Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1982) (TV)

Directors:

Terry Hughes
Harold Prince

Writers:

Christopher Bond (play)
Hugh Wheeler (musical) ...
(more)

Release Date:

12 September 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Musical | Drama | Thriller | Horror

Plot:

Benjamin Barker alias Sweeney Todd, returns to London after being deported to find out what happened...

Plot Keywords:

Revenge | Barber | Murder | Blackmail | Rage

Awards:

Won 3 Primetime Emmys. Another 4 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Angela Lansbury	...	Nellie Lovett
George Hearn	...	Sweeney Todd
Cris Groenendaal	...	Anthony Hope
Sara Woods	...	Beggar Woman
Edmund Lyndeck	...	Judge Turpin
Calvin Remsberg	...	The Beadle
Betsy Joslyn	...	Johanna
Sal Mistretta	...	Pirelli
Spain Logue	...	Birdseller
Walter Charles	...	Passerby
Michael Kalinyen	...	Jonas Fogg
Roy Gioconda	...	Company
Skip Harris	...	Company
Duane Morris	...	Company
Patricia Parker	...	Company
Meredith Rawlins	...	Company
Stuart Redfield	...	Company
Candace Rogers	...	Company
Dee Etta Rowe	...	Company
Carrie Solomon	...	Company
Melanie Vaughan	...	Company
Joseph Warner	...	Company
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Kenneth Jennings	...	Tobias Ragg (as Ken Jennings)
Joe Boots	...	Pie (uncredited)

Directed by
Terry Hughes
Harold Prince

Writing credits
Christopher Bond		(play "Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street")
Hugh Wheeler		(musical)
Stephen Sondheim		musical

Produced by
Bonnie Burns	....	producer
Archer King	....	executive producer

Non-Original Music by
Stephen Sondheim		(from musical "Sweeney Todd")

Cinematography by
Bill Klages

Film Editing by
Jimmy B. Frazier
Ken Laski

Production Design by
Eugene Lee

Costume Design by
Franne Lee

Makeup Department
Christy Ann Newquist	....	makeup artist
Lyndell Quiyou	....	wig maker

Production Management
James Rich Jr.	....	executive in charge of production

Sound Department
Jerry Clemans	....	post-production sound mixer
Doug Nelson	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Lew Adams	....	camera operator
Ken Billington	....	stage lighting
Dave Hilmer	....	camera operator
Mike Keeler	....	camera operator
Bill Klages	....	stage lighting
Wayne Orr	....	camera operator

Music Department
Jim Coleman	....	conductor
Paul Gemignani	....	musical director
Harold Prince	....	stage director: musical
Jonathan Tunick	....	orchestrator

Other crew
Larry Fuller	....	choreographer
Sandra Pearson	....	associate director
Mark Sanford	....	video

Production Companies

• RKO Pictures
• RKO/Nederlander Productions

Distributors

• Entertainment Channel (limited cable premiere)
• Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) (1982) (USA) (TV)
• Warner Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Sweeney Todd (Australia)

Runtime:

140 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Canada:14A | Australia:PG (DVD rating) | UK:12

Filming Locations:

Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles County Music Center - 135 N. Grand Avenue, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

RKO Pictures

Trivia:

The original Broadway production starring Angela Lansbury and Len Cariou opened at the Uris Theater on February 6, 1979, ran for 557 performances and won the 1979 Tony Awards for the Best Musical, Book and Score.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: At the end, during the curtain call, a camera man can be seen in the rafters, stage left.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Man: [singing] Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd. His skin was pale and his eye was odd. He shaved the faces of gentlemen who never thereafter were heard of again. He trod a path that few have trod, Did Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Broadway: The American Musical" (2004)

The only SWEENEY TODD to watch

Though the video technology may be dated, this classic musical play, now on DVD, is the best version of Sondheim's most important and polished work on Broadway. If you've never seen SWEENEY TODD, then you must buy this DVD. I saw this production in November 1980 at Kennedy Center in Washington--and fell in love with a pre-"Murder She Wrote" Angela Lansbury. Subsequently, I tried to find any and all of her work, among them: MOVIES: "The Harvey Girls," "The Picture of Dorian Gray," "Manchurian Candidate"; CDs: "Mame," "Dear World," and "Gypsy"; and many more. The rest of the cast is flawless, too. All in all, this wonderful DVD gives us the definitive version of Sondheim's opera!