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finleyforevermore · 19 days

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🌟CASTING MY MUTUALS IN: SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET!🌟

Side note: I cast based on if the character reminds me of the moot, or if I can see the moot playing the character! If you get cast as a bad guy, of course I don't think of you that way! The reason I casted you is the second reason, I can just see you in that role! Cool? Cool! Now grab your razors, and let's get to cutting!

For those who paid attention to my blog, you all saw this first one coming 😅:

Finley as Sweeney Todd and Zeep (@ziipzeepzop-eez) as Mrs. Lovett

Josh Groban and Annaleigh Ashford as Sweeney Todd and Mrs. Lovett in the picture. (2023 Broadway)

Reasons for...me!: Sweeney is an actual dream role of mine! Not to mention it'd be a blast to get to play a not nice guy for 2 hours >:)

Reasons for Zeep: I wholeheartedly believe Zee has the comedic chops to play Lovett, and would absolutely sell the serious moments as well. In Zee we trust 😌

Mari (@heylittlestellbird) as Johanna

Maria Bilbao as Johanna in the picture. (2023 Broadway)

Reasons for Stella: Johanna is associated with birds. Who's got "bird" in their username? Mari! I rest my case! XD /silly

Atlas (@literatureisdying) as Anthony Hope

Jordan Fisher as Anthony in the picture. (2023 Broadway)

Reasons for Atlas: Anthony's number one character trait is yearning for Johanna. Atlas' number one trait is yearning for Auden. Simple! /silly

Mikey (@mushroom-hoodie) as The Beggar Woman

Ruthie Ann Miles as The Beggar Woman in the picture. (2023 Broadway)

Reasons for Mikey: Admittedly at first I had casted you as the Beggar Woman, because one, I just couldn't turn down your offer to be included, and two, I was struggling to think of skmeone else to cast you as but the more I thought about it the more I genuinely liked it! I think you'd do a really good job in this role! ^^

Frog (@ofthefrogs) as Tobias "Toby" Ragg

Joe Locke as Toby in the picture. (2023 Broadway)

Reasons for Froggy: I mean....just look at you and then look at Toby and tell me you don't look alike.

But also! Toby is a sweetheart! Froggy is also a sweetheart! I rest my case.

Ender (@ender-outlaw) as Adolfo Pirelli

Nicholas Christopher as Pirelli in the picture. (2023 Broadway)

Reasons for Ender: While you and Pirelli really couldn't be any more different, you're already a very charming person (Pirelli is in fact not that XD) and I think you'd have a great time playing him! Also, this is Tumblr! Who gives a hoot about gender? We can have a female Pirelli if we want!! >:D

Greaseball (@gb-diesellok) as Judge Turpin

Jamie Jackson as Turpin in the picture. (2023 Broadway)

Reasons for Greaseball: Just like Ender and Pirelli, you and Turpin really couldn't be any more different XD but your voice definitely fits comfortably into all of Turpin's vocal parts! ^^

Rook (@rook-specter) as Beadle Bamford

John Rapson as Bamford in the picture. (2023 Broadway)

Reasons for Crepuscule: Just like Ender and Pirelli AND Geebs and Turpin, you and Bamford aren't very much alike either! Who woulda guessed? XD

But I think your portrayal would be absolutely delightful and very funny (very much like his portrayal in the 2023 Broadway revival funnily enough)

And last, but most certainly not least..

What's a musical without it's Ensemble? :D

From left to right, we have:

@sandsmand, Troy (@the-fag-with-the-swag), Ash (@ripash), Wolf (@electricfied-wolf), Razzle (@whistlingstarlight), Ash (@idk-what-to-make-user), Charlie (@gently-decaying-flowers), Cal (@treasure-goblin), Amor (@nuncscioquidsitamor-14), Gabi (@splendidred05), Finn (@lordcatwich), & Eli (@theelispace)!

#queued #casting my mutuals! 🌟#finley the casting director! 🎭#sweeney todd #sweeney todd: the demon barber of fleet street #mrs lovett #mrs. lovett #nellie lovett #tobias ragg #Toby Ragg #judge turpin #beadle bamford #adolfo pirelli #lucy barker #beggar woman #benjamin barker #johanna todd #anthony hope

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toshisurtsdottir · 6 days

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Rape and Retribution - Chapter 1

Yesterday, I asked if you'd like to read my Turpin fanfic. I decided that I'd upload it, see how it goes and if it goes well I'll keep posting it :) Technically, it's finished BUT there are a lot of scenes in between that are missing which I might add - we'll see. OH AND: It's kinda fluffy?? But also pretty dark. Idk. Find out I guess haha WARNINGS (for the entire fanfic): mentions of rape, rape, mentions of violent torture, violence, death, murder, NSFW ... and many more

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Summary: Toshi Vernier has a plan for her future. To gain her freedom, she has to get in contact with the ruthless Judge Turpin. He has other plans for her.

On the bustling streets of London, a thief could easily walk past dozens of people unnoticed by any of them. Today, Toshi had no intention of stealing, however. She had something else in mind entirely, something that was part one of her big path to freedom. The young woman was dressed up in men’s clothes: grey pants, an off-white blouse and a grey vest. Her long, white hair was hidden beneath a hat that had seen better days, but it served its purpose. From afar, one might say that she was just a small man going about his business. A bit shady looking perhaps, but that was the usual.

