Sweeney Todd

Term Paper Title	Sweeney Todd
# of Words	324
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	1.3

Sweeney Todd

      Sweeney Todd is by no means a conventional musical; it takes several forms of
music and theater and artfully places them together. Sondheim very effectively
transports the audience back to Victorian England for a mad waltz with murder,
mayhem...and meat pies. He also utilizes his skill as a choral composer to write
some truly fascinating ensemble pieces accompanied by a very intricate plot with
many elements carefully layered.
     There are several important thematic elements in this carefully written
commentary on our society, and Sondheim makes good use of his music to accent
not only the melodramatic plot, but these themes as well. For example, the song
�Kiss Me� becomes an anthem for Anthony and Johanna and a symbol of their true
love....they loved when they did not even know each other�s names. Sweeney Todd
may be a dark musical, but its construction lends well to light voices and an equally
light orchestral style. Plot-wise, this show is rather light, the characters seem
cartoonish and one-dimensional, especi...

Read entire document