Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd- Page 3
Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
#50Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 10/10/13 at 10:10pm
So would this mean that the recent London revival that got all the rave reviews is not coming in?
Since Imelda Staunton has said she doesn't really want to do anything that takes her away from her family for very long, was that ever really a possibility?
#51Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 10/10/13 at 10:21pmI assume this will be filmed and I could cartwheel with glee.
OperaBwayLover
Broadway Star Joined: 5/17/07
#52Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 10/10/13 at 11:15pm
So yeah...we already have several fine recordings of Sweeney, but let's hope this production gets added to that list! 
#53Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/11/13 at 12:21pm
Well, they put her on the spot, but here is Emma with a snippet of SWEENEY on Live! today.
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid2738102973001?bckey=AQ~~,AAAAABGr2I4~,jeitpkmmkDnrhEOnEuKbPnxIbQnV0OgV&bclid=0&bctid=2924006946001
#54Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/11/13 at 12:24pm
I just love her.
I wish she had done the movie.
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
#55Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/11/13 at 12:31pm
This news makes me sad and not because Emma Thompson was cast, but because I will not be able to go see it. 
I hope the powers-that-be decide to film it. Sigh.
#56Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/11/13 at 12:45pm
I knew she'll be perfect at this
NYadgal
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/18/04
#57Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/11/13 at 1:17pmI can't wait!
#58Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/11/13 at 2:04pmUgh, why aren't I in New York a month earlier??? I absolutely love Emma Thompson!
Wildcard
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/21/06
#59Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/11/13 at 2:43pmEven if she had done the movie, Tim Burton would have directed all the joy out of it. Even HBP said she wanted to approach the character differently and she was directed not to do so.
#60Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/11/13 at 3:39pmYou might consider depends.
#61Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/12/13 at 8:19pm
"Even if she had done the movie, Tim Burton would have directed all the joy out of it. Even HBP said she wanted to approach the character differently and she was directed not to do so."
Thank you for the info, Wildcard. I'm still scratching my head over why Bonham Carter was sedated before each shot.
#62Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/12/13 at 10:12pmHBC's Lovett plays into a common Tim Burton trope- the attractive middle-aged female who uses a chipper iciness to mask her psychotic tendencies. He's been doing it ever since Catherine O'Hara played Delia Deetz in Beetlejuice, and most of his movies contain one. Next time you watch his Sweeney Todd, you'll see more than a touch of Catherine O'Hara in HBC's performance.
#63Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/13/13 at 12:34am
Sometimes I get so excited about this I forget to breathe.
(And it's not just her. It's Bryn Terfel too.)
#64Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/13/13 at 1:14am
And doesn't Sondheim love Burtin's film? It's remarks like that and his blessing of sub-standard Broadway revivals that make me question his taste sometimes.
I might be in NY during this concert and while the thought of Thompson playing Mrs. L is so interesting, I wish she were partnered with anyone but Bryn Terfel. One hopes he won't be as wooden as he was in the Sondheim BBC tribute. Hopefully he takes direction well. At this point, I'd rather get Hearn back. No one sings the score like him.
#65Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/13/13 at 1:22amGod, you're a pill.
#66Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/13/13 at 2:08amI know it was just a concert performance that probably had only a handful of rehearsals, but can you honestly watch the clips of Terfel as Todd and tell me that he isn't practically ignoring his on stage Mrs. L (the talented Maria Friedman in that case) and giving a wooden and at times mannered performance? How long do we think rehearsals will be for the NY Phil concert? 1-3 weeks at most, right? I have little doubt that Terfel can hit the notes and give a technically proficient performance, I just hope that he's someone who will take direction and hopefully improve upon that prior performance.
Musicaldudepeter
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/18/10
#67Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/13/13 at 8:08amI'm hoping Thompson gives a different performance to this snippet... God, it's everything we've seen before in every Mrs L. Give us something different already
#68Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/13/13 at 8:11amYou're both pills.
#69Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/13/13 at 8:19am
Add me to the bottle of pills. I'm not a fan of Terfel's Sweeney. Way too much technique showing when he sings, and not enough acting or raw emotion. Next to Maria Friedman in those clips, an actress/singer, it's even more apparent. Put him next to Emma Thompson, a great actress, and good luck.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ba6U4mZpG6Y
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
#70Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/13/13 at 1:16pmI guess I'm a pill too. I saw his Sweeney in Chicago years ago and I found it basically flat. Plus he used that awful way of speaking lines that a lot of opera singers use that made them laughable. I used to be a Bryn Terfel fan. He did one of the finest Falstaffs I've ever seen. But after watching the hammy way he blustered through the Ring Cycle and hearing how he constantly and purposefully upstages his costars I no longer am. If it gets televised, that's good because I wouldn't pay money to see this.
#71Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/13/13 at 1:29pm
Oh, that's right! I forgot that he already did a full concert production in Chicago. I just remember that he had to cancel the original production(s) in NY (and/or SF?)
So, he probably has a set performance for this role already. Ugh. I still want to see the lovely and appropriately nutty Emma Thompson. Just hope the presence of an Academy Award winning actress will encourage Mr. T to, you know, actually acknowledge that there are other people on stage with him.
Is Mr. T still based in Europe? I suppose there's always the hope of more Icelandic volcanic ash...
#72Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 12/13/13 at 1:43pmActually it wasn't a concert production, it was a full production in Chicago.
#73Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 1/10/14 at 12:57pm
I have two tickets to sell for Friday March 7. Front row of the second tier, $147.50 each ($145 + $2.50 facility fee).
PM me.
#74Emma Thompson to make stage debut as Lovett in the NY Phil's Sweeney Todd
Posted: 1/10/14 at 1:04pmBryn is giving his Todd in the UK later this year too (without Emma Thompson, I assume).
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