She was stalking around the courthouse, waiting patiently for Judge Turpin to emerge. She knew he would sooner than later. She had studied his behaviour for a few days now, finding out his schedule. Right on time, the heavy doors swung open and two men emerged. The tall judge, wearing a long coat that would make anyone else who wore it seem small. It seemed to be working the opposite on him, it just made him taller. Next to him, the Beadle. Beadle Bamford was a small man, rattish and always on the judge’s heels. Toshi eyed the Beadle angrily. He was one of the men who had, once or twice, taken her father’s offer to use Toshi’s body for their own pleasure. Toshi didn’t remember how often he had had her, she usually erased these encounters from her memory. But she knew he had taken her at least once. As she stared at him, her jaw and fists clenched, she failed to notice that the Beadle had bid the judge goodbye and was now headed the opposite direction. She almost wasted her chance as Turpin made his way down the main street, nearly getting swallowed in the crowd. Toshi snapped out of it and shook her head, snaking her way through the masses of people until she could almost reach him. She would follow him until he was in a more secluded place, then she would talk to him. She had trouble keeping up with the man. People got out of his way (he was a person of power after all) but they kept getting in Toshi’s. Finally, after a few minutes of her struggling to keep up, Turpin turned into a less frequented street. This was her chance.

“Judge Turpin! My Lord!” She called out, quickly jogging up to him. Clearly irritated, he turned around, his eyes instantly fixed on her figure. His nose scrunched up in disgust and he was about to turn and walk off when Toshi spoke a second time. “Please Sir, hear me out! I have important news you must know, my Lord!” She wasn’t one to address people by their titles, or show any kind of manners, but she needed to in this situation. She knew about Turpin that he saw everyone else beneath him and wanted them to treat him accordingly. “Spit it out, boy.” He hissed, albeit he didn’t stop walking or slowed down. Toshi was already out of breath, keeping up with him and speaking at the same time was a hard task to do. “My Lord, your life might be in danger! I came to –“ she stumbled over a small rock “- to warn you!”

Turpin then stopped dead in his tracks, causing Toshi to almost smack into him. He turned around, slowly, his eyes wandering from her face down to her chest (where they seemed to linger for a while), then down to her feet and finally flicked back up to her face. “And what, may I ask, makes you think so? The scum that inhabits these streets usually wants me dead. These are not news. You are wasting my time, child.” He hissed in a low tone, his jaw clenched. “Please, Sir. I am referring to a man known as Sweeney Todd. You see, my Lord, he is not who he seems. Or so they say.” She fumbled with the buttons on her vest nervously. She wasn’t one to get nervous in front of men. Her usual feeling towards them was rage. But he was dangerous, truly dangerous. And she was playing an even more dangerous game right now. “Todd?” He tilted his head, waiting for her to go into detail. Toshi didn’t want to let him wait.

“Yes, Sir. I’ve heard people say his true name is Benjamin Barker. Lost his wife and daughter… say he’s out to get revenge, my Lord.”

The last month, ever since getting that information, she had done a lot of research on Barker and Turpin. She knew that Turpin was responsible for Barker’s ruined life. She needed to get on the Judge’s good side (a vital bit of her freedom plan) and since she had no money to bribe him (unlike others), she hoped vital information would suffice.

Turpin’s eyes remained fixed on hers, a tired expression on his face. If this news worried him, he certainly didn’t let it show. “Benjamin Barker you say?” He raised an eyebrow, his voice a long drawl.. Toshi only nodded in response, hoping that he would like the information she had just given him. “He is supposedly back in his old home currently, in Fleet Street, working as a barber as he did before.” And after a pause: “My Lord.” Something then changed in Turpin’s expression. It seemed to be a mixture of worry, anger and something that Toshi couldn’t quite put her finger on. “Who are you?” He frowned, his eyes flicking down to her chest again.

“My name is Toshi Vernier, Sir.” Clearly, her name didn’t give him more insight on her gender, as his eyes kept flicking from her face to her chest. “I’m dressed as a man, so you’d listen to me, my Lord.” She quickly added. His expression softened as soon as he heard her say that. The fact she was female somehow changed his demeanour. “I see.” A long pause followed as he once more eyed her as if to confirm what she had just said. “I assume, given your disguise and secretive manner, that you want something in return for this information.” He sighed. Toshi wondered if he was used to this kind of exchange. She could imagine that most people would approach him to gain his favour. She wondered how many people actually got it.“I might, my Lord. If this information saves your life, I would like you to remember that I was the one to give it to you.” She nodded, taking off her hat, looking up at him hopefully.

Turpin walked closer to her, causing her to back up a little. Before she could get too far away, however, he grabbed her by the collar and roughly pulled her closer to him, his face only inches away from hers.

“If I find out that you’ve lied to me, that you’re somehow involved in this, I will make sure you’ll rot in a cell for the rest of your unworthy life.” He hissed, shook her and then pushed her away from him. She stumbled back into a nearby wall. He smirked, satisfied by his action, and turned around to leave.

Toshi’s heart was beating out of her chest as she watched him leave. This had gone exceptionally well in her mind.

#alan rickman #judge turpin #sweeney todd #turpinxoc #severus snape

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lunarhobbits · 4 months

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Hi my name is Sweeney Todd and I have short dark hair with grey in it and pale skin and an odd eye and a lot of people tell me I look like Josh Groban (AN: if u don’t know who he is get da hell out of here!). I’m not related to Benjamin Barker but I wish I was because he’s a major fucking hottie. I’m a cannibal but my teeth are straight and white. I have pale white skin. I’m also a barber, and I run a shop called Sweeney Todd's Tonsorial Parlor in London (I hate London). I’m an escaped prisoner (in case you couldn’t tell). I work with Mrs. Lovett and get all my clothes from her because I hate going shopping and seeing people because they all deserve to die. For example today I was wearing a white shirt with buttons and black pants and an apron, black suspenders and brown boots. I was holding a straight razor with a silver handle and no blood on the blade because I cleaned it. I was walking outside Fleet Street. It was snowing and raining so there was no sun, which I was very happy about. Judge Turpin and Beadle Bamford stared at me. I put up my middle finger at them.

