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| re: Todd et al. Choreography | |
| Posted by: Delvino 07:44 pm EDT 07/15/23 | |
| In reply to: Todd et al. Choreography - peter3053 07:28 am EDT 07/15/23 | |
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| I enjoyed the Sweeney choreography, after hearing disgruntled reports in previews that it distracted. Responses are entirely subjective of course, but I didn't find the hand movements designed solely to literalize the score's staccato rhythm or punctuate the brevity of lines in the text. The ballad is one place where the characters fold into a unified storytelling ensemble beyond participating citizens; and even on his entrance Sweeney himself break the fourth wall, in the first lines sung, Sweeney refers to himself in the third person, which renders him a player (too), a distanced role he won't return to until the finale. Here, hand gestures suggested the need to set forth horrific tale with utter precision, with an assignment: to render moral clarity. The words sung are a brutal appraisal of a story with little light seeping through its cracks. The ensemble's wild-eyed demeanor -- Tobias sneakily turning downstage to uncover his face then cover it again -- suggested the horror in a dark parable they're committed to present. It's mysterious and stylized, but off-putting in a good sense: the world being built will be narrated by people aware of its ugliness and sharp edges. Those edges are what I remember in the arms and hands sorting out the facts. | |
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| re: Todd et al. Choreography | |
| Posted by: peter3053 12:48 am EDT 07/16/23 | |
| In reply to: re: Todd et al. Choreography - Delvino 07:44 pm EDT 07/15/23 | |
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| Wow. My only thought re this is that, as originally envisioned, the ensemble of actors including the actor playing Todd were supposedly denizens of the London underclass, united in powerlessness and frustration, wanting to tell the story of Todd as a cautionary tale to the audience, where Todd is their representative avenger against the elite. I realize that once the words and notes are on the page and in the score, a director is free to interpret, and your analysis is welcome. My feeling is that the choreography draws attention to itself without illuminating a clear point of view - but chacun a son gout, as they say. (Which roughly translated is, "Shaking a son suffering with gout" ... no, that's NOT what they're doing in the choreo ... is it??) |
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