Emma Thompson and Bryn Terfel
Transferring from New York’s Lincoln Centre, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is to be reprised on the West End at the London Coliseum with returning stars Emma Thompson and Bryn Terfel.
We were lucky enough to be invited to the exclusive press launch of the show, held in the Coliseum’s Sky Bar (which incidentally had laid out some truly wonderful chocolate cookies for our arrival…YES!) Whilst at the launch we heard from the fabulous (and pant wettingly hilarious) Emma Thompson and her equally fabulous co-star Bryn “voice sent from heaven” Terfel. Check out the video below to see what the pair had to say about the show plus see some exclusive footage taken from the shows initial New York Run.
I have to say Emma is pure comedy gold! Her inability to sit on a spinning chair (1.40) is magnificent, her jokes are equally as hilarious (2.00), her tales of Sondheim’s words of wisdom (5.20) are ahem…inspirational and her reaction to pigeons ( 3.42) is priceless!
Great Quotes From the Cast and Creative Team
We heard many a great sentence from the cast and creative team behind the show. Below are a few of our favourite quotes from the event.
Emma Thompson – Mrs Lovett
“ My great friend Imelda Staunton triumphed in the show recently. I said to Imelda last year, what do you think? Will I manage it? She just gave me this look (2.39) and said “…hmm.. if you start working on it now, you MIGHT be okay!”
“The chance to do this show again was like a dream coming true.”
“ The Coliseum is my favourite theatre in London…particularly that little round bit on the top.”
(On singing Mrs. Lovett) “It’s p*ss easy!”
(In response to being asked whether she sings in the bath) “I haven’t had a bath for sometime!”
Bryn Terfel – Sweeney Todd
“ [Mrs Lovett and Sweeney Todd] bring musical theatre and opera together. Sweeney’s Epiphany is a very difficult aria/song to perform.”
“The reactions to Emma singing for the New York Philharmonic fir the first time actually brought tears to the instrumentalist’s eyes! These are die hard musicians! All of a sudden they have Emma singing this with every nuance she could possibly have…it was just mesmerising.”
Michael Grade – Producer
“A journalist asked me recently what the difference is between musical theatre and opera. I said in musicals very few people die…But with Sweeney Todd….ha we have given the line to that definition!”
“ I am totally in love with the show.”
“The great thing for us is to bring this theatre back into the musical world, which it was designed for…[the theatre is] Frank Matcham’s masterpiece.”
Michael Linnit – Producer
“We have harboured some amazing creative talents here.”
John Berry – Artistic Director of the ENO
“We are all very excited for Sweeney Todd in our first partnership with GradeLinnit!”
Sweeney Todd runs at the London Coliseum for a limited time only from the 30th March 2015.
