Sweeney Todd Forum

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Sweeney's Tonsorial Parlour,

Fleet Street, London

SWEENEY TODD FORUM

Greetings my visitors - how about a shave? Come and visit your good friend, Sweeney.

Please scroll down and read all our news!

December 20th 2009

November 6th 2009

 Jonathan Kent will be directing Sweeney Todd at the Chichester Festival in 2011.

Early reports state that the roles of Sweeney and Lovett will be taken by Michael Ball and Imelda Staunton. The production is then expected to transfer to the West End.

October 18th 2009

Another review - this time of St Albans Operatic Society's production of Sweeney Todd. Click HERE.

June 6th

STF's Peter Auker reviews Sweeney Todd at the ADC Theatre, Cambridge. Click HERE.

May 20th

The Stephen Sondheim Society is holding its annual Student Performer of the Year competition at the Playhouse Theatre, London on May 31st. For full details, please visit their website at www.sondheim.org. (Amongst the entries will be a performance of Worst Pies In London from Sweeney Todd)

May 1st 2009

A new Featured Production is showcased this month - STP Musicals Academy's Production of the Schools Edition of Sweeney, in Southsea, England. Read about it HERE.

April 1st 2009

SWEENEY IN WATFORD - read Dorothy Lawson's review of Putting It Together's concert performance of Sweeney Todd at Watford Colisseum. Click HERE.

March 28th 2009

ANNOUNCING NEXT FEATURED PRODUCTION - April's Featured Production will be Beaconsfield Operatic Society.

NEW WEBSITE - not really to do with Sweeney Todd, but I thought you'd like to know about my new website project. It's devoted to new musicals, and can be found at www.newmusicals.org.uk.

March 22nd 2009

Sweeney Todd Forum wishes Stephen Sondheim a very happy birthday today.

March 8th 2009

Read Matti Aijala's review of the Hitchin Thespians Production of Sweeney Todd. Click HERE.

March 5th 2009

BB (Peter) and Kier Home (who plays Anthony) will be talking about the Hitchin Thespians production of Sweeney on BBC Three Counties Radio at 3.40pm on the Lorna Milton Show.

In the meantime, why not listen to the second STF Podcast? Click HERE to download it.

February 23rd 2009

MORE SWEENEY PERFORMANCES

Things in Hitchin are hotting up as rehearsals reach a critical stage. Will the ensemble remember their words? Will the musical director lose any more hair? And how does Charles' shiny weapon fit into all this? Find out by reading the latest BLOG.

And over the border in Buckinghamshire, Beaconsfield Operatic Society are preparing their own production of Sweeney Todd - this will be April's "Featured Production".

Beaconsfield Operatic Society's production of Sweeney Todd will be on at the Curzon Centre, Maxwell Road, Beaconsfield from the 1st to the 4th April at 7.45.  The Box Office is open from the 2nd March and the telephone number is 01494 813518 or visit www.bosopera.com for further details or to download a booking form. Also, you can download their flyer HERE.

February 18th 2009

CONCERT PERFORMANCE OF SWEENEY TODD IN WATFORD:

January 20th 2009

NOW AVAILABLE! I have a few Sweeney film strips for sale at the low price of £2.99 including postage. When they're gone, they're gone, so make sure you don't lose out! Just click HERE for details.

January 13th 2009

CONGRATULATIONS to Anya Emmerson of County Durham, England, who has won the Christmas Competition. Well Done, Anya - your prize is on its way to you.

January 10th 2009

Sweeney Todd has been voted the 4th Greatest Musical in a poll conducted by London Showbiz shop, Dress Circle. The top four were:

1.Wicked
2. Les Miserables
3. Phantom of the Opera
4. Sweeney Todd

January 5th 2009

I would like to commend to everyone the Spring 2009 edition of the magazine, The Sondheim Review, which contains a truly fascinating article by Paul Puccio entitled Ghosts of Sweeney Todd. I understand that the article represents part of a longer, book-length project Mr Puccio is currently undertaking. For further details of The Sondheim Review, please visit www.sondheimreview.com

January 2nd 2009

Check out our new FEATURED PRODUCTION. Click HERE, or click the item in the navigation panel.

January 1st 2009

December 16th:

TWO new items for Associate Members in the Members Only area. Firstly, the new Sweeney Todd Forum Screensaver - it's free, and packed with Sweeney Todd images. Secondly, by popular demand, a Stephen Sondheim news feed - keep up to date with the composer of Sweeney Todd. If you're not currently an Associate Member, it's free and you can apply by clicking HERE. Associate Members have their own password-protected area of the site, and also benefit from regular email updates.

December 9th:

WIN A SWEENEY TODD MUG in the STF Christmas Competition. It's easy to enter. Click HERE for details.

December 8th:

MRS LOVETT LEARNS TO BAKE!