#sweeney todd #what am i doing #its 2024 and im referencing my immortal smh #my immortal

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hazbinmurderparty1846 · 24 days

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Full list of casting for the Sweeney Todd AU (and reasons for all of them)

Mr Todd: Obviously it has to be Alastor. Why? Well, because first of all: serial killer. Second of all, I feel like Todd is what Alastor would become if he went off the deep end. I know he's already pretty fucked-up, but he's not as bad as he could be, and mark my words if you put him through something like what Todd's been through, that is exactly how Al would become. Possibly even worse.

Mrs Lovett: Rosie. Do I need to say more? She's a sweet, cheerful cannibal lady with motherly qualities, and she cares for Alastor a whole hell of a lot. I did have some issues with casting her as Lovett, though, mostly because Lovett seems slightly less stable than Rosie and her relationship with Todd is clearly not very healthy on either end even before he kills her. But Rosie still fit her too well not to.

Toby: Now here, look. I couldn't figure out who the hell to put as Toby, so unless y'all have any ideas I'm gonna be casting an OC in his place. Said OC was already intended to be Rosie's adopted child, so it fits. But if anyone has a better idea I'll be glad to hear it, I hate using OCs in things that aren't centric to them.

Judge Turpin: Valentino. Again, need I say more? His main thing is being a rapist, and so overwhelmed by lust that he would ruin a man's life for a small chance at a woman he found attractive. Val already demonstrates this kind of behavior in canon, albeit towards Angel Dust, not Emily. Who else could it be? Plus he dies, so.

Beadle Bamford: Velvette. She's the closest character to Val that I could think of, and them being assholes together would make sense. Plus I just really wanted to draw her in a suit and top hat.

Signor Pirelli: Vox, of course. His only purpose is to be Todd's rival and get murdered by him almost immediately, who else could it be? Vox would probably openly allow Alastor to murder him tbh, the bottom that he is- plus, I also just really like the idea of him singing opera in an obnoxious Italian accent.

Lucy: Emily. Now hear me out - I'm not normally an AngelicSmile shipper, but it's the only Alastor ship other than RadioRose that I can even remotely picture. Plus, she's sweet and naive enough to be Lucy - her getting taken advantage of by Val and attempting suicide after, while a very dark and sad concept, is very plausible.

Johanna: Again, unless y'all have any ideas, I'm replacing her with an OC. I considered Vaggie, but decided against it because she'd be Alastor and Emily's daughter and that just felt weird. I considered Niffy too, but Niffty x Charlie is really not something I wanna write, so I scrapped that too. Help is welcome.

Anthony: Charlie. Who else could it be? A naive, idealistic, determined young sailor who never gives up, especially when it comes to love. Sounds like Charlie to me. Plus, her rescuing Alastor and bringing him home is such a Charlie move, let's be real, nobody else on the cast would do that.

And that's it for now! :D So, do y'all agree? Any suggestions for improvement? I'd love some help if you'd offer it, but if not thats fine! ^^

#hazbin au #hazbin hotel #alastor hazbin hotel #angelicsmile #radiorose #hazbin vox #hazbin valentino #hazbin velvette #hazbin vees #hazbin hotel rosie #hazbin alastor #hazbin oc

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miss-bvnny · 7 months

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And what if none of their souls were saved? They went to their maker impeccably shaved

My own little spooky challenge for the month!! Two of my favorite things: Sweeney Todd 07, and giving fictional characters government assigned fursonas!!

Sweeney Todd and Mrs. Lovett - Dalmatian and Red fox

When I started this, I KNEW I wanted Todd to be an animal that was black and white. The monochromatic theme in Depp's version of Sweeney is SO Tim Burton that I wanted to preserve it. ALMOST settled on a skunk, but the thought of dalmatian spots mixing with blood spots was TOO cool of a concept in my eyes. TBH there WAS a time when I was tempted to make him a fox, because Sweeney TODD. Get it? But I held off because I didn't want to reuse specific animals TOO much. Speaking of which-

Mrs Lovett was always a fox from the first second. It fits her entire character (Seductive, trickster, lots of red, not to be trusted) FAR too well. The way her ears are posed are also supposed to bring a pair of horns to mind. Something DEEPLY wrong with this woman <3333

Lucy Barker/Miserable Woman - Afghan hound

PROBABLY a very uninspired and obvious choice, but...I wanted to draw ''hair ears'' lmao. Sweeney describes her blonde hair as one of the only things he remembers about her, so I wanted a dog breed that naturally had long blonde hair about it. I de-saturated her colors for her ''Miserable Woman'' look to make her look sadder and dirtier.

Anthony and Johanna - Mutt and Golden dalmatian

Yes I KNOW they look like Scamp and Angel okay. The inspiration was intentional but I might've accidentally strayed...TOO close to the source.

Johanna was one of two characters that took me on a bit of a trip. First she was an Afghan just like Lucy, then she was a doe, but I decided to have a little more fun with her. I made her a golden dalmatian, with the ''dalmatian'' coming from her father and the ''Golden'' coming from her mother. I imagined she's a bit like Oddball from 102 Dalmatians, where she's actually ''blank'' aside from the spots on her face and the two on her shoulder (she gets these ones from Todd) The black on her ear is also from Todd. I could have chosen the easy way out and made her look like her mother, but in my own silly way I thought it'd be fucked up if she looked like her father, considering the scene they share near the end of the movie.

