A musical to sink your teeth into Snapshots Collective serves up piping hot pies in site-specific Sweeney Todd production
Nobody, to our knowledge, had ever done this with a musical.” Chris Adams
Staging Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in a pop-up theatre complete with steaming hot pies served up for dinner is such a brilliant idea it’s hard to imagine it hasn’t been done here before. Timing it around Halloween makes it all the more appropriate.
Director Chris Adams of The Snapshots Collective says that the idea had been kicking around for awhile. Finding the right venue took time.
“I’ve worked for a couple of companies as a designer or actor in site-specific theatre settings,” said Adams. “But nobody, to our knowledge, had ever done this with a musical and we thought it would be a great idea. Then there was the Halloween angle, and we knew we had to do it.”
Everything from black box theatres to church halls were considered for staging the production, with attention being given to what kind of set build would be required to complete the project.
Naturally, the team wanted to try to do the multiple award-winning 1979 work from Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler justice at all levels. A 19th century London setting was challenging in a place as young as Vancouver.
“We spent about two months looking at options and then decided we wanted something so site-specific that the walls were the walls, the doors were the doors and so on,” he said. “After seeing about 10 places, we booked the 348 Water Street storefront and couldn’t have been happier.”
Gastown is certainly the most appropriate area of Vancouver to suggest the old London location of Mrs. Lovett’s Pie Shop where the baking is, literally, to die for. The Snapshots Collective had already committed to the idea to go all the way with the production, so savoury pies for dinner were required. This production will really be letting the audience carve into the meat of the matter (and, because it’s the West Coast, the vegetarian and vegan options too).
“Our seating is 56 people a night for a total of 18 shows, and the show takes place right where you are sitting,” he said. “It meant that we had to do a lot of thinking about the dynamics of volume performing with a wall of 100 year-old brick on one side and we’ll be tweaking it right up to opening night.”
With the site-specific concept set and the venue sourced, casting came next. The only person the producers were certain they had to have was musical theatre veteran Warren Kimmel to play the vengeful barber Sweeney Todd. Kimmel has never played what is considered one of the plum roles in all of the musical theatre canon.
“I’ve been offered it twice and, for various reasons, had to turn it down both times,” said Kimmel. “So, third try lucky, and, if we get this right, it’s going to be something really unique and special. The rehearsal process has been one of discovering how difficult it’s going to be and forcing us to be ingenious in our creative solutions to those challenges.”
Sweeney’s weapon of choice is one those challenges; there are many others. The Snapshots Collective hasn’t taken an easy out at any stage of the production.
“I spend most of the show wielding a real straight razor at about head height of the people watching, so that’s fun,” said Kimmel.
“The fact we aren’t amplified in such a small space is no big deal, until you take into account where the band is playing and you are facing while the audience is four directions around you. If it’s good enough, this should have a lifespan well past this production, because it really is so unique.”
Kimmel says what makes Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street stand out as one of Sondheim’s greatest works is how complete the play is. Every element of the play is spot on, although it’s not got one single song that has a life of its own outside the show.
“It’s true, there isn’t a song in the show that you’ll walk out humming even if you marvel at how clever it all is,” he said. “But pound for pound, this is a tie for me between West Side Story and Sweeney Todd. West Side Story is more tuneful, but Sweeney Todd has this incredible freshness that grabs you.”
In the play, Sweeney grabs more than his fair share of customers to pass on to his partner-in-crime to grind up and serve up. Pie maker Mrs. Lovett is played by Colleen Winton.
The pies that patrons will be eating at the performance come courtesy of real life pie specialist Jennell Parsons, owner of The Pie Hole (thepiehole.com with locations at 3497 Fraser and 7832 6th St., Burnaby). Parsons was enough of a fan of Sweeney Todd previous to this production that she has dressed up as Mrs. Lovett for Halloween.
She thinks having her pies associated with the story’s cannibalistic cook is hilarious.
“When we first started the company, we considered Sweeney’s Pies as a name before settling on the Pie Hole, which was equally cheeky,” said Parsons.
“I began the business selling at farmer’s markets in super small spaces, so I’ve no worries about how to do this in the small ‘backstage’ catering area. The menu of little individual pies includes the popular steak and stout pie, the Moroccan chickpea for the vegetarian option, and also the vegan Thai tofu.”
Parsons is pleased that the production is post-Thanksgiving as her team is already creating 2,000-plus pies for that holiday. The thousand or so pies that the play might require is just a bonus before Christmas. Audience members are invited to choose their preferred flavour when purchasing tickets.
Murder, music and munchies. If that isn’t a good date night, I’m not sure what is.