Attend the tale. No, seriously.

Last Wednesday I hit up Broadway in Chicago's press opening of Sweeney Todd with Christopher and loved it. So it's with some confusion that I read the multiple comments on Chris Jones's review from people who absolutely hated it.

This was my first time seeing director John Doyle's scaled-down, actors-as-orchestra version—I failed to make it to New York for the 2005 Broadway production with Patti LuPone and Michael Cerveris—so it was a bit of a revelation. Though I wasn't completely enamored with David Hess's performance as Sweeney—as one friend who saw the show the same night told me at a party this weekend, she wasn't surprised to find his Playbill bio riddled with soap operas—I thought Judy Kaye was a delightful Mrs. Lovett, and the supporting cast (most of whom are actor-musicians who also appeared in the New York staging) was terrific.

My most recent experience with Sweeney was the Tim Burton film version with Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter, and while I enjoyed the movie, this iteration served mostly to remind me of how much I'd missed what was cut in the film. The flip side of that coin, of course, is that I found myself wondering while watching the show last week if I would get it if I weren't already so familiar with Sweeney Todd. While I may be a little surprised at the virulence of the Theater Loop commenters who wished they could leave mid-performance, they're not alone. I witnessed several patrons tossing their Playbills into the trash can at intermission and leaving, never to return.

I agree, for the most part, with both Chris Jones's review and with Christopher's. If you're a Sweeney fan already, it's worth seeing for Doyle's imaginative staging and the performances of Kaye and the actors playing Toby and the Beadle (I'm writing this from home and my press kit's at work, so I don't have their names at hand). If you don't already know the show, this might not be the right introduction.

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As for other shows I can recommend from the past week, Laura Eason's adaptation of Around the World in 80 Days at Lookingglass is really solid (read my review here), and Monday night I caught the regional premiere of Stephen Karam's Speech and Debate, which pretty much blew me away. I haven't laughed that hard and long at a new play in quite a while. Christopher's reviewing for TOC, but it won't show up for a week and this is a short run, so get your tickets now, I beg of you.

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Other new TOC reviews this week are of the Hypocrites' Our Town (see also my feature last week on director David Cromer), Strawdog's Old Town (they opened on the same night at the same time! Crazy!) and Hell in a Handbag's Die! Mommie, Die! (our first contribution from my fellow Northwest Arkansan Zac Thompson). Have at ‘em.

Comments

[Mark Jeffries]

The one that got me from Jones' blog was the guy who said, "but I don't like Sondheim anyway." To which I say, why the fuck did you drop $80 on a ticket if you don't like Sondheim? Oh, that's right--he's a BIC subscriber and one of those who probably also complains about the recurrence of "Mamma Mia!" and "Hairspray." As long as there's Hot Tix and the front row seats lotteries for the long-running big shows, it seems to me that a BIC subscription is one of Chicago theater's biggest wastes of money, especially because these days the shows that a subscription supposedly gives you priority on are going to be running long enough that you'll get to see them soon enough if you really want to.

[Kris Vire]

Ah, yes. I meant to mention that one specifically: "And as usual, Sondheim's music is totaly [sic] forgettable."

Really? It's forgettable? Is that why I've had a running repertory of Sondheim music looping in a corner of my brain for the last 15 years?

[Marisa Wegrzyn]

Sondheim is okay, but he just can't compete with Speech & Debate's "Casio Keyboard Song"

[Ed]

Don't worry Kris. You are not alone. In fact, no one is alone. And it's nothing that a weekend in the country wouldn't fix. Or a nice sip of chrysanthemum tea.

(forgive me my unforgivable references).

[Meg]

NOW DO YOU SEE ABOUT SPEECH & DEBATE!? It is truly an amazing and hilarious play. Stephen Karam is our age! That makes me feel like I've done nothing with my life.