Following a successful run on Broadway and several Tony Award nominations, Stephen Sondheim’s macabre musical SWEENEY TODD recently began a national tour. Actress Judy Kaye plays the role of Mrs. Lovett, a meat pie maker in Victorian London who falls for Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, and cleverly assists him with the grisly task of disposing of his victims. Spotlights & Sightlines recently talked with Kaye about the touring production and the new movie directed by Tim Burton opening in theaters this week.

How would you describe SWEENEY TODD to someone unfamiliar with the musical?
[Sweeney Todd is] a person who has been deeply wronged by a powerful man who sends him to jail for fifteen years while the powerful man destroys his family basically. And this deeply wronged man escapes prison in Australia and comes back to seek revenge. It’s about how revenge can eventually destroy you as well. And yet, it’s highly entertaining and at times quite funny.

Does the dark and violent nature of the show ever make you uneasy? Is it difficult to get into character?
No, not at all. I just have a blast. This character is heaven sent. Mrs. Lovett is one of the great musical theatre characters ever, theatre characters ever. She’s pragmatic yet through her pragmatism she’s very funny. It’s a very entertaining piece of writing from all aspects. She’s a woman in love. She’s also a bit deluded by this love.

What can you tell us about the actors and the musical instruments they play during the production?
We are the orchestra. We are not only the players in the piece, we are the orchestra. We tell that story from every angle ourselves. We have just a spectacular company of actors and musicians. I can’t say enough about how fine this cast is and what a thrill it is for me to be working with all of them.

Which instruments do you play?
I play, most prominently, the tuba. I play the triangle which is part of my percussion set. I have the cymbal that I do lots of rolls and scratches and things on. I also play the orchestra bells. The orchestra bells are a keyboard and otherwise known as a glockenspiel.

Did you know how to play the tuba prior to joining the cast?
I did only because I had stepped in for Patti LuPone (Mrs. Lovett in the now closed Broadway production) a couple of summers ago and learned it for that. I had not previously played a tuba but I’m playing it, or it’s playing me, I’m not sure which.

John Doyle won a 2006 Tony Award for Best Direction of the Broadway production. Has the touring production staging been reworked or is it basically a recreation?
He is a wonderful, hands-on actor’s director who rethinks with each new group of people what’s going to be best for them to do. So, I would say we are the same but we’re different. Nothing has been changed for the purposes of touring. We are very much encouraged to explore this piece ourselves, night-to-night, so it’s very much a living, breathing entity; more so than anything I’ve ever done in my life.

The “Sweeney Todd” film starring Johnny Depp opens in theaters this week. Do you anticipate the movie will have much of an impact on your show?
Gosh, I hope it has some impact. I think it would be really neat for an audience to see both things because it’s two different takes on this. I have my spies who have seen the movie and they say it’s just really good. It’s a lot more gruesome than ours. We are very impressionistic in our telling of that part of the story. The movie is somewhat more graphic but also (film director) Tim Burton’s got a wry sense of humor so it also has that aspect of it. I think they will complement each other. I haven’t had a chance to see it yet but I think audiences are going to have a really fun time across America seeing two somewhat different takes on this storytelling.

More information on the SWEENEY TODD National Tour is available at the SWEENEY TODD website.

By: Beth Cox