Greensburg Civic Theatre's 'Sweeney Todd' plumbs depths of human psyche

Feb. 7—Greensburg Civic Theatre will present the macabre tale of the demon barber of Fleet Street this weekend at the Greensburg Garden & Civic Center, 951 Old Salem Road.

Curtain times for "Sweeney Todd" will be at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday.

The Stephen Sondheim musical is an adaptation of a tale often retold since it first appeared in 1846 as an English serial publication called "The String of Pearls."

The Tony Award-winning show follows Todd as he returns from exile to 19th century London, bent on revenge against a judge who framed him and ravaged his young wife. Todd opens a new barbershop and begins dispatching customers with his straight razor, giving the bodies to the proprietor of a pie shop on the floor below.

Suddenly, customers are lining up for the shop's meat pies.

"People just love this musical. They come out of the woodwork to act in it and to see it," said director Patrick Daniel of Mt. Lebanon. "I love it; it's my favorite musical."

It's a fascinating look into a dreadful aspect of the human psyche, he said.

"There's something about this dark tale of bloodletting that people like to plumb to the depths," Daniel said. "People like to gather to see these tales where things just get worse and worse and worse, and 'Sweeney Todd' is like that. It's probably the same reason that people listen to true crime podcasts and things like that."

Todd is a challenging role to play, said Kevin Polke of Fox Chapel.

"Mostly I'm a teacher who occasionally gets to do this theater stuff," said Polke, who teaches math at Shadyside Academy. "The characters are kind of horrible but are also tapping into the basic emotions of revenge and loss.

"The role of Sweeney Todd is a big bite to chew for someone who is a part-time theater actor, and I certainly knew it would be a big investment of time and thought, even outside of rehearsal."

Not only are the characters complicated, but so is the music, Daniel said.

"Something Sondheim is really fond of is having these overlapping melodies and overlapping words," said Daniel, who also is the show's choreographer. "There are some ensemble songs where there are many people singing, not necessarily different tempos but very, very different percussive lines, speaking and singing all on top of each other.

"That takes some time to suss out, not only nailing the part but making sense of who they're singing to and why."

Though much of the focus is on the main character, the show needs strong supporting players, Polke said.

"The title character naturally gets a lot of attention, but the show runs on the backs and the blood, sweat and tears of the ensemble, who have crucial roles in very intricate sequences throughout the show," he said. "Moving and singing and holding our own in this very complicated music is a big task."

The show is Daniel's first with GCT and his first time doing "Sweeney Todd." A Texas native, he moved to Pittsburgh about five years ago and works in health care administration. He previously performed in "Songs for a New World" with Pittsburgh-based Heritage Players.

"I'm just getting back into theater," he said. "I saw GCT's ad for a director and, having directed many times in the past, I thought it was time to jump back in."

Polke moved to the area in 2021 and performed last year in GCT's production of "Rent." He acted with various companies in his native New Jersey, including Spring Lake Theatre Company.

Tickets are $16-$18 in advance at 724-836-8000 or thepalacetheatre.org, or $16-$20 at the door. For information, visit gctheatre.org.

Shirley McMarlin is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Shirley by email at smcmarlin@triblive.com or via Twitter .