and phrases were clipped from the show to make it more appropriate for younger audiences.  The astounding quality of the music, the passion of the actors and the beautiful and complex stage made up for anything they might have been lacking.  

Junior Adam Garfinkle’s performance as Sweeney Todd is destined to haunt the nightmares of anyone who sees it.  The perfect embodiment of a mad serial killer, his singing is as flawless as his ability to slit throats on stage.  Being such a strong and dynamic actor, Garfinkle deserves the audience’s rapt attention he commands onstage.

Mrs. Lovett was a fiendish delight to watch.  Played by senior Cassandra Gauthier, her big hair, attitude and voice made for the perfect cannibal pie baker.  Her fine comic timing brought the audience to tears of laughter and made the mass pie massacre seem like a sound idea and proper business venture.

The rest of the cast performed with the same eloquence of those with leading roles.  There is very little in Sweeney Todd that is not, in one way or another, a display of extraordinary talent. From the intricate set to the fabulous acting and singing, there were no complaints.