Sweeney Todd - North American Tour - June Havoc

[It's a fine life!]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 5:52pm

I had no idea she'd done this. Anyone on here see any of her performances?

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 5:53pm

When is it coming to new york?

[It's a fine life!]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 5:59pm

Very funny.

[egghumor]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:03pm

I was lucky to see Lansbury eight times; Dorothy Loudon once; and also June Havoc as Mrs. Lovett (in Rochester I think it was). She played opposite Ross Petty as Sweeney and the production was splendid.

I'm a huge fan of Dorothy Loudon (saw her in a few different shows) but her Lovett was way over-the-top. A number of my friends were horrified by her take on the role; but June Havoc played the role very much in the same style as Ms. Lansbury.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:06pm

Thanks, fine life and egghumor, for the question and answer. I didn't know any of that.

But I can well imagine that Loudon as Lovett would be too much. Updated On: 8/31/12 at 06:06 PM

[It's a fine life!]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:08pm

I didn't know either. But I am currently watching all of my sondheim videos, both authorized and unauthorized. I hadn't watched Sweeney in years, but just loved it all over again. When I read that she had done it I was most intrigued.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:15pm

I just watched the DVD for the first time since the original broadcast. Maybe I saw the OBC too many times, but I thought the show needed a rehearsal with the director. The actors had discovered too many small "improvements" on the road.

And when Lansbury gets too big, I shudder to think what Loudon did! (Not that Lansbury is horrible on the DVD, but you can see her anticipate the laughs at points.)

Updated On: 8/31/12 at 06:15 PM

[ChairinMain]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:16pm

Yeah, I'm with you there. Lansbury especially is doing a fair amount of scenery chewing.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:21pm

I never thought I would criticize Lansbury. She is still a goddess to me!

But didn't I read the DVD was filmed at the Dorothy Chandler? That place is a barn.

[D2]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:27pm

I didn't see Ms. Havoc but my husband did, in Pittsburgh in the early 80s. A few years ago we were cleaning out the closets and we came across the program for the production. Since I worked with someone who was a friend of hers, we asked if Ms. Havoc would sign the program. She did. She died a week later.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:30pm

While, I had no idea Ross Petty played the role. I grew up on pantomimes, that used to tour Canada (I think he may still do them in Toronto), usually staring him and his wife, National Ballet star Karen Kane (and other typical Canadian actors like Jeff Hyslop and Bruno Gerussi). What year would that have been around?

Gaveston, you are far from alone, about the DVD. That's the common take on it--someone involved in the production may have even been quoted as saying as much in The Sondheim Review. Granted, they were playing for a massive theatre (but they did in New York too), but even dear Angela is way too broad. Apparently Hal regretted not being around at the time--it was a last minute filming. I've also heard it said that Betsy Jocslyn as Joanna was great when she started the role, always played it a bit manic (and of course they raised the key of her role anyway), but not quite psychotic like she came off by that point in the tour. Others, like Cris Groenendaal and Edmund Lyndeck come off fine, and Hearn is OK (OK, I've never liked his Sweeney approach nearly as much as Len), but...

Still, it's great to have a commercial filming of the original staging and much of the cast, so I guess I'll take what I can get.

[It's a fine life!]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:40pm

Now, on Broadway, weren't there ditch diggers instead of two guys rolling out the oven at the beginning?

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:41pm

I believe so. Of course Sweeney and Lovett rose fromthe ground (the grave?) in the finale as well, instead of coming from the back.

[egghumor]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:43pm

The June Havoc-Ross Petty tour began in the spring of 1982.

I love SWEENEY TODD but I've never cared for that filmed version, for numerous reasons, many of which have been mentioned in this thread.

I'm with you Eric. Not just the video, but on stage I much much preferred Len Cariou's performance to that of George Hearn's stern performance. Cariou found so many layers and dimensions and made Sweeney seem sympathetic at times.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:47pm

Thanks for the run-down, Eric. I very much agree, though in terms of pure singing, I don't think anyone can touch Hearn (including the baritone who first did the role at the New York City Opera). Still, I prefer Cariou's total approach to the part.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:52pm

Egg, was the tour based on the original staging? I would have loved to have seen Petty, who in thepantomimes always played the villain, but of course those were comic "boo! hiss!" villains--I'm not sure I've seen him play anything dramatic.

Hearn prob does have the edge, voice wise (and he's kept his voice over the years, better), but I'm glad others agree and prefer Cariou's take. I've seen many people argue in favour of Hearn, but I always wondered if that's because they grew up with the taped performance. (One annoyance with the DVD, is the surround sound mix they did for it is simply stereo--except with the applause relegated to the back speakers. Which, maybe because I'm used to the older video, always spaces me out a bit lol)

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 6:59pm

Perhaps, Eric, but I did notice things like Hearn's last note on the line, "And I'm full of joy!" I could never tell whether Cariou was singing in between pitches or what on that note, but it's clear as bell with Hearn. I'm sure some people prefer that.

