KISS Theatre brings ‘Sweeney Todd’ to stage
Maggie Geiger of Forty Fort as Mrs. Lovett and Jayden David of Bethlehem in the title role rehearse a scene from the KISS Theatre production of ‘Sweeney Todd,’ which opens July 29.
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Jayden David, as Sweeney Todd, wipes a razor blade as members of the ensemble look on.
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Dharma Siroki of Freeland portrays a beggar who confronts Sweeney Todd, played by Jayden David in the KISS Theatre production of ‘Sweeney Todd.’
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A young sailor named Anthony, played by Dallas Fernandes, is determined to help Sweeney Todd’s daughter, Johanna, played by Hailey Kulpa, escape from the corrupt judge who keeps her a prisoner.
Submitted Photo
If times are so tough, new arrival Sweeney Todd asks a baker in 19th-century London, why don’t you rent out the room above your bakery?
Oh, the baker explains, nobody would want that haunted place. That’s where a barber named Benjamin Barker once lived with his beautiful wife, who attracted the attention of an evil judge and his evil henchman, the beadle.
The judge and the beadle got rid of Benjamin Barker by having him “transported” to a penal colony, innocent though he was. Then they lured his wife to a masquerade, where they had their way with her.
In her role as Mrs. Lovett, baker of not-so-savory meat pies, 18-year-old Maggie Geiger, of Forty Fort, tells this sad tale to 17-year-old Jayden David of Bethlehem, who has the title role in the KISS Theatre production of “Sweeney Todd,” which opens July 29 in Wilkes-Barre Township.
“It’s my favorite part of the show,” Geiger said before a recent rehearsal.
After the rehearsal began, Mrs. Lovette recounted the tragedy, which ends with the barber’s young wife taking poison, and several ensemble members recreated her fate. Wearing elaborate masks, they portrayed party guests who surrounded the young wife at the masquerade and did nothing to help her.
“Will no one have mercy on her?” Sweeney burst out, confirming Mrs. Lovett’s suspicion that he and Benjamin Barker, now back in London after 15 years in the penal colony, are the same person.
“It gets dark,” director James Brandt said of the production. “It’s also humorous and campy. And I’ve never been prouder of a cast. They are so hard-working.”
Although a teen version of the script does exist, Brandt said, his young cast has been working since late May on the full-scale version. “They are teenagers dealing with some mature topics,” he said. “But they can handle it.”
For weeks, the group has been practicing Stephen Sondheim’s tongue-twisty lyrics and pondering the themes of murder and revenge, along with the arrangement Sweeney Todd and Mrs. Lovett have that involves him using his straight-edge razors to enhance the flavor of her pies.
“Mrs. Lovett is the true villain of the piece,” Geiger said. “She’s the one who gets the idea.”
“She’s kind of ditzy,” Geiger added. “She’s in love with Sweeney.”
As for Sweeney, Geiger said, he doesn’t return Lovett’s affection. All he cares about is avenging himself, primarily against the judge whose actions prompted his wife to take poison, and who adopted Sweeney’s young daughter, Johanna.
The judge never lets Johanna out of his house; nevertheless, a young sailor named Anthony manages to see and fall in love with her.
“It’s my dream role since I saw it on Broadway two years ago,” said 14-year-old Hailey Kulpa of Mountain Top, who plays Johanna. “She’s been trapped for years by her ‘new father,’ the judge.”
While Johanna and Anthony do manage to escape together, Kulpa said, she suspects there will be no “happily ever after” for the young woman, because she will never be free of her emotional scars.
Another character who has undergone trauma is a marginalized Beggar Woman, played by Dharma Siroki, 18, of Freeland.
“People don’t see her as a person,” Siroki said, noting that even when ensemble members all join in song, her character is excluded. “It’s such a deep isolation. She’s a victim of trauma, mentally ill, and in the 1860s, she was treated like a leper. That still happens today.”
One of the lessons Siroki sees in the show is “Don’t let revenge make you cruel. Sweeney was a good, good man, and he lost that because of what happened. He thinks killing will make him feel better. But he never feels better.”
Siroki, David, and Geiger all graduated from high school this year, and each has experienced between 8 and 13 years of KISS productions.
“It feels so welcoming here,” Geiger said gratefully. “You can be whoever you want to be.”
Admitting she found being on stage scary at first, Geiger said she’s glad to let her mother talk her into getting involved, especially because she’s “someone who loves to sing and dance and act.”
“It’s so well constructed,” David said of the theatre program. “By the adults who set the example and by the kids who follow the example.”
KISS Theatre will present “Sweeney Todd” at 7 p.m. July 30 and July 31; at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. Aug. 1; and at 2 p.m. Aug. 2 in the 400 East End Center, Wilkes-Barre Township. Tickets are $18 for adults and $16 for students, veterans, and seniors.
The production carries a “strongly suggested” PG-13 rating. Groups of 12 or more are encouraged to contact info@kisstheatre.org for group rates.
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