When I first heard that Michael Ball would be playing
Sweeney Todd it was hard to imagine. How could the nicest guy in musical theatre
effectively portray one of musical theatre’s most dark, tortured and vengeful characters?
Michael Ball is a man with a gentle demeanour who croons ‘Love Changes Everything’
whilst displaying a big, cheesy, amiable grin; Whose recent other roles have
been the family friendly ‘Chitty, Chitty, Bang, Bang’ and ‘Hairspray’.
I’ll tell you how he effectively portrays it – because he’s a damn good, versatile actor.
Despite this being a million miles away from the roles we’re used to seeing him
in, he doesn’t merely pull it off, he owns the role and brings a presence that
is truly scary and intimidating.
I watched an interview with him earlier on ITV’s Loose Women
and they said some people haven’t even realised that they are watching Michael
Ball and (although I wonder why they haven’t at least glanced at the cast
board) I can see how if you didn’t know he was in it, you wouldn’t realise. Not
just because, visually, he looks so different with his slicked down, greasy
hair and beard and moustache combo but because he immerses himself so
completely inside the character of Sweeney Todd, completely burying his nice
guy image under the weight of this tortured soul. And that can’t be an entirely
comfortable place to be night after night!
But as many great playwrights have known since the Greeks
put on their first play - when you have a heavy, dark subject matter you need
to splice in some humour to really make it hit home. The sublime to the
ridiculous, as my English teacher would have said. And this is where Imelda
Staunton shines as the truly psychotic Mrs Lovett. Her comic timing and
delivery is perfect and doesn’t miss a beat; She has all the audience howling with
laughter often throughout the show.
This, perhaps, helps to create an even thicker disturbing
atmosphere when we realise we’re laughing even during the horror playing out
before us.
One of my favourite parts is the ‘A Little Priest’ scene,
after Sweeney Todd declares vengeance upon the entire human race and Mrs Lovett
realises she can use Sweeney’s victims as the meat for her pies! – the subject
matter may be terrifying but the song is jovial and trivialises the situation
to a simple business transaction. This scene really highlights the chemistry
between Michael Ball and Imelda Staunton as they bounce off each other and this
is delightful to watch as an audience member; Good chemistry between the lead
actors can make such a difference.
I think it’s important to also mention the ensemble in this
review as they are an integral part of the production. They pitch in at pivotal
moments with their ‘Ballad of Sweeney Todd’ a discordant and disjointed eerie
song requiring harmonies that both blend and clash. Each ensemble voice is
heard and there’s not a weak link in the chain.
I’m going to mention Adam Pearce in particular as I enjoyed
his facial expressions during the shaving contest between Pirelli and Sweeney
and think that this added an extra element of humour to it.
There’s some striking
images during the production, for example, when Sweeney Todd says ‘At last....
my arm is complete’ and holds up the razor. He is lit in a prism of light
focusing our attention on the new extension and what that means for the story
to come.
Sweeney Todd is at the Adelphi Theatre for a limited run
until September 22nd, so I urge you to book now. This is one not to
miss.
Check out the official website http://sweeneytoddwestend.com/ for
more information & to book tickets.
