I think the line "save a lot of graves, do a lot of relatives favors," is super underappreciated. It is kinda snuck in there and is absolutely hilarious.
Nephtalí Garrido the joke is that putting someone in a cemetery, and having a funeral, can be very expensive. She's saying that by turning these men into pies, they're sparing the families of this extra expense
I love the different ways the two Todds laugh. Michael Cerveris is more like a dark chuckle while George Hearn goes full on psychotic laughter. And then there's Patti LuPone. With the best evil laughter ever.
Eliezer Pennywhistler - Dammit you are right! There are no puns in this song. Maybe the word "Heavenly" because it could mean tastes good and the place, but that's it. So what are we really talking about here? Got it. "Only Sondheim could get away with a song filled with nothing but allusions."
@@judyo923 I saw him on Broadway with Dorothy Louden (thinking I had missed the best with both Lansbury and Cariou out of the show) and was stunned by how great he was. Then I got to see Hearn on tour in LA with Lansbury and was knocked out as well. Stunning performances.
This is one of the best performances of “A Little Priest”. The difference between someone coming out to sing a Sondheim song versus actors who have lived and embodied the parts their performing, it’s exhilarating.
Nah Lansbury did it much better. But that's just my opinion. She might not have had the better voice but her character is deeper than this lady's. She still did good but nobody can beat Angie's performance.
the fact that this song is nearly eight minutes long is truly hilarious to me. like, you get the gist after the first couple verses and then it just KEEPS GOING
I think in the context of the show it needs to be. After the drama leading up to this moment and Sweeney's misery and anger building and building and building to the explosive "Epiphany" song - and the implications of Sweeney's devision for the inhabitants of London - you've reached such an emotional peak that you need a long comedy number just to diffuse all that tension. Plus, there are two things that everybody knows about Sweeney Todd: the murders and the meat pies (assuming they don't know the musical). The whole of Act One has built up to the one: now we need to give equal weight to the other.
@@eprince7911 This is... a weirdly rude and pretentious way to approach a stranger. 1. I adore this song. Not sure what gave you the idea I didn't unless you presume the length of a song detracts from its value, to which I would respectfully disagree. 2. This song, as well as the musical as a whole, does deal with a lot of interesting themes. I particularly like the classism critique throughout. That being said, I think most people can understand Sweeney Todd. It's a renowned and beloved musical, but not complicated or niche enough to warrant your level of sheer insufferability.
God I love watching Patti she always looks like shes having so much fun, and she just makes it look so effortless, not to discredit any of the other amazing actresses who have played Mrs. Lovett.
What if Johanna wasn't Todd's daughter at all but he and his wife were looking after her for his brother who travelled over seas. He discovers his brother and the two hitch a ride with young sailor Anthony. They get back to London learn the story of Lucy and Johanna. Sweeney takes revenge on the townsfolk who had no mercy on his wife, only watched and laughed and the Beadle who lead his wife to her awful fate. The brother kills Lucy because of mistaken identity. And the brother the finishing blow to Turpin. But then Sweeney kills the brother. And instead of Johanna running off with Anthony, she runs the pie shop after Ms. Lovette's demise with Anthony and adopts Toby.
Man, this video is just the perfect thing to remember Sondheim by... This is hands down one of the best musical theatre songs anyone ever wrote - and this is absolutely the most fun version of it to watch with Patti LuPone and George Hearn going full crazy cannibal killers and Michael Cerveris basically channelling everyone by alternating between fondly watching them sing and being so damn done with the increasingly (and wonderfully) awful puns. All three of them were just clearly having such a blast doing it. And that shot of Sondheim bursting out laughing when he realises where the whole intro is going is just golden.
@@emilywebster1056 I mean Mrs Lovett is a widower who is pining for Todd through the whole play, who mostly doesn't seem to get it becuase he's focused on his revenge and daughter. I think Lust would have been a better term, but watch Lapone's movements and facial expressions. She does such an amazing job with it.
jacksonkamiska I love when they do the Rear Admiral/General joke, both of them completely crack up, and it takes them a second to regain their composure, but even then you hear their voices wavering as they try not to laugh anymore to get through the rest of the song. 😂
Same! I'm pretty willing to sit through any stage version of Sweeney Todd, but given the choice, I pretty much always pull out the 2001 concert version they did together, simply because of how fantastic the two of them are together. I do have to say, though, the LuPone-Cerveris version is definitely worth watching if you can find it. As someone who dabbles in pretty much all areas of the theater, I found it fascinating to see how they worked out the aesthetic and staging.
the applause after "Seems a downright shame" makes me smile, as the audience, and those watching know there in for an amazing, show-stopping spectacle!
I think a lot of people have that "Patti" moment... It comes somewhere between understanding her pronunciation and feeling the rhythm of her humor. Once those codes are unlocked, she's phenomenal.
@@ShuffleboardJerk I love Patti and there's no disputing her singing ability, but I hate her in this role. Listening to her pop into a poor migratory British accent for three words once in a while is awful. Just do her a favor and set the damned thing in San Francisco for her. Just for fun, though, I think it'd be amazing to see her do a few numbers in complete blackout wearing glow-in-the-dark lipstick, haha.
sometimes I feel like they should surprise the audience when they're trying to rhyme with "locksmith" like "nah something my palate can knock with" and the audience would just be bewildered cos they finally rhymed with it 😅
George Hearn?! Oh heck yes! He was the first Sweeney I ever saw - I know Len Cariou came first, but the video I saw was George and Angela Lansbury. So you put my Sweeney with my idol, the one and only Ms. Patti Lupone, and you get me going into incoherent fangirl squeals.
I think my favorite thing here (and there's a lot to love) is watching each Sweeney's expressions while the other one is singing. They're clearly having so much fun.
Anyone else get chills down their spine when Michael says "You're a bloody wonder" instead of "What a charming notion"? fdjslakj bit early to throw someone under the bus, dear, much less into an oven
I've seen so so many performances of this song.. NO ONE comes CLOSE to Patti Lupone - you can understand every single word clearly and she makes it all make sense better than anyone else! QUEEN!!
BOY OH BOY!! I LOVE SONDHEIM AND HIS MATHEMATICS. He makes Rhyme and musical sinc come together so superbly that even a novice (like me) can sit in an electric wheelchair and dance "correctly" to not only the beat and and the "tempo relating to the singer", but also the nuances relating to the entire theme He's fatastic with his specificity and accurracy of creating just the right nuances for the scene !!
Saw the show in previews way back and was astounded by the way in which Sondheim dealt with cannibalism. Just terrific. And here, excellently performed!!!