Hessle Theatre Company's production of Sweeney has issued a Press Release. You can read it HERE

December 1st:

REFERENCE LIBRARY

Sometimes I come across items on the internet which aren't substantial enough to be included on the links page but which are still interesting to read. I've started a new "Reference" page to accommodate such items - the first three references are on there now.

If you come across something interesting about Sweeney and want it included, please email me at sweeneytoddforum@yahoo.co.uk.

Click HERE to go straight to the Reference Library.

November 21st:

WANTED - ONE BEADLE!

Hitchin Thespians are looking for someone to play the part of the Beadle in their forthcoming production of Sweeney Todd. If you'd like to be in the production and think you might fit the bill please contact the general secretary - Alex Evans - on 01462 452059 or email secretary@hitchinthespians.org.uk . If you prefer you can contact me at sweeneytoddforum@yahoo.co.uk and I will put you in touch.

November 20th:

NEW DISCOGRAPHY

I've added a Discography page with details of recordings of Sweeney Todd together with a selection of other releases which contain songs from Sweeney Todd. If anyone knows of any I've missed please let me know so that I can include them.

NEW BLOG

There is excitement in BB's house today as I am going to be attending rehearsals for the upcoming production of Sweeney Todd by the Hitchin Thespians as a tenor in the chorus. This will be STF's "FEATURED PRODUCTION" after Christmas, but I will be compiling a blog of my experiences from the rehearsal stage through to the actual performances. Click HERE to go straight to it.

November 16th:

Anyone in London next Sunday (November 30th) might be interested in the following note from the Stephen Sondheim Society:

I understand the venue is the London School of Music Theatre at 83 Borough Road, London SE1.

November 14th:

BB was invited to yesterday's Press Night of the new production of Sweeney Todd in London - the first professional production in the UK since the release of the film, and STF's FEATURED PRODUCTION.  It was at the Union Theatre in Southwark, and you can read his review HERE.

November 12th:

NEW! I've added a Members' Photo Gallery in order to feature photos submitted by members. Recently STF members Jason (see news item for November 6th) and Kevin have sent in photos of their Sweeney-themed Halloween parties, so naturally theirs are the first photos in the Gallery - thanks guys. Email your photos to BB at sweeneytoddforum@yahoo.co.uk.

To see the photos, click on Members' Photo Gallery in the navigation bar, or click HERE to go straight to it.

And here's a picture of Kevin and his girlfriend as Sweeney and Lovett, to whet your appetite!

November 7th:

I have added a new "Videos" section to the website, with a few Sweeney Todd clips and some general Stephen Sondheim clips. I intend to add to the video gallery as time goes on, and would welcome any Sweeney-related videos which visitors might like to send me to include in this section. You can access the videos from  the Navigation Bar, or simply click HERE to go straight to it.

November 6th:

Many thanks to Jason, of Ohio, who sent in some great photos of himself dressed as Sweeney at a Halloween Party:

If anyone else has pictures of their Sweeney-themed party, please send them in so we can all enjoy them!

November 5th:

COMPETITION WINNER ANNOUNCED! Click HERE to find out who won the Johnny Depp signed photo in the recent Caption Competition.

October 25th:

BB is going travelling! I will be on vacation in New York from October 26th until October 31st and therefore away from the computer. This means I will be unable to update the site or respond to emails/messages/membership applications until November 1st at the earliest. Apologies for any inconvenience caused.

October 23rd: An occasional series on STF is the FEATURED PRODUCTION. There's a new one starting today, it's the Union Theatre's production in London, which is the first professional production in the UK since the release of the musical. You can read all about the production, and there's even an EXCLUSIVE STF interview with Christopher Howell, who plays Sweeney. Click HERE, or click "FEATURED PRODUCTION" from the navigation bar.

October 21st: The CAPTION COMPETITION is now CLOSED. There were over 100 entries so it will take some time to assess them all and decide on a winner. So please be patient! But the WINNER will be announced on the site as soon as possible.

October 13th: SWEENEY IN CROYDON!

Anyone in the London / Croydon area might be interested to know that CODA's production of Sweeney Todd is on at Stanley Halls, Norwood, from November 12th - 15th. For more information, you can download their flyer HERE.

And remember - if you're doing a production of Sweeney Todd and would like it featured on STF, please get in touch by emailing sweeneytoddforum@yahoo.co.uk or using the form on the "Contact Benjamin Barker" page.

October 3rd:

The next song analysis (Pirelli's Miracle Elixir) is now available for you to read. Click HERE to go straight to it. Don't forget that if you become an Associate Member you can download an MP3 of each song as it appears.  

October 1st: There are simply loads of productions coming up in the UK between now and 2010! Sadly it's just too many for me to get to all of them - I would love to have reviews of every show but this will only happen with YOUR help. If you see any of the productions (they are listed HERE) please email your review (even if it's only a few words) to sweeneytoddforum@yahoo.co.uk.

