Its a city of strangers

I haven't seen Sweeny Todd, yet. I will, I promise, but I just can't succomb to both Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham-Carter when my ears are so very accustomed to Len Cariou and Angela Lansbury. I realize, of course, that one of the great things about Sondheim is that his music is meant for polyphony and generally can bend to the timbre of nearly anyone's voice. THe downside being that that voice must have range and the performer must have depth to bring out the contradictions in lyrics and motif. While I believe that Depp can achieve the innocence of Todd's revenge, I wonder if Bonham-Carter can find the purity of insanity required for Mrs. Lovett.

For a fellow blogger's take on the whole bloody thing, I direct you to ReelFanatic.

I think another reason I can't get around to seeing it (besides my lingering illness), is the new cast recording for Company. I love Company. It is, in my ears, one of the most satisfying scores ever written. And while I adore the original Broadway recording, especially the amazing Elaine Strich's "Ladies Who Lunch," the new Broadway cast recording featuring Raul Esparza and Barbara Walsh is grown-up and excellent. The flat out exuberance of the opening number is tempered by intentionally calling out some disonance. Bobby's friends no longer merely want him to "Stop by on [his] way home," there is a creepy neediness that has infected them that completely justifies his yelling, "Stop" before the show-stopping final number, "Being Alive."

So I was looking for a video clip somewhere online of "Another Hundred People," and I stumbled across this one with the amazingly talented Marcy Harriel. I saw Marcie play Mimi in Rent in 1997 (three times). She was great. This song is considered a signature song, and she capably adds her powerful, well-phrased voice to the list of only a few who can claim it as theirs.