To me, however, Cariou's voice IS Sweeney's character.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 7:02pm

I am SURE this is me just internally justifying something over the years, but you're right Cariou is a bit off there--and for some reason (though I'm sure Sondheim would not agree with this), it's always implied to me that he's completely lost the tense control he had and crossed over into--well controlled madness.

[joeybiltmore1]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 7:10pm

I saw this production in the early 80's. It was the first time I ever saw Sweeney Todd. I have no memory of Ross Petty other than that he filled the bill and I didn't miss anything that I wasn't used to hearing from Cariou on my well-worn double record set of the original cast. Steven Jacob was a very well-sung and dynamic Tobias and Melanie Vaughan handled Joanna's difficult material well. Carolyn Marlowe was a very affecting Beggar Woman. My crumbling copy of the Playbill tells me that the other principals were Richard Warren Pugh, Robert Ousley, Spain Logue and Calvin Remsberg.

The fine ensemble was a combination of holdovers from the just-closed First National Company and actors recently put out of work by the quick Broadway closing of Merrily We Roll Along.

But Havoc.

To this day I cannot think of a Mrs Lovett that even comes close to the warmth and humor Havoc brought to the role. It was a unique and successful performance in every way. She was daffy, yes, but also completely heartbreaking. The voice was a softer one than Lansbury's, but both caring and care-worn. I have never seen better.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 7:10pm

I can't speak for Sondheim, but that's exactly the way I interpret Cariou on that note.

I only meant to say some people may prefer the more precise pitches of Hearn.

(BTW, I saw Bob Gunton in the "Teeny Todd", so there's another fine theater singer to throw into the mix. IIRC, I would say Bob was somewhere between the beauty of Hearn and the abandon of Cariou.)

Updated On: 8/31/12 at 07:10 PM

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 7:16pm

Joey,thanks for your great memories. I had no idea there was a major tour immediately after the previous one (I know this is often done, of course, but didn't know in the case of Sweeney--I assume it was perhaps even a bit more scaled down).

I found this listing (not sure about the poster) https://www.sondheimguide.com/sweeney.html#1982tour

Gaveston, sorry I wasn't clear--I did understand what you meant completely, you *were* clear. Of course the note is accompanied by that dissonant chord (God my music theory studies are way behind me, and I never did well at them so I'm sure someone will say it's not dissonant--I *do* know that the echoey-ing quiet chord is there to leave it unfinished), which, whatever Sondheim intended would be hard to sing with.

[beaemma]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 7:17pm

Having seen the original production more times than I'll admit to, I remember the opening well. The two men were gravediggers, not ditch diggers. They came on stage and began digging before the start of the show. There was an open rectangular trap door. The lowered themselves into the opening and dug out what looked like actual dirt, depositing it on a tarp. There was the famous "British Beehive" drawing on a drop behind them, and I believe it was the diggers who pulled it down when the loud whistle first sounded at the end of the organ music. When Todd and Mrs. Lovett first appeared, they were raised out of the "grave" on an elevator of some kind. They came up the same way at the conclusion. I assume that the staging was changed for the tour to eliminate the need for a trap door and lift which might not always have been available.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 7:21pm

I didn't think you misunderstood me, Eric. I was just agreeing with you (and perhaps repeating myself) for emphasis.

A bus-and-truck of SWEENEY was out for some time. I remember only because my husband was the assistant casting director. SWEENEY may not have been a huge commercial hit, but it came along when there wasn't much else on Broadway. SOMETHING had to tour and SWEENEY had the Tony Awards.

[MikeInTheDistrict]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 7:22pm

There's a bunch of videos of Loudon's Lovett on Youtube. Personally, I don't find she plays it over-the-top. She definitely milks the role for the humor, but I love it. I actually thought Lansbury played it more broadly than Loudon.

Worst Pies in London:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYwO5mdPBBo

A Little Priest:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eAQMp0MFoA

(there are more, just search "Sweeney Todd Loudon")

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 7:23pm

That makes sense. It also had some sort of notoriety (if not perhaps with mainstream America, or whatever, I'm sure even pretty casual theatre fans outside New york would have heard of this "horror musical" and be curious to see it)--enough so that I imagine it could play in fairly good size markets for brief stops and do very well--so your point that it wasn't all that strange of a show to tour makes sense. Unlike, say, a bus and truck tour of Pacific Overtures.