September 30th: A SALON WITH STEPHEN SONDHEIM. Some interesting news, courtesy of the Stephen Sondheim Society.

The Academy for New Musical Theatre in Los Angeles produced a Salon with Stephen Sondheim earlier this year and he has generously allowed them to make it available on the internet.  There is a fee for the webcast, but the money raised benefits both Mr. Sondheim's personal charity, Young Playwrights, Inc., and the Academy.
In this powerful and moving salon, Stephen Sondheim addresses several hundred fledgling composers and lyricists about the craft of musical theatre, followed by a Q&A session. The session includes questions from composers, writers and producers of original musical theatre, including Steve Cuden (co-creator of Jekyll and Hyde), Calvin Ramsberg (Sweeney Todd's Beadle Bamford) and Steven Banks, the Head writer of Sponge Bob Square Pants.
The salon was hosted by the Academy for New Musical Theatre, professional writers’ workshop in Los Angeles which develops musicals for producers all around the country.  In the past they have hosted salons with celebrated members of the musical theatre community, including Jason Robert Brown, Winnie Holzman (Wicked), Jeff Marx (Avenue Q), and most recently, Stephen Sondheim.

To purchase the webcast, go to www.anmt.org. You have to register as a member on the site before you can purchase it which does take a little time as you have to wait for various e-mails to arrive.

September 19th: WIN A SIGNED PHOTO of JOHNNY DEPP as SWEENEY TODD! Enter our new competition - click HERE for details, or click the link in the navigation panel.

September 12th: CONGRATULATIONS to Tom Ramsay of Bradford, who won the Sweeney's Chopper Competition. His prize is a copy of the Media Pack which accompanied the release of the movie - quite a rare item of Sweeney ephemera. Well done, Tom!

September 9th: JOHNNY DEPP takes the title of Best Male Performance at the National Movie Awards for Sweeney Todd, ahead of Pierce Brosnan's performance in Mamma Mia. However, Mamma Mia beats Sweeney Todd for the title of Best Musical. So all in all, it's Sweeney 1, Mamma Mia 1.

Whilst on the subject of awards, PLEASE VOTE for Sweeney Todd in the Dress Circle Awards. Every person who votes gets a free voucher worth £25 towards a London Theatre Break, and everyone will also go into a prize draw to win a 2-night London Theatre Break.

Click the link to vote:

September 3rd: ESCAPE FROM BOTANY BAY - new Sweeney Fanfic from STF member Ally. Click HERE to read the story.

September 2nd: SONDHEIM ON ORCHESTRATORS - for those of you interested in the views of the Master on the thorny issue of the relationship between composer and orchestrator, click HERE.

September 1st: Welcome to the new look SWEENEY TODD FORUM.

I decided it needed a makeover - all the content is still here, but the menu routes are slightly changed and hopefully a bit more logical. I have also substantially changed the look of the site, which will have been the first thing you noticed. There are two reasons for this - firstly, I thought the old look was a bit tired now and really needed a re-think, and secondly, another Sweeney fansite has started using the same template. (I use Freewebs templates because I'm not a web-designer and the templates are extremely easy and quick to use - especially when uploading new content on the site). To avoid confusion with the other site, I decided now was a good time to change the look. Please click HERE to let me know what you think of the new design and menu structure - I'm really interested to hear your views.

The closing date for the two Birthday Competitions has now passed. There were several dozen entries for "Sweeney's Chopper" and four people got the answers right. They have been emailed a tie-breaker question, and I hope to announce the winner very soon. Click HERE for the answers and more details.

But disappointingly, there were NO ENTRIES at all for the "Singalonga-Sweeney" competition - so obviously no prizewinners. I'm anxious to find out why no-one entered so please click HERE to take my little survey - I'd really appreciate that.

August 30th: BB received his copy of the songbook from the film yesterday, and spent several happy hours today playing through it. To read his review of the book, click HERE.

August 8th: SWEENEY TODD FORUM ON FACEBOOK. We now have a group on FACEBOOK you can join. Please click HERE.

August 6th: SONGBOOK FROM THE FILM NOW AVAILABLE.

It's been available for about a month now, but I thought it worth a mention that you can now buy the songbook of selections from the film. I have yet to receive my copy (it's on order), but I understand the arrangements are excellent and not too difficult to play for intermediate to advanced pianists. The big selling point is that it contains lots more songs than the old "Vocal Selections" songbook from the original musical, and of course it's quite a bit cheaper than the original full vocal score.
Here is an image of the back cover, giving details of the songs:

The cost is £16.95 in the UK, and $21.95 in the USA. To buy your copy click HERE (UK) or HERE (USA)

BB will review this product within the next few weeks - watch this space!