Anthony is a sailor, so I gave him a very ''Sea dog'' mutt look. I just kind of...combined a bunch of traits and characteristics that I thought would work for him. You can see a LITTLE of Toughy from LATT in him, only because I liked the eye patch and all the scruff.

Tobias Ragg (aka Toby) - Bat

Toby was a fun one!! Oh, look how adorable he is!!! Since Toby has the final kill of the movie, and he kills Todd at that, I wanted him something small and cute but...potentially very dangerous. I settled on a bat, because they're very cute and they can carry rabies!!

And yes, that's his wig he's carrying. Didn't know how to portray him holding a pie, and I wasn't about to draw him drinking a bottle of gin, so I thought his little wig might be cute. He was honestly one of my favorites to draw <3

Adolfo Pirelli - Ring-tailed lemur

Pirelli is a ring-tailed lemur for two reasons. The first reason, is because since all the other animals are quadrupeds, having a bipedal animal felt more ''exotic'' to go with how he's seen as very special and from out of town. It makes him stick out naturally as someone of note.

The second reason he's a lemur.......is because he's played by Sacha Baron Cohen in 07.

Beadle Bamford and Judge Turpin - Hyena and Vulture

Yeah I'm just gonna come out and say it - Beadle Bamford is one of my fav characters in this movie so I made him a Hyena out of pure favoritism. Having Timothy Spall play him the same year he was Nathaniel in Enchanted was just for me, I think.

Originally, Turpin was a lion. Because...Bamford's a hyena...and they're the villains...sooooooo....yeah. And I WOULD have stuck with that, but....he's described as a vulture in No Place Like London. And while I knew my designs didn't have to adhere to that...I felt like ignoring it would have been stupid on my part. Glad I stuck with it, since...I gotta admit it works REALLY well for him. I've never drawn a vulture before, and it was fun to try something new anyway <3

#NeatO draws #NeatO fanart #Sweeney Todd #Yeahhhh im three days early whaddya want from me lmao

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johannestevans · 3 months

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watching the 2007 sweeney todd w lewis and i have a lot of fondness for this musical and even this production of it but god it's so fucking dark and obviously that high contrast thing is typical of tim burton's live action directing but some of it is just. bad

rickman and HBC and timothy spall all throw themselves into the like, OTT nature of their characters and they play off being cartoonish super well but like

idk the transition between singing and dialogue is significant, like.

idk mrs lovett is a character i really love - her and beadle bamford are probs some of my fave chars in musical theatre - and she should really be a high energy role, but there's smth about the performance in this that's just slightly reserved and understated

i think bc HBC focused more on mrs lovett's grief and her loneliness and yearning, and played that as quite close to the surface, whereas i think for my preference like. lovett's energy should be manic in her own desire to delude herself and also to nearly worship sweeney

part of it is that i think depp just plays sweeney todd's self-importance and self-obsession also too close to the surface (easy to act what you know, i guess), but imo like

the feel of the production should be that YOU as the audience should be offput by mrs lovett

sympathetic towards her, compassionate, sure, but also just. she should be frenetic with energy and/or with devotion to sweeney from the off that's immediately setting off alarm bells - and you should NOTICE that todd himself is too self-obsessed to hear the same alarm bells

i really do like their version of My Friends and HBC's like. slow blinks and the way she leans in and fucking SNIFFS him is so fucking good, and i just wish there was just. more energy and like. twitchiness when she's not in the room w todd

#musings #sweeney todd

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sweeneytoddblog · 1 year

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Some First Preview Thoughts

Fun fact, this is my 300th post. I can’t believe we are finally at the point where I am talking about a Broadway revival on this blog. Truly blessed.

Obviously I won’t be able to comment on a lot of things about the show since I only had audio, but I can tell you what I personally think about the voices so far:

First things first, there are SO MANY ACCENTS GOING ON. Does anyone remember that revival of Annie where everyone had a very distinct New York accent? It’s like that. EVERY character: Johanna, Lucy, and especially Mrs. Lovett and Beadle Bamford, has picked a (different) British dialect and is going for it 100%. Unfortunately Jordan Fisher (Anthony) really struggles in this area; he slips in and out of accents a lot.

And I might as well say this now, Jordan Fisher is not my fav. I mean he’s fine; his tone is nice and he does get some laughs, but he just doesn’t seem to have the power vocally. He kind of sticks out like a sore thumb among the rest of the cast.

Gaten Matarazzo likewise does not have an *amazing* voice imo (although “Not While I’m Around” is very nicely done) but even just listening to him you can tell he brings a lot of energy to the table and that he plays the character very well. Which is all I really require from Toby!

Lucy really plays up the “miserable” and “pitiful” in her performance. There are some productions where Lucy is a little sassier. Her voice came across to me as more fearful and also less “crazy” than Lucy is usually played as well. No Beggar Woman’s Lullaby, but there is a short instrumental break after she enters the barbershop - a hint at her identity without being too overt.

Speaking of cuts, there is also no Mea Culpa. I have always found this to be an awkward and uncomfortable song for all parties involved, but I have to say, I found myself wishing it had been included. This Judge Turpin feels more like a one-dimensional villain without it, and his stage time was cut down as well. Jamie Jackson does a decent job but doesn’t seem to shine in any areas. It makes you wonder what he would have done with the song.

However, John Rapson (Beadle Bamford) is a delight! I was not wrong in that prediction. He plays the Beadle as this very posh, insufferable guy, and his dialect was one that did not bother me. Judging by the laughs he got from the audience it also seems he was very funny. AND I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH, FULL VERSION OF PARLOR SONGS IS THERE. That never happens anymore so I was thrilled!

