Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, A Delicious Halloween Treat
The 5th Avenue Theatre Produces Sondheim's Masterpiece
Performances: October 25 - November 13, 2005
Opening/Press Night: October 27, 2005 8:00 p.m.
SEATTLE – Based on legends that may (or may not) be true, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street serves up tasty feast of diabolical fun – just in time for Halloween. Tickets to Sondheim's thrilling musical masterpiece are on sale now. The show runs October 25 – November 13, 2005. A full-scale professional production of SWEENEY TODD has never been produced for Seattle audiences. A multi-talented cast was hand-selected by the show's director and 5th Avenue Theatre producing artistic director David Armstrong. It includes Allen Fitzpatrick as the vengeful Sweeney Todd and Carol Swarbrick as his dazzlingly demented accomplice Mrs. Lovett.
"He Shaved the Faces of Gentlemen Who Never Thereafter Were Heard of Again
SWEENEY TODD opened on Broadway in 1979 starring Angela Lansbury and Len Cariou and went on to win eight Tony Awards including Best Musical. Stephen Sondheim composed the razor-sharp score and his brilliant lyrics are alternately gleeful and gruesome. A thriller set in Victorian England, SWEENEY TODD tells the tale of a man just released from jail for a crime he did not commit. The ìDemon Barber of Fleet Streetî cooks up a hilariously macabre revenge scheme resulting in this crafty, comedic and captivating thriller. Songs include: ìPretty Women,î the haunting and melodic ìNot While I'm Aroundî as well as the deliciously funny ìA Little Priest.î
Allen Fitzpatrick (Sweeney Todd). On Broadway, Mr. Fitzpatrick stood by for John Lithgow in Sweet Smell of Success, and was featured in Les MisÈrables, 42nd Street, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Passion in Concert, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Boys From Syracuse , and Damn Yankees . On tour, he starred opposite Petula Clark in Sunset Boulevard , in Six Degrees of Separation , Jerry Zaks' Guys & Dolls , Aspects of Love, and the world premiere of Whistle Down the Wind . Off-Broadway credits include Jack's Holiday, Annie Warbucks, The Rothschilds, Mata Hari , and Wonderful Town. Allen has appeared in seven films, and on television's Law & Order , Law & Order SVU , and several soaps and series. He has performed 120 roles in regional theater and recently received the Bay Area Theatre Critics Award for Frederik in A Little Night Music.
Carol Swarbrick (Mrs. Lovett). Her love of Sondheim started when she starred in Side By Side By Sondheim . Other Broadway credits: 42nd Street , Whoopee! and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes . Recently she has frightened small children in The Wizard of Oz (Wicked Witch of the West), earning an Ovation Award nomination. Other credits: Hello, Dolly! , Look Homeward Angel , Mame , Gypsy , Follies , A Funny Thing HappenedÖForum , A Little Night Music , Into the Woods, and Sunday in the Park With George . TV: General Hospital , The Bold and the Beautiful , Murder, She Wrote , and Two Guys and a Girl . Her first book, It Occurred To Me , has made its way onto self-help best-seller lists. www.carolswarbrick.com
Other cast members include: Leslie Law (Beggar Woman) Ivan Hernandez (Anthony Hope) Sarah Anne Lewis (Johanna) Sal Mistretta (Pirelli) Julian Patrick (Judge Turpin) Roland Rusinek (Beadle) and Ben Schrader (Tobias Ragg). Ensemble members include: Mo Brady , Evan Bryant , John Cooper , Jeannette d'Armand , Jadd Davis , Candice Donehoo , Mary Jo DuGaw , David Earl Hart , Eric Jensen , Bobbi Kotula , Cheryl Massey-Peters , Corinna Munter , Brandon O'Neill , Kat Ramsburg , Aaron Shanks , Karen Skrinde , and Beth Zuman .
The conductor and musical director is Ian Eisendrath . Aaron Tuttle is the assistant director, Tom Sturge is the lighting designer, David Patridge is the sound designer, and Mary Pyanowski is the hair/make-up designer. Anne Kearson is the production stage manager.