July 31st: BB would like to remind everyone that the closing date for the two competitions, "Sweeney's Chopper" and "Sing-alonga-Sweeney", is in one month's time - August 31st.

I've had lots of entries for "Sweeney's Chopper", but none yet for "Sing-alonga-Sweeney" - I hope that means that you're out there putting the finishing touches to your fantastically witty, amusing and hilarious videos!! (I'm ever the optimist!) Remember the prize for "Sweeney's Chopper" is a copy of the exclusive 57-page Press Pack given to the media on the release of Tim Burton's film which contains a lot of material not available elsewhere, and the prize for "Sing-alonga-Sweeney" is a DVD of Todd Slaughter's classic performance of Sweeney in the original movie (not Sondheim, but based on "String of Pearls").

Remember, anyone can enter "Sweeney's Chopper", but you need to be an Associate Member to enter "Sing-alonga-Sweeney" - this is free and easy to do - just click HERE. (Opens in a new browser or tab)

Both competitions can be accessed from BIRTHDAY CENTRAL.(Opens in a new browser or tab)

July 28th: BB is back from his holidays! And back to the original, well-loved "look" to the website. Special "Birthday" features are still accessible by clicking on "Birthday Central" for now.

July 18th: BB will be away on holiday from 19th - 26th July and will be unable to answer emails or update the website during that time.

July 14th: The new RPG, Barker's Trail is now active. However we still need lots more people to enrol for this to make it a fun experience. If you're new to RPGs and not sure what's involved either take a look at Sweeney Returns to see the sort of thing that happens or contact me and ask for advice. When you're ready to sign up just click HERE to go to the game. If you have already emailed BB with your character, you will need to go to the Game Board and register.

July 11th: Please vote for your FAVOURITE SWEENEY in Toru771's poll. Click HERE.

June 24th: Stephen Sondheim has been in touch with BB to say that "Sweeney Todd Forum is a lot of fun for fans".

June 21st 2008 - It's STF's 1st Birthday, and here's the Birthday new-look website. This will be online until the end of August, when we shall revert back to the old familiar style again.

PLEASE READ Benjamin Barker's Birthday Message below, then click on BIRTHDAY CENTRAL - your Gateway to all the new features on the website. There are TWO competitions, new articles, a new story, fun stuff and much more!

Anyone who was in England last Summer – 2007 – will realise that the wise person equipped themselves with waterproof coat, hat, Wellington boots, a roaring fire and, if they lived anywhere near a flood plain, preferably a boat as well. It was early June as I sat looking forlornly at the rain drizzling down the window pane, feeling somewhat bored. I was clicking through Mugglenet, the gargantuan fan-site devoted to all things Harry Potter and a thought suddenly came into my mind. A few months previously I had seen the UK touring version of John Doyle’s innovative production of Sweeney Todd. In fact, I’d seen it three times! This musical had always been one of my favourites, and I googled to see if there were any Mugglenet-style fan sites on the web. Google threw up a few items, but nothing of the kind I was looking for. A light bulb went on in my head, and I decided there and then to make my own Sweeney fan-site.
And so it was that Sweeney Todd Forum was born – my rainy-day project. I put a few trial pages together to see how it looked, decided on a domain name and purchased it, and behold – within a couple of weeks the fledgling STF was ready to go.
On June 21st 2007 I launched what I thought was probably a slightly geeky website with limited appeal. I thought I might get a handful of visitors, but hey, that’s OK.
I went on as many music theatre related discussion boards as I could find, and dropped the url into cyber conversations wherever I could. Slowly but surely the number of visitors increased. To date, it’s had approximately 204,000 hits worldwide (not quite in the Mugglenet bracket, who probably get that many every day, but nonetheless perfectly respectable in my opinion), representing about 57,000 visitors. Although I’m based in the UK, STF regularly attracts visitors from America, Canada, Australia, Japan, Central Europe, Africa and South America.
I can hardly believe how successful my little “remedy for bad-weather boredom” has become – it’s very gratifying to know just how many people share my enthusiasm for Sondheim’s remarkable masterpiece. STF has pretty much taken over my life now, and I love running the website. I try really hard to keep it up to date and dynamic (I’ve seen far too many “cobweb” sites out there, pages started in a blaze of enthusiasm by fans of this or that, who then get fed up with the commitment and abandon it), and have been pleased to receive a number of metaphorical “pats on the back” from users who have enjoyed visiting.

Thanks to all of you for dropping by, and especially to those of you who give something back by becoming Asssociate Members, registering with the discussion boards or RPGs,  entering competitions and so on – it’s most appreciated!

I hope you enjoy the STF 1st Birthday Edition, and I look forward to writing the 2nd Birthday Editorial this time next year!

Peter (aka “Benjamin Barker”)

Sweeney Todd Forum now has its own Facebook group. Please click HERE.