Local Actors Beckon: Attend the Tale of Sweeney Todd

A legendary musical thriller involving murder, meat pies and undying love, will open this week at Vashon Center for the Arts.

By Elizabeth Shepherd • February 15, 2023 1:30 am
“Sweeney Todd” cast members took a break from rehearsing the musical, last Saturday, to bask in a rare moment of sunshine outside of Vashon Center for the Arts last Saturday. Pictured front row, left to right, are Arlette Moody, Amy Cole, Stephanie Murray, Bradley J. Thomas and Hailey Howell Quackenbush. The cast members in the back row, left to right, are Matt Wilson, Chris Boscia, Max Lopusynski, Miles Wingett, and Erika Strandberg (Tom Hughes Photo).
“Sweeney Todd” cast members took a break from rehearsing the musical, last Saturday, to bask in a rare moment of sunshine outside of Vashon Center for the Arts last Saturday. Pictured front row, left to right, are Arlette Moody, Amy Cole, Stephanie Murray, Bradley J. Thomas and Hailey Howell Quackenbush. The cast members in the back row, left to right, are Matt Wilson, Chris Boscia, Max Lopusynski, Miles Wingett, and Erika Strandberg (Tom Hughes Photo).

Stephen Sondheim’s masterpiece of musical theater, “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” will open this week with a preview performance on Thursday, Feb. 16, and subsequent performances on Feb. 17-26, at Vashon Center for the Arts.

For islanders who have never seen the 1979 Tony Award-winning show — a legendary musical thriller involving murder, meat pies and undying love, this is your chance.

And for those who have only seen the 2007 movie version of the musical, starring Johnny Depp, or a version of the stage show at some other vaulted venue, this production will offer something new: a cast that features a constellation of some of the brightest theater talents on Vashon, joined by talented actors from the mainland.

The show, a co-presentation by Vashon Repertory Theatre and Island Time Productions, will feature Kansas City actor Bradley J. Thomas in the role of Sweeney Todd, a wronged barber set on gruesome revenge in Victorian-era London.

The role of Mrs. Lovett — who helpfully assists in a culinary way with the disposal of Todd’s victims — will be played by Stephanie Murray, one of the most beloved leading ladies on Vashon.

Other local luminaries — who are either from Vashon or currently reside here — include Hailey Howell Quackenbush as Tobias, a teenager who becomes tangled in the web of Todd’s and Mrs. Lovett’s wrongdoing; Max Lopuszynski, in the sinister role of The Beadle; and Miles Wingett, as Perilli, a con-man with an amazing vocal range who fails to outwit Mr. Todd.

Arlette Moody will play the role of a tortured soul on the streets of London, the Beggar Woman, and islanders Chris Boscia, Amy Cole, Matt Wilson, Erika Strandberg and Indigo Alton are featured in the ensemble of the show.

Two actors from the mainland, Oliver Callahan and Sydney Penticuff, will play the love-struck roles of Joanna and Anthony, while the role of The Judge — a character whose extreme wickedness sets the whole perverse plot of the show in motion — will be tackled by Timothy Wilds, from Olympia. Rounding out the cast will be Giao Nguyen, Steve Perry and Meagan Kirby, ensemble members from the mainland.

The show is directed by Vashon Repertory Theatre’s artistic director, Charlotte Tiencken, with musical direction and pounding piano accompaniment of the magnificent score by Christopher Overstreet.

Purchase tickets to the show at vashoncenterforthearts.org.