David Armstrong (Director). Mr. Armstrong, producing artistic director of The 5th Avenue Theatre, has directed acclaimed productions of Hair , A Little Night Music, The Secret Garden, The Rocky Horror Show , Yankee Doodle Dandy! and Anything Goes . He also directed the Off-Broadway musicals Tallulah and The Wonder Years , which he co-authored and had a long-running Los Angeles production that received seven Drama-Logue Awards including Best Musical and Best Director. His work has been seen at many leading regional theaters including The Kennedy Center, Cincinnati Playhouse, Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera, Sacramento Music Circus, Ford's Theater and Paper Mill Playhouse. As a playwright, Mr. Armstrong was commissioned by Theatreworks/USA to create the books for two new musicalsó Gold Rush! which premiered at New York's Kaye Playhouse and toured for five yearsóand a new version of A Christmas Carol that has toured for seven seasons and will play Off-Broadway at the Lucile Lortel Theatre this December. The Cole Porter revue, Hot N' Cole , which he devised and directed, has been produced by dozens of theaters (including The Actor's Theatre of Louisville) and was published by Samuel French.
Stephen Sondheim (Music and Lyrics ) wrote the music and lyrics for Passion (1994), Assassins (1991), Into the Woods (1987), Sunday in the Park With George (1984), Merrily We Roll Along (1981), Sweeney Todd (1979), Pacific Overtures (1976), The Frogs (1974), A Little Night Music (1973), Follies (1971; revised in London in 1987, Broadway revival in 2001), Company (1970), Anyone Can Whistle (1964) and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1962), as well as the lyrics for West Side Story (1957), Gypsy (1959), Do I Hear a Waltz? (1965) and additional lyrics for Candide (1973). Side by Side by Sondheim (1976), Marry Me a Little (1981), You're Gonna Love Tomorrow (1983) and Putting It Together (1993/99) are anthologies of his work. He composed the film scores of StaviskyÖ (1974) and Reds (1981) and songs for Dick Tracy (Academy Award, 1990). He also wrote songs for the television production Evening Primrose (1966), co-authored with Anthony Perkins the film The Last Days of Sheila (1973), and with George Furth, the play Getting Away With Murder (1996). He provided incidental music for the plays The Girls of Summer (1956), Invitation to a March (1961) and Twigs (1971). He won Tony Awards for Best Score for a Musical for Passion, Into the Woods, Sweeney Todd, A Little Night Music, Follies and Company. All of these shows won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award, as did Pacific Overtures and Sunday in the Park With George, the latter also receiving the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Saturday Night (1954), his first professional musical, finally had its New York premiere in 1999 at Second Stage Theatre. The Roundabout Theatre Company produced Assassins in November 2001 at the Booth Theatre; interestingly, this revival was the show's Broadway debut.
In the spirit of Halloween and all things gruesome and demented, SWEENEY TODD has adult themes and is not intended for all audiences. For more information on the show's content visit http://www.5thavenuetheatre.org/sweeney_pg.shtml
Tickets to SWEENEY TODD are priced from $19 to $71. Tickets are available over the phone through Ticketmaster at 206-292-ARTS (2787) , online at www.ticketmaster.com or in person at the box office in downtown Seattle. There is no service charge when purchasing tickets in person at The 5th Avenue Theatre Box Office.
The 5th Avenue Theatre is Seattle's premier musical theater showplace. The 2005-2006 Season marks the 25 th anniversary of the non-profit 5th Avenue Theatre which, in 1980, began producing and presenting top-quality live musical theater for the cultural enrichment of the Northwest community. The 5th Avenue Theatre maintains a subscription audience of 24,000 and an annual attendance of 200,000 – 300,000. It ranks among the nation's largest and most respected musical theater companies. The theater is committed to encouraging the next generation of theatergoers through its Educational Outreach Program which includes: The Adventure Musical Theatre Touring Company, The 5th Avenue High School Musical Theatre Awards, the Student Matinee Program and Spotlight Nights. Unique in its Chinese-inspired design, the exquisite theater opened in 1926 as a venue for vaudeville and film. Today, under the leadership of Managing Director Marilynn Sheldon and Producing Artistic Director David Armstrong, The 5th Avenue Theatre continues to achieve the highest standards in all aspects of artistic endeavors and facility operations, while preserving its artistic, architectural and historic legacy. Visit www.5thavenuetheatre.org . Audi dealers of the Puget Sound region are the official automobile sponsor of The 5th Avenue Theatre's 2005-2006 season.
Please contact Jennifer Rice, Public Relations Manager, at 206-625-1418, with questions or to schedule individual interviews. Photos available upon request.