Pirelli is also good but his voice is not as operatic as it usually is. I believe he’s also the Sweeney understudy and I have a hard time imagining him in that role.

Maria Bilbao (Johanna) is vocally a standout! A lot of productions struggle with finding a Johanna who can both sound youthful and hit the notes properly. She definitely had the range and the power. It sounded to me though that she played the character more as just a sad girl, kind of like how Lucy was. “Kiss Me” did not really get any laughs and I don’t know if it the couple just lacked chemistry or if they didn’t know how to lean into the humor of their roles.

Ensemble and orchestra were both top notch. I heard a few instrumentals during transitions that sounded brand new to me, which was highly enjoyable. Can’t wait for that aspect of the cast album in particular!

Annaleigh Ashford has a GORGEOUS voice but often masks the “prettiness” of it with her British accent (I was expecting this as I remember her talking about it in interviews.) Which is good! You really only hear the prettiness in slower songs like “My Friends” or “Not While I’m Around.” I am no expert on British accents though so I am curious what the English will have to say about it (I don’t believe anyone in the cast is English?) She also got a lot of laughs from the audience. I feel like there’s not much I can say about her because I didn’t actually see her, but she definitely delivers as Mrs. Lovett from what I heard.

Josh Groban...what a guy. When I first heard him sing I didn’t realize at first it was him; his voice takes on a much darker tone than he normally does. I did kind of wonder about him and those low notes, but I didn’t notice any problems with reaching them. His speaking voice too is just very low compared to his normal voice? Again, I feel like I can’t comment too much because I couldn’t see his acting interpretation, but vocally, he’s my favorite voice in the cast. Maybe he’ll be a different Sweeney than is typical, but that’s okay too. I’m so excited to actually see him once those bootlegs hit.

DISCLAIMER FOR EVERYTHING:

I know I only heard the first PREVIEW and a lot could change, so take any of my criticisms in stride. There are many detailed reviews out there now from people who have actually seen the show, so I recommend checking those out! But I am so incredibly grateful to have heard the audio. I promised I wouldn’t share it, but if you message me I can direct you to the right person and then it’s up to them. :) And jsyk there are some audio clips floating around tumblr already!

#sweeney todd #sweeney todd revival

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defiantbird · 1 year

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Sweeney Todd Revival on Broadway!

Saw it over the weekend and have had some time to marinate on it. As a former theatre (or tech) kid I have to throw my thoughts into the void. I'm serious, this is a long and wordy babble, you are not gonna read it all, I'm really just thought-dumping.

Cast:

We were told as we were entering that Josh Groban, the big draw for most folks, would not be in to play Sweeney. Sweeney was instead played by the guy who usually plays Pirelli. I don't know much about Groban, but I do hear he has a great voice, so I am a little bummed I didn't get to see it.

Still, other guy (Nicholas Christopher per the slip) was...obviously talented-- everyone in the show is extremely talented, it's Broadway. Tremendous voice on him. He had an excellent growl and did my favorite thing (in Epiphany, he went UP on "nor a hundred can assuage me" and it was so STRONG and RAW and AAAGH I love it. Here at 2:22 if you wanna know what I mean. George Hearn is my fave Sweeney.). That said, his Sweeney wasn't my cup of tea. George Hearn ruined all other Sweeneys for me (hyperbole tho). This fellow was a bit stiff...like, he has the sound of the rage but not enough expression of it to get me, if that makes sense. He was explosive but it often didn't feel like a passionate rage, just a loud one.

Certainly a very different Mrs. Lovett (Annaleigh Ashford) than I'm used to. She wasn't my ideal Lovett (again, spoiled by Angela Lansbury), but I can recognize that she was still an excellent one. Gorgeous voice with impressive range, super animated. What was different about her, I think, is that she played her more self-aware than I'm used to. It was a little more "this lady is funny and she knows it" rather than "this lady is fucking weird and it's delightful". But, again, just because that's my preference doesn't mean this was any less good. Very slapstick, way hornier, but ultimately very much understood the character at her core.

The kid who plays Dustin in Stanger Things (Gaten Matarazzo) played Toby! It's clear some people were there just for him. He has a strong singing voice and is just super charming. Truly a treat that I got to see him in this role, I think he fit it really well.

Such! An! Interesting! Johanna! This girl (Maria Bilbao) had a really unique take that I kind of loved. She played her like a bird-- twitchy, always on the verge of panic-- which is such a great choice given the symbolism around the character. I want to scream how much I love this: it ties her to the "Beggar Woman"! Lucy was also very twitchy and jerky, what with the being crazy and all, and it was such a smart way to subtly show that these two are related without the audience being able to realize the connection until the reveal.

Pirelli (Daniel Torres), my beloved. I've never seen a single bad Pirelli.

The guy (John Rapson) playing Beadle Bamford was SO hammy and it was SO good. Super flamboyant, expertly annoying and able to switch so quickly to smarmy and cruel. His timing and tone in Parlor Songs was so fucking funny.

Judge Turpin (Jamie Jackson) honestly kind of took me out of it whenever he was around. He played Turpin as sort of a creepy but ultimately frail geezer. To me, Turpin is usually meant to be like large and intimidating and overbearing. He's an enormous shadow that swallows people. This one to me was just sort of...a grandpa. I didn't feel the evil enough.

Anthony (Jordan Fisher), also my beloved. This guy had, IMO, the most beautiful voice of them all. Like, so beautiful that the sound itself, not the subject matter, made me teary at times., especially during Johanna. Had just the sweetest face and most charming demeanor- didn't feel put on at all. So earnest and naïve and passionate. In general just "have you ever heard a voice and seen a man so beautiful that you cried".

