By its opening night on Friday, November 3rd, Pitt Rep’s production of Sweeney Todd will be a well-oiled entertainment machine. Countless hours spent designing, rehearsing, and constructing the show will culminate in two and a half hours of suspenseful, compelling, beautifully-executed live theatre. We can’t wait to share the finished product with you, but, until then, we’d like to invite you “behind the scenes” to join the cast and production team on the road to Sweeney Todd.
Ben Kaye and Sarah Ivins are both members of the cast and Jordan Walsh is an assistant director. Over the course of the next month and a half, these three will blog about their experiences working on the show.
Ben Kaye, a junior Theatre Arts and English Writing double major, plays Beadle in our production and also performs as a member of the ensemble. A bit of a character in real life, Ben will share with you how he creates his character through singing, acting, and movement.
Senior Theatre Arts and English Writing double major Sarah Ivins is keeping herself quite busy in this production. In addition to her roles as Young Lucy and an ensemble member, Sarah is swinging for the character of Johanna, which means that she has to learn three roles during the rehearsal period and be prepared to go on in the event that the lead Johanna cannot.
Jordan Walsh, a senior Theatre Arts and Fiction double major, rounds out our core-blogging team. Jordan will be honing his directing skills through his work as assistant director for Sweeney Todd. He has been involved since the beginning, working with director Lisa Jackson-Schebetta and co-assistant director Dave Bisaha to conceive, cast, and craft the production.
Their blogs will offer three different and insightful perspectives on this exciting production process from start to finish, so be sure to bookmark our page and stop back weekly. Also expect a couple guest appearances by other members of the creative team, and maybe even a video or two.