We attended this tale of Sweeney Todd last night at the Onstage in Greenbelt 1, as rendered by the Repertory Philippines. Admittedly, I was there to hear the great music and songs of Stephen Sondheim again (of which I was a fan since the 1980s). I was not really looking forward to a great production. But boy, was I SO WRONG!
They had succeeded in transporting us to seamy old London where this grisly tale was set. The set of Sweeney's tonsorial parlor cum Mrs. Lovett's meat pie shop were ingeniously created and set up. The costumes were appropriately of the period and fashionably ragged to fit the storyline. The actor ensemble was very well directed and blocked to recreate the somber mood. The fantastically staged "Pirelli's Miracle Elixir" scene when the crowd was pushing poor Toby around WAS SO REALISTIC.
Another one of my worries was the casting of the lead. When it was first announced, Audie Gemora did not really strike me as the correct actor to play Sweeney Todd. He seemed to project a goody-goody image that did not fit the role of the "Demon Barber of Fleet Street". But again, my fear was unfounded. Mr. Gemora more than did justice to this role. He had struck that delicate balance of dignity and madness. I had never heard his baritone as deep and as rich and as menacing as he sang last night. He was mesmerizing.
I did not also see Menchu Lauchengco as Mrs. Lovett at first. But again, she has exceeded my expectations. Her look and attack on this darkly serio-comic character was very accurate. Her Cockney accent was very natural. Her singing was amazing as usual. Her chemistry with Mr. Gemora was electrifying in their scenes and songs together.
Minor quibbles include how dull Anthony and Joanna looked like, although that was negated by the excellence of their singing. I think the actor who played Pirelli did not look and fit the role, but he was funny. The actor who played the Judge Turpin did not look evil enough, but his baritone voice was also very rich. (But I have to say, Robbie Guevara as the Beadle was perfect casting!) The guy who played Toby looked a bit older than expected, but his acting was very good.
All in all, this is must-see theater. Repertory Philippines has certainly outdone themselves with this one. This is proof that there is still significance for Philippine theater companies to stage foreign musicals. It is because we can do it very well here. We do not really need to go all the way to the West End or Broadway to see the best theater performances. Filipino musical talent will never cease to amaze me.
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