Not much to say about Lucy (Ruthie Ann Miles), and not in a bad way. She had a beautiful voice and played the role well.

Set:

So cool! The show starts in London, with just Sweeney and Anthony standing in front of a bridge. The bridge then becomes the upper room: the flashback for Poor Thing, the upper parlor, Johanna's window. It was abstract for some scenes, like Johanna's window, but it felt very natural. Like there was literally no window, just her looking out between the rails, but you got that it was a window. What was, if I remember correctly, a crane on the side rotated to become the stairs leading down to the cellar, with the "meat hatch" on the back. Again, not sure I'm remembering correctly-- the set is very dark at times and purposely makes you think you're looking at something entirely different-- but I believe the same part had this little niche that became the asylum. Also, of course, the chair. I don't think I have a single complaint about the set. It was clever and wonderful.

A/V:

In the beginning, in his first few lines in The Ballad of Sweeney Todd, Sweeney's mic wasn't working. I hissed internally. It was only a few seconds but I felt the "NOOOO" inside of me that I guess comes from having spent a lot of time hanging with the guys in the A/V booth in high school productions.

I really liked the lighting for the most part. What struck me most was when the ensemble sang. The fog rolled around their feet, the stage entirely dark but for them. At the end Ballad when they were all lined up at the very front of the stage ("Isn't that Sweeney there beside you?" "There! There!"), the light shone up under their feet and gave them this gargoyle-ish look, so stark and deliciously unnerving. My only complaint was this like bright white flashing during City on Fire, but tbh I don't really love that scene anyway, I think it's kind of out of place, so whatevs.

Another petty thing that's less me saying "this was bad" and more me going "nooooooo"- Johanna shooting Fogg...her action didn't quite match up with the bang. Oof ouch.

Choreography/scenes/songs/general thoughts:

The flashback sequence of Poor Thing seems to be done differently every time I see it, but it's always good. This one was really abstract but incredibly striking. Todd and Lovett were lit up below in the shop, and above them it was all silhouettes on the bridge. Lucy moved like Johanna (again, aaah such a good choice), twitchy and nervous. The scenes weren't direct portrayals as it usually is (i.e. Lucy cradling the baby, Beadle and Turpin calling to her, Turpin descending on her at the party) - it was more like interpretive dance and it was very compelling.

Ngl, I didn't enjoy A Little Priest as much as I normally do, although the audience clearly loved it so, y'know. Art is subjective. But Lovett was a little too over-the-top (at one point she collapses laughing on the floor and propels herself around in a little circle), and I didn't get a real sense of mirth from Sweeney.

There is this point in the show, in general, that I love because of the audience. The play is funny. It's really, laugh-out-loud funny. Some scenes are just absolutely ridiculous and it WORKS. But there is a point-- it sort of starts during Not When I'm Around but really kicks in after Parlor Songs, which is like the last funny moment. You spend the whole play going back and forth between Sweeney's intense brooding and Lovett's looniness, and it kind of lures you into lightheartedness despite some of what you're seeing and hearing. It all gets SHARPLY cut off (no pun intended I swear) when Sweeney kills Turpin. The audience goes totally silent and stays that way 'til the end. It's SO well done, it just makes your stomach drop, it takes your face in its hands and says "now here's the real shit". The silence pulls you in and it feels like everyone is holding their breath.

Hehehhehehe I love catching reactions of people who haven't seen the show before. I saw at least one person with their hands over their mouth when they realized the beggar was Lucy.

There was some really great new little things I loved with Sweeney and Lovett. At the end of A Little Priest, instead of the two of them standing there triumphantly, they both slam a butcher knife and a rolling pin down on the table in time with the final note and then the stage goes totally dark.

In the same vein as the above- at the end, usually Sweeney and Lovett kind of look at each other from opposite sides of the stage and then it goes dark. Sometimes there's a door slam. In this one, they turn their backs to the audience and walk through the fog toward the back of the stage. In the very final moment, they clasp hands and jump together into an unseen pit. Like they literally walked hand-and-hand into hell. Internally, I'm making high-pitched sounds over how much I love that.

The ensemble was fascinating. Lots of jerky, kind of interpretive movements. In the beginning Ballad they do this thing where they all simultaneously start drifting to the side and then they suddenly stumble. In God, That's Good! they just sort of slowly lay Toby down on the table and then drag him off. It was weird, but a very intriguing kind of weird. It really unsettled you, which I think the ensemble as "the people of London" is supposed to do. They are meant to be unpredictable, dreamy, listless, and at other times wild. Neato.

I'm sure there's more I can say but I can't think of it right now so let's just stop me here because I've been writing for over an hour. Overall: Really enjoyed it, would recommend. I do wish I knew what Josh Groban Sweeney was like though.

If you actually read all this: Did you see it? Tell me what you thought! I truly really would love to hear about it.

#Sweeney Todd #Broadway

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travelingneuritis · 9 months

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hello good day! 2, 3, and 15 if you'd like for the fanfic writer's ask?

2. What fanfic do you wish you got more response on?

Well, I know that exposure has more to do with how big/active a fandom is than with how good the fic is, but I'll admit I'm bummed I missed the Fullmetal Alchemist heyday because I really like my sad Royai birth-of-an-insurrection fic Let The Left Hand Know Not. (I did still get some very thoughtful and sweet responses to that one even though I posted it years after the frenzy died down, so I can't really complain)

3. What’s a fic idea that you have but haven’t written yet?

Here's one: Scum Villain Sweeney Todd AU. There are almost too many ways to map the characters and plot of SVSSS onto ST-- one obvious one is Luo Bingge as Sweeney stropping his beloved razor Xin Mo, Shen Jiu as vile Judge Turpin, maybe Shang Qinghua chewing the scenery as Beadle Bamford; Shen Yuan could even keep his habit of dying to motivate the protagonist if he played Lucy/The Beggar Woman.

