If you're a fan of Jason Donovan from his 'Neighbours' days, you might be in for a bit of a shock. In this touring production of Sweeney Todd, Donovan plays the lead role of the murdering barber of Fleet Street, driven to kill through revenge and despair, and then make his victims into meat pies! It’s far from the sunshine of Ramsey Street, but as Donovan himself is keen to point out, he's come a long way since then, appearing in Joseph, the Rocky Horror show and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Donovan emerges from a coffin on stage… Minutes after the performance starts, with Donovan emerging from a coffin on stage, we're engrossed in a much darker world, with Australian memories quickly forgotten. He plays the role well, hunched over most of the time, and belding into the ensemble performance with the other actors. It was very much a group show - despite star casting from Donovan, and Harriett Thorpe (most famous for her role as Carol the receptionist in The Brittas Empire) as the pie making Mrs Lovatt - with all the actors are on stage throughout. Thorpe stole the show with her comic performance and a scarily endearing characterisation the pie making accomplice. A musical affair The actors all played instruments on stage which provided one of the strongest elements of the production - the lovers Joanna and Anthony both donning Cellos while singing lovingly out of an imaginary window. The musicians / actors actually provided the whole of Sondheim's complex score, including a witty performance from the hilarious Thorpe on the triangle. Confusing to some? It looked and sounded amazing, but some audience members we left confused at the plot - and my only criticism might be that there was too much symbolism, meaning essentially it was a neat interpretation for people who already knew the story, or had seen the original musical. That aside, this is a clever production, impeccably timed and the murders given even more impact by their lack of gruesome realism - each one shown with a reddening of the lights and the pouring of blood red die into a bucket. See it- if you dare... Interview with Jason Donovan & Harriett Thorpe Listen to what the stars of the show had to say when we interviewed them in March 2006:
We asked Jason if he looks back on those times on Neighbours fondly?
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