Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Broadway) NYC Reviews and Tickets

86%

(182 Reviews)

Positive

92%

Mixed

Negative

Members say

Great singing, Entertaining, Absorbing, Great acting, Must see

About the Show

Josh Groban and Annaleigh Ashford star in a new revival of Stephen Sondheim's bloody good classic.

An unparalleled masterwork by one of America’s most celebrated composers and lyricists, this heart-stopping musical thriller equally delights as it horrifies. Rife with diabolically dark humor and an exceptional, classic score, the eight-time Tony Award-winning musical spins the story of an exiled barber’s journey to avenge the evils perpetrated against him and his family by a corrupt system of justice.

Performed on Broadway with the original orchestrations for the first time since 1980, Jonathan Tunick’s classic 26-piece orchestration will interpret the score for the new production.

Tony-winning director Thomas Kail (Hamilton) leads the remounting of this epic musical thriller, starring Grammy and Tony Award Nominee Josh Groban (Natasha, Pierre, & The Great Comet of 1812) and Tony Award-winner Annaleigh Ashford (Kinky Boots, American Crime Story: Impeachment).

Member Reviews (182)

Lighting and set design did the heavy lifting, Too comedic, Sweeney soft

See it if It is a profound story, heartbreaking when done correctly and also frightening. It is not meant to be played for laughs. Enjoy the ride!

Don't see it if While the leads are excellent, they were miscast, I fear. He is not ferocious enough for my taste, and she is playing it like... Read more

Epic

See it if into a rich but conventional interpretation of a modern classic: murder and mayhem. Annaleigh Ashford.

Don't see it if well - act one had its weak moments. Read more

Great acting, Must see, Masterful, Great staging, Great singing

See it if you never seen a Sondheim musical. Also to see this talented cast. Ashford is hilarious and Groban plays a great Sweeney.

Don't see it if NOTHING go see it!

Must see, Masterful, Great acting, Great singing, Entertaining

See it if This revival does full justice to a masterpiece of musical theater- my sole quibble was the choreography

Don't see it if bloody mayhem upsets you but the songs are so lovely as throats are cut and bodies dumped down a chute

Epic, Funny, Great writing, Great singing

See it if You want to see an excellently performed production of a legendary Sondheim show! Ashford and Groban are incredible.

Don't see it if You’re looking for anything new or innovative. It’s the show with big broad staging in the spirit of the OG production.

Slow, Ambitious, Great singing, Enchanting, Entertaining

See it if Its a great production. Annaleigh is great, but she isn't doing anything we haven't seen her do before. Josh sings well but doesnt act much

Don't see it if no reason not too although there are better shows to see for the price

Bad, Stagnant, Unoriginal, Boring, Bland

See it if you simply must see every major Sondheim production that comes along.

Don't see it if Bland performances, awful staging, ridiculous zombie Macarena choreography, a lifeless Sweeney Todd. Read more

Intense, Great singing, Epic, Entertaining, Enchanting

See it if a Sondheim classic, dark-twisted plots, blood!

Don't see it if you want something too funny or expecting a very dark Sweeny (Groban plays it light)

Critic Reviews (21)

CRITIC’S PICK: “... the ravishingly sung, deeply emotional and strangely hilarious “Sweeney” revival that opened on Sunday at the Lunt-Fontanne Theater. Starring Josh Groban and Annaleigh Ashford, and directed by Thomas Kail, it has a rictus on its face and a scar in its heart.”
Read more

“You won’t leave humming the scenery, but that’s fine: The superb score, which melds period genres with modern influences, is the main attraction, and it comes through gorgeously. Powerfully sung and played in Jonathan Tunick’s original orchestrations, Sondheim’s Grand Guignol masterwork sounds as grand here as it deserves to. Dig in.”
Read more

“Kail...aims to ratchet Sweeney all the way back up, deploying a cast of 25, a two-level set by Mimi Lien with a towering crane—going big and crucially, expressionistic...His London is full of phantoms slipping in and out of the fog. Foremost among those phantoms: Josh Groban’s Sweeney, who glints but does not gleam in the darkness. ”
Read more

“With flawless performances by the entire company, there's plenty to love about this chef's kiss of a revival of one of Sondheim's greatest works. Attend the tale — you won't regret it.”
Read more

“Kail’s production has an austere severity that’s suited to serial killings but also makes it feel coolly remote...And there will be audiences who remember hearing the dynamite score of ‘Sweeney Todd’ played by a 26-person orchestra, and sung by as many soaring voices, as a pulse-raising experience on its own, all handsome pageantry aside.”
Read more

“By some mysterious alchemy, ‘Sweeney Todd’ excels at illuminating them all, exploring the best and worst of humanity in one of musical theater’s most thrilling, and chilling, works.”
Read more

“With so many disappointments and reservations, I urge anyone unfamiliar with this work of cultural genius to see some, one, or any production of ‘Sweeney Todd,’ one of Broadway’s shining achievements. What a privilege it is to be part of this adventure, even in a sluggish, second-rate production like this one.”
Read more

"A prodigious theatrical event that aims for greatness and achieves it, this revival of the Stephen Sondheim-Hugh Wheeler masterpiece is not to be missed."
Read more

Trailer

Creative team