However I'm also highly taken with the idea of Bunhe as Toby, who's strongly implied to be Sweeney's homicidal successor at the end of the opera. Mrs. Lovett, beautifully played by transmigrated theater-kid Shen Yuan, does not understand how they've gone so far off book that Toby murdered Sweeney almost a whole act early. Shouldn't the play end here? What's Toby doing in By The Sea? Wait, isn't he supposed to be a tenor? Where'd this strapping young bass-baritone come from??

You could also go dark and let Sweeney go through with murdering the lovely Lovett, only for a grief-stricken Toby to preserve her body in the basement using dodgy Victorian embalming techniques. Not sure if it's worse for Lovett to stay dead or for Toby to find a way to bring her back... but at what cost.

15. Are there words, phrases, mannerisms or scenes you tend to use a lot?

Oh god. Uh, yes, definitely. Every long fic I write, I always keep a running list of words/phrases I suspect I'm overusing, so I can ctrl-f them later and mix things up a bit. I don't usually save those lists once I've worked through them in the final draft, but here's my list from when the sun goes out:

barely, bounce/s, pinkened ears w/variations, stare/s, gape/s, panic/ked, spit/s, Insane, inescapable/ly, rut/thrust/grind (lol), frosty/frostily/icy/icily/cool/coolly, outsize/d, innovate/ive, marshal/ling, murmur/s, demur/s, casually, carelessly, fester, morose

This is just the list for one story and these are all things I caught and adjusted so they wouldn't be overused in the final draft, but I am absolutely certain there are way more words/mannerisms/turns of phrase I don't even realize I use all the time.

#ask meme #asks #writing

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rayclubs · 11 months

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Say Ray, what would you say are some funny words in your language? A favourite in my own language (Dutch) is 'wegpiraat'; a person who sucks at driving / ignoring the traffic rules, traffic signs etc ('road pirate', if you translate it literally)

Sis and I were watching Sweeney Todd the other day with Russian subtitles because she doesn't speak English and I hate the dub. Well, there's a song there called "Green Finch and Linnet Bird" and they got quite hilariously translated as "зеленушка" and "коноплянка", aka the Greenie and the Weedbird. We laughed so hard.

"Barber" also got translated as "цирюльник" which has no hidden meaning but comes from Polish and sounds very silly.

Also sis and I kept calling Beadle Bamford "прихвостень" which is like an evil errand guy, literally someone who is like a tail to someone else, always behind them doing their bidding. It's a great word.

Sis is kind of great at coming up with funny words, it's a whole thing. We call our dog "сынуля-оболтус", which is like. My son, thou art a silly boy-

She calls my work "работица" which is not really a word, it's just "work" but with a suffix that signifies an ailment. She's so right for that one.

I'll add more later, just wanted to write these down before I forget. Also, hey @wolframen, I'd think this was from you if it wasn't sent way outside your schedule. "Vegpiraat" is great but Dutch for "Doofenshmirtz" is greater.

#raynswers #thank you for the ask its nice

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bloodywonder1846 · 3 months

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Alrighty, guess I’m gonna take the risk and post this.

(Pls don’t get mad at me, y’all. I’m just stating an opinion & ranting about my frustrations, I don’t mean to sound rude.)

This is certainly gonna make people mad. If you disagree with me or are upset by this, that’s fine, I get that everyone has different opinions. Idc, just please leave me alone & don’t harass me over it.

I honestly have a lot of complaints similar to this, but then I saw this happen with my favorite song, and it just absolutely upset me, so yeah-

Can we PLEASE stop over-sexualizing Wait???

Yes, I know that at the end of the day, I’m always gonna have my asexual bias, but I swear that I have more complaints than just, “I’m a sex-repulsed ace who’s tired of everything being over-sexualized.”

I know that a lot of things are gonna vary depending on the production, but at least to me, that’s not what this song is supposed to be. I know the Broadway revival does the whole weird thing with his suspenders, idc what the Broadway revival does, this song is supposed to be a soft, sweet, and genuine moment. (This isn’t an insult to the Broadway revival, btw. I do still love that production despite it making some choices I disagree with.)

Let’s review the scene & context surrounding it:

Sweeney has been presented with the opportunity to off Beadle Bamford, but he’s impatient af and wants his revenge now. On top of that, he’s also stressing over how to get to Judge Turpin. Nellie basically tells him to chill out and be patient, but like, in a sweet and loving way. The whole song is her trying to help him calm down and feel less stressed, upset, and tense. She can see that he’s dealing with a lot, and she genuinely cares about him and wants to help him. By the end, he’s a lot more calm, even if he is still thinking about revenge deep down. You see the calming affect Nellie has on him, and she’s happy to see him okay again, even if it’s only for a moment. He even internalizes her words. During Epiphany, he says, “Why did I wait? You told me to wait!” Obviously he seems to have misunderstood her a little, but it shows he was at least paying attention.

At its very core, this scene is a man who’s gone through a lot and is stressed, a woman who cares about him and wants to comfort him, and him briefly being able to silence the noises in his head because he really does find comfort in her words and her presence.

This is supposed to be a calming type of song, sort of like a lullaby in a way. Maybe this really is just a me thing, but it was never meant to be sexy.

