| re: Mrs. Lovett or Sweeney: which is the bigger role? | |
| Posted by: Singapore/Fling 01:27 pm EST 03/05/24 | |
| In reply to: re: Mrs. Lovett or Sweeney: which is the bigger role? - Chazwaza 01:45 am EST 03/05/24 | |
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| I am incredulous of your claim, because it appears to come from someone with an a lay person’s knowledge of dramatic structure, so I was hoping you would do the work to go through the show and point to where Lovett makes the choices or drives the action of our A plot, rather than the B. Instead, you avoided the question by throwing it back on me. So since you can’t, I’ll break down the story structure: The A story is Todd arrives in London pursuing his family and his revenge. He immediately goes to his old lodgings and investigates (A plot, story-driving action). Lovett, in love with Todd (B plot) lies to him about the fate of his wife (complication to the A plot, this redirects Todd bit is but not a story-driving action). Todd then exposes Pirelli as a charlatan, which gets him in the good graces of the Beadle, which he uses as a way to ensnare the Judge (A plot, story driving action). The judge takes his time arriving, partially because the play is focusing on the B plot (Lovett turning Sweeney into her husband) and the C plot (Anthony and Joanna), so Lovett tells Sweeney to wait (which he doesn’t really have another option, so I don’t think we can call this an obstacle to the A) and Anthony comes to Todd for help with Joanna, which is both C and A plot, because Sweeney agrees to help in order to achieve his goal of having his family back. In a wonderful twist of writing, pursuing one goal - family - becomes the obstacle of his other goal of revenge when Anthony bursts in just as Todd is about to kill the judge. At this point, crucially, Todd vows to continue killing people for practice, but really as a way of widening his revenge, which is now against all of humanity - in this way, our C story is heightening the scope of the A, which is what we need to get a full musical. With that stated, Lovett suggests baking people into pies, which is both a logistical response to the problem of all the dead bodies, and also a way for her to further deepen her bond with Sweeney (B story) by being his accomplice in the A story. We thus have a situation where the thing that everyone talks about with the play - they turn people into pies! - is in fact the B, because the B carries the political critique and comic wildness of the musical, but that’s not the main story… AND this new plot thread is only possible because Sweeney took action in his A story that has him creating all of these dead bodies. Lovett had an idea and loops him into it, but even here she is responding more than driving. So that’s Act 2. I could do all of Act 2, but I don’t have the time. The core thing is that it is Todd who uses Anthony to rescue Joanna and lure the judge back into his barber’s chair. Lovett meanwhile gets a D plot with Toby, and continues to pursue Todd in the B. In this chunk of the show, she gets some plot points that are maneuvering elements that need to be in play for the A, and it’s in this section where she does carry some of the larger story action - but then we are plunged back into the A with a series of murders that ultimately lead to A) he kills his wife and almost kills his daughter, because the need for revenge has completely taken over the need for his family; and B) he realizes that Lovett has complicated his goals from the top and kills her. At this point he has achieved one goal and failed the other, and no longer has story purpose nor much will to live. This is when Toby kills him - and is the main example of a Lovett action having direct impact on the A story, because she influenced the instrument of his death. So back to you - how does Lovett drive the A story? |
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| Previous: | re: Mrs. Lovett or Sweeney: which is the bigger role? - Chazwaza 01:45 am EST 03/05/24 |
| Next: | re: Mrs. Lovett or Sweeney: which is the bigger role? - Billhaven 06:22 pm EST 03/05/24 |
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