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The South Portland High School’s drama club showcased some great acting and witty humor in their production of Sweeney Todd: Demon Barber of the Barbary Coast. This play was a comedic masterpiece that had me laughing out loud at quite a few points. The superior acting held together a plot full of deceit, suspense and laughter.

The play, which is set in California during the 1800s, tells the story of a barber named Sweeney Todd. Mr. Todd (Jordan Riley) defines evil. He has developed a maniacal plot to murder and steal from his customers with his neighbor Mrs. Lovett (Brianna Wing). As the play gets going, he ventures over to the house of the Widow Fairoak (Kat Libby) with intentions of courting her daughter Lily (Hannah Rowell) for political advantage. Lily and her maid Minnie (Coral Sandler) have different plans. They have fallen in love with two dashing young sailors. Sweeney then hatches another evil plot which ends up putting the Widow Fairoak in jail and Lily and Minnie on the street. The only hope lies in the return of the sailors from their last voyage before settling down with their fair maidens. Soon enough Sailor Tom (Grady Thibeault) and Brooklyn Jake (Brian Janson) return with love in their hearts and a precious string of pearls they acquired on their voyage. These pearls are the Fairoak’s ticket back to the high life but Mr. Todd, determined to crush any last hope takes matters into his own hands. He lures Sailor Tom into his shop and kills him. It is just at this point that the townspeople start to catch on. As the play comes to an end there is an epic chase scene that climaxes with an onslaught of townspeople confronting Mr. Todd. The, in a stunning display, Sailor Tom comes back to save the day as Todd becomes an emotional wreck and confesses to the murders. The sailors get their girls and the town is free from the tyranny of Sweeney Todd; a picture perfect happy ending.

This production went above and beyond to create an atmosphere of great suspense and comic timing. The story never seemed to drag throughout all three acts. The casting was done superbly with each student portraying many of the same qualities as their character. This gave the play depth and a touch that is rarely seen in high school drama shows. The acting skills of newcomer Jordan Riley in the lead were phenomenal. His soliloquies showcased the character’s inner turmoil and Riley had an unparalleled evil laugh. The whimsical attitudes of Lily and Minnie were done just right. They created a mood of comical and flirty affection whenever the two dashing sailors were nearby. Grady Thibeault also shined as the play’s hero, wearing his bravado on his sleeve and his lover’s tattoo on his arm. The play’s witty one liners, like the observation of snow exclusively falling inside the jail cell, or Sailor Toms miraculous recovery of his memory, added a brand of comedy seldom seen in today’s culture. All in all the entire cast and crew put on a great show. This was Mrs. Gwodz’s directing debut and so far she is batting 1000.