Jackie Ng, the director of the Maplewood Strollers’ production of Sweeney Todd opening this Friday, Nov. 13, was backstage at a dress rehearsal this week and holding up a 16-ounce plastic container of a red liquid that looks unsettlingly like human blood.
Stephen Sondheim’s gothic musical, the theater company’s first show of the season, is beloved for its haunting tunes and its unexpected comedy for such dark subject matter. It is a grisly story about murder and revenge and the current production delivers on the fake blood that fans of the play expect.
The play begins with Benjamin Barker returning to London after escaping from prison. Evading authorities, he starts a new life anew under the alias Sweeney Todd. Barker claims that a corrupt judge had falsely accused him of the crime, so his story begins empathetically. But we witness his descent into evil.
“There are so many ways to interpret these characters and the way they interact with each other,” said BJ Hemann, who plays Sweeney Todd. “Sondheim has created a show that has so many layers.”
As the story progresses, the stage appears redder and redder, symbolizing a fiery hell that the characters are doomed to.
“Our ensemble is undead, they’re in a kind of purgatory, cursed to retell the story over and over again,” said Ng about her unique take on the production.
Expect big operatic numbers and dissonant harmonies. The cast will tell you how difficult the score.
“It’s the hardest musical I’ve ever worked on,” said Carol Cornicelli, who plays the Beggar Woman and serves as the board president of the Maplewood Strollers.
Cornicelli, who saw the original Broadway production of Sweeney Todd starring Angela Lansbury, has been waiting for just the right time for this show. Taking on this challenge was a conscious decision from the Maplewood Strollers — a statement of their ambitions.
The Maplewood Stollers, founded in 1935, got their name because they had no permanent home like “strolling minstrels,” Cornicelli said, for the first 53 years of their existence. However, in 1988, philanthropist Jean Burgdorff donated the former Christian Science church at 10 Durand Road to the township and the Strollers became the resident theater company.
Like many theater companies, they were hit hard by the pandemic. In 2020, the Strollers were rehearsing Lucille Fletcher’s Night Watch, but one day before opening night, the town government shut down the show due to pandemic protocols.
“The show was all ready to go — we were devastated,” Cornicelli said. “The whole culture of theater changed after Covid.”
The Maplewood Strollers persevered and remerged with live productions, but with notably smaller productions than in the past.
“We’ve been very frugal for the past two years, and we did well, so we thought it was time to up our game,” Cornicelli said.
“We’re trying to really push our name out there again,” said Matthew Schwartz, board vice president.
Following Sweeney Todd, the Maplewood Strollers tackle three other big-cast shows this season like You Can’t Take it With You, Clue, and an original adaptation of Alice in Wonderland created by Maplewood Stroller’s board secretary Ciara Moriarty. Sweeney Todd features 18 actors and an eight-person band. The show will run longer than usual with nine shows between Nov. 13-22, including three matinees.
In addition to Cornicelli and Hemann, the cast of Sweeney Todd includes Alexa Teebo (Mrs. Lovett), Jason Bischak (Anthony), Jason Benjamin (Judge Turpin), Missy Renwick (Johanna), Ronni McAllister (The Beadle), Jeff Andrew (Adolfo Pirelli), Elliott Hemann (Tobias Ragg), and Ronnie D. Carney (Jonas Fogg). The ensemble includes Melanie Ashley, Louisa Benjamin, Devin Boan, Sarah Davis, Ooshene Fox, Emile Hsu, Kelsey Kilduff, and Emma Thayer.
Buy tickets here the Maplewood Stroller’s website.