There’s a lot of things that annoy me about the over-sexualization of Nellie Lovett in general & this song in particular, but the main one is that it makes everything feel less sincere. Idc if you have your headcanons, or if you wanna talk about NSFW stuff regarding this show from time to time, but treating it like that’s the whole thing, especially regarding her, just… Idk.

Nellie truly loves Sweeney, and it’s always annoyed me when people say otherwise, and when people say that it was just lust. When people over-sexualize her & every moment between her and Sweeney, all that does is prove their point, and it makes her relationship with Sweeney feel a lot less genuine. When she’s not allowed to have genuine, emotional, and romantic moments without it either being sexualized or played for laughs (or both in some cases), it both erases her complexities as a character and cheapens the moment. (I have another rant regarding By the Sea too, but I’m specifically gonna focus on Wait here)

She truly cares about Sweeney and wants to help him, comfort him, and be there for him. When Wait is instead seen as just seduction, it makes her feelings for him seem a lot less genuine. I would think that none of us Nellie lovers or Sweenett fans would want that, and yet my fellow Sweenett shippers are the ones that are most guilty of this. Do you not also care about the emotional side of their relationship? The sweet side? The soft side? The romantic side? Their friendship? Does it only matter to you if it’s sexy? (I’m not saying this is all Sweenett shippers, or even the majority.)

Idk, I’m just tired of people trying to take away their actual adorable moments and make it all horny.

(Does it feel like nobody’s appreciating everything else about their relationship and is trying to make everything sexual, or am I just ace & losing it?)

Idc if you want to write smut about them, idc if you have differing opinions. I really don’t want to sound rude regarding people’s opinions & interpretations, and I don’t want to shame anyone. There are even people on here that I’m genuinely chill with & like that do this, and I don’t want it to sound like I’m mad at them or don’t like them or anything. I’m just so tired of it all.

Not everything has to be about sex, you guys.

(More stuff in the tags)

#should i actually tag this and risk angering people #i mean tag it as being about sweeney todd #not as in tagging the people i’ve seen do this #definitely not lol #sorry if this whole thing comes off as harsh #i don’t mean to be harsh #i’m just so tired #and seeing this with my fav song was clearly my last straw lol #i have no straws left #all the straws are gone #they have been taken from me #yes i still include silly unhinged tags even in the angry rants lol #i’ve included so many caveats and yet i still feel like people are gonna misunderstand me #as scared as i am to post this i feel so free after writing this

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dudefrommywesterns · 2 years

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it still amuses me that in most of the roles he plays, jamie gets his ass kicked and (usually) ends up bloody

so far:

- in sweeney todd, anthony gets caned by beadle bamford (ends up bloody)

- in twilight, though it's in a view of an alternate future, caius gets his head torn from his jaw (no blood)

- in camelot, arthur falls off a cliff and also gets decked by merlin (ends up bloody)

- in the mortal instruments, jace gets his head smashed into a a few things by valentine morgenstern (ends up slightly bloody)

- in will, marlowe picks a fight with someone in a tavern (ends up very bloody)

- in six days of sistine, jean-baptiste gets beat up by some thugs (ends up bloody. i think. it's dark.)

- in stranger things, 001 gets flung into a wall by eleven and then also gets pushed into the upside down (ends up bloody then burned and then viney)

#so...a beadle #a vampire #a cliff and a sorcerer #girlfriend's dad #a drunk in a bar #a few mobsters #and last but not least #a seven year old #typewriter dings

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heavencasteel420 · 6 months

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B & W for the fanfic asks

Thank you!!!

B-first fandom I read/wrote for

My best friend introduced me to fanfic when we were eleven years old, and she was really into Lilo and Stitch: the Animated Series. This was not a show I had very strong feelings about, but I loved the concept of fanfic and wrote some partial stories in my comp notebook. The main one was about Pleakley, the one-eyed cross-dressing alien, getting into a fake dating relationship with a straight human male OC who’s very chill about it. I also started one where Pleakley is in love with Lilo’s older sister/guardian Nani but is worried that he’s not masculine enough for her. The first fandom I ever completed or posted a fic for, though, was Sweeney Todd (the 2007 movie but I’d seen the stage musical and liked it better so I just kind of took and left elements from both canons). I was seventeen by then and it was a terrific creative outlet. I wrote mostly about minor characters (Anthony, Johanna, Lucy, and Beadle Bamford).

W—favorite pairings to read/write

So, for Stranger Things, Jancy is the pairing I cannot get enough of, reading-wise, and it’s my go-to for writing long fics. I also like reading Hellcheer, Stoncy, Jargyle, and Stonathan, but I’m kind of pickier about those. Not in terms of quality, more like in terms of tropes, setting, and character interpretation. (I don’t vibe with Stoncy that follows directly after S4, Hellcheer if I don’t like the background pairings or if the author thinks the early seasons are boring, Jargyle if the author is unfair to Nancy, or Stonathan if Steve is too nice/Jonathan is too mean in that flanderized fanon-y way.) I’m not super-invested in the adult or younger teen ships, but I like the odd Lumax, Byler, or Jopper. I like to write a lot of things besides Jancy, even ships I don’t usually like to read, because I can write it how I like!

Other fandoms: Megan/Ginsberg and Ginsberg/Stan/Peggy for Mad Men. Theon/Robb and Jaime/Brienne for ASOIAF. Those are the only other fandoms I’ve read fic for lately.

#musicalchaos07 #asks #I also wrote the beginning of an hp fic as a middle schooler #about Ginny…becoming a torch singer with a drinking problem post-war #and making friends with my male hufflepuff OC Cameron #also another one about Luna cutting and bleaching her hair a la sliding doors #because she was sad about her family’s financial problems #it was at this point that I realized this was perhaps not the right fandom for my particular ideas

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