Sweeney Todd Musical Manila celebrates the play’s 40th anniversary on Broadway and Atlantis Productions’ 20th year with a star-studded cast led by Lea Salonga as Mrs. Lovett and Jett Pangan as Sweeney Todd.
The performances are way different from those of Audie Gemora as Sweeney Todd and Menchu Launchengco-Yulo as Mrs. Lovett during Repertory Philippines’ staging at OnStage Greenbelt 1, Makati in 2009. The Atlantis production is grander, performed by an all-star cast, with a live orchestra that lets you feel the eerie 1840’s London vibe.
This is a Lea Salonga musical performance you can’t miss watching in Manila right in time for Halloween!
First Things First
SWEENEY TODD: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
A Musical Thriller
Date: October 11-27, 2019
Venue: The Theatre at Solaire, Solaire Resort & Casino,
1 Aseana Avenue, Entertainment City, Paranaque City
Synopsis. An unjustly exiled barber, Sweeney Todd returns to nineteenth-century London seeking vengeance. His revenge leads him to Mrs. Lovett, a resourceful proprietress of a failing pie shop. Sweeney Todd opens a new barber practice and Mrs. Lovett’s luck sharply shifts. People of London start lining up for her pies… and the carnage has only just begun!
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street has won eight Tony Awards (including Best Musical), for its Broadway premiere, as well as the Olivier Award for Best New Musical. It’s Manila staging marks the 40th anniversary of the musical having first opened on Broadway in 1979.
Tickets. Buy your tickets now at www.ticketworld.com.ph or call +632 8891-9999
Oct 11 • Fri • 8:00 PM
Oct 12 • Sat • 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM
Oct 13 • Sun • 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM
Oct 17 • Thu • 8:00 PM
Oct 18 • Fri • 8:00 PM
Oct 19 • Sat • 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM
Oct 20 • Sun • 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM
Oct 24 • Thu • 8:00 PM
Oct 25 • Fri • 8:00 PM
Oct 26 • Sat • 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM
Oct 27 • Sun • 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM
₱5,000 VIP
₱4,000 A Reserve
₱3,000 B Reserve
₱2,000 C Reserve
₱1,500 D Reserve
With Manila’s traffic, you have to allot two hours of travel and arrive one hour before the show which starts on the dot.
There’s absolutely no selfies or photos allowed inside the theater, and you’ll be required to put your phone on airplane mode. Go early and beat the lines for the instagrammable backdrops and settings for your group photos.
Lea Salonga as Mrs. Lovett
We felt honored watching the brilliant performance of Lea Salonga as Mrs. Lovett, with brother Gerard Salonga as Musical Director and Conductor on the opening night of Sweeney Todd. You don’t need to fly to Broadway or West End to experience musical greatness performed by Filipino theatre legends.
Ever since we watched Lea in Miss Saigon in NY, we got hooked on theatre musicals, and we became fans of her work. In Sweeney Todd, we loved watching Lea having fun with Mrs. Lovett’s role, singing with a London accent with ease and performing the villain role that you love and hate at the same time.
If there’s one thing I learned from the musical, it’s don’t mess with the first wife or else… you become a meat pie. 🙂
Ang galing ni Lea! It felt like I was watching a Mrs. Lovett musical with Sweeney Todd as the accomplice.
Awesome Staging!
Bravo to Nyoy Volante’s performance as Adolfo Pirelli. I didn’t know he could be witty, comical and fun to watch on stage. We also loved Ima Castro’s makulit role as the Beggar Woman throughout the whole performance.
Kudos also to the solid supporting cast of international Filipino Baritone Andrew Fernando as Judge Turpin, Gerald Santos as Anthony Hope and the lovely Mikkie Bradshaw-Volante as Johanna Barker.
The gritty London set was able to depict the chaotic street life of Fleet St., with the centerpiece red car transforming into a barbershop, a getaway car or a London street platform.
I expected Jett Pangan’s Sweeney Todd performance to be scarier, bolder and more vengeful, with a London accent. It was really tough, I guess, performing alongside Lea, but we loved his previous villain roles like Riff Raff in The Rocky Horror Show Manila. I’m sure his performance will get better and better over the course of the production. Go! Go! Go!
Final Thoughts
Overall, the story of a barber serial killer and partner cannibal baker revenge plot told through a musical thriller is perfect for the Halloween season. You can’t miss the performances of Lea Salonga as Mrs. Lovett, Jett Pangan as Sweeney Todd and the star-studded cast under the awesome direction of Bobby Garcia, with musical direction by Gerard Salonga.
The lyrics were sometimes hard to understand with the Filipino London accent. For the best experience, read the background story of Sweeney Todd Musical on Wikipedia and listen to the Sweeney Todd Original Broadway Cast Recording on Spotify.
This one is for the Manila theatre books and one of those landmark musical experiences that we will talk about for years to come. I’m so proud of our theatre scene here in Manila, which is becoming the center in Asia that can rival Broadway and West End one of these days.
Congratulations to Lea Salonga and Atlantis Productions for the awesome musical thriller in Manila!
Live an Awesome Life,
Founder, Our Awesome Planet
Disclosure: Our tickets were courtesy of Atlantis Productions. I wrote this article with my biases, opinions, and insights.
P.S. Don’t forget to buy the awesome souvenir program (₱500).
Good evening!
Question: Is it allowed to take photos during their performance? Like you asked permission?
Do the actors mingle with the audience after the play like in NY plays?
Just curious coz we’ll be watching it on the 27th.
Thank you!
It’s strictly not allowed. The photos in this post are official photos from the producers.
On the actors mingle, I haven’t seen that.
what is the runtime of the play?
3 hours