Review: SWEENEY TODD: DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET At Wildwood Park For The Arts

The voices that come out of Wildwood Park for the Arts, 20919 Denny Rd, in Little Rock, are always world class, and again, the talent was overflowing with SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET, which ran for one weekend only, Thursday, Oct. 26, through Sunday, Oct. 29. With Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, Book by Hugh Wheeler, and Directed by Bevan Keating, this horror classic really put us in the mood for the Halloween season.  

Sweeney Todd (Luke Angelo) was sent away from London on trumped up charges for 15 years and returns to find out that his wife (Heidi Sue Wallace) poisoned herself and his daughter Johanna (Aleandra Rose Vigil) was taken to live with Judge Turpin (Timothy Tucker). Mrs. Lovett (Kira Keating) has Sweeney use the room above her meat pie store to open his new barber shop with intent to kill all of the people who have done him wrong. Afterwards, Mrs. Lovett grinds up their bodies and serves them in her pies, which turns out to be a big hit. To thicken the plot, Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett take in Tobias Ragg (Collin Carlton) after his master Adolfo Pirelli (Cory Olson) goes “missing”, and Anthony Hope (Michael Wilson Goodbar) falls in love with Sweeney’s daughter, who has to be rescued from Jonas Fogg (Jamie Stewart) at the insane asylum. SWEENEY TODD delivers a good blood bath with intricate musical notations!  

Before I get wrapped up in the cast and music, I want to comment on the awesome set (Bruce Rentz, Jessica Riddick, Terry Johnson)! The barber chair and slide that the actors go down after Sweeney cuts their throats got its own applause. It was so cool that I was thinking I wanted to get my throat slit so I could go down it as well.  

Wildwood Park is definitely a musician's theatre. The acting is wonderful, but the singing and the orchestra are what really shine here, almost on an operatic scale. Their voices blending in with the orchestra pit really takes you away to an otherworldly realm, this time being a horror realm in London, but I digress......you know what I’m saying.  

This cast was amazing. As an ensemble, they made the atmosphere moody, ominous and foreboding. Angelo’s Sweeney was brooding and intense, and his vocals were beautiful! Carlton’s Tobias was sweet and slightly doltish. He brought the smiles and surprisingly was the last man standing. Kira Keating gets my starry heart eyes for this show and many audience members agree with me on this one. Her singing, of course, was impeccable, but her characterization was so much fun to watch. We all loved her playfulness, her charisma and ease with her role, and her interactions with her fellow castmates. She lit up the stage with her mannerisms and smile.  And while I’m giving my love to Mrs. Lovett, I want to talk about that wig (X Freelon) of hers. That was massive and amazing. I did not get a close up look at it, but from where I was sitting, it was incredible. Also, I’m not sure if the Beggar Woman’s hair was a wig or not, but it was fabulous as well. The hair can make or break an outfit, and those women rocked it!    

I love that they have a live orchestra. Instruments make the musical experience so much better! Leading the band was Conductor Bevan Keating, and hanging out in the pit were Susan Harley & Barry McVinney on Winds, Jeannie Cross & Adam Savacool on Piano, Issac Asher & Dustin Yoder on Strings, Daniel Olah on Percussion, and Max Campbell on Bass. 

Coming next to the Wildwood stage is All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914. Presented by The Riverside Actors Theatre, Praeclara, and Wildwood Park for the Arts, which is based on the moment when a German soldier steps into No Man’s Land singing “Stille Nacht.” What comes next is an extraordinary night of camaraderie, music, and peace. Come experience a Christmas story like no other! 

Broadway World would like to thank Certified Professional Photographer Matthew Sewell for these beautiful photos. Visit www.msewellphotography.com for your next headshot, event, or family portrait.  

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