Sweeney Todd

Scenic Designer:
Marissa Kabat

Table of Contents

 Concept
 Inspirational Image
 Article Research
 Photographic Research
 Props
 Scene Sketches and Plan
 Works Cited
Inspirational Image:

Britain’s industrial revolution perfectly represents the world of Sweeney Todd. Zoning in
on the inside of factories, machinery is dark, cold, and stiff which resembles Sweeney’s
personality and choices throughout the play. The insides of factories were dirty and
corrupt, forcing laborers to work in poor conditions. This corruption relates directly back
to the corruption in the society (especially the legislation) of the show. The poor
conditions also reflect the poor living conditions that Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett live in.
Article Research:

“Industrial Revolution”

This article discusses how the British industrial Revolution altered Britain’s economy and
society. This alteration gives a more in depth understanding into how the Industrial
Revolution affects the world of Sweeney Todd. This article highlights how factory
production became routine and specialized. This type of factory production describes
the ritual that Sweeney has when killing his victims. It is the same routine of using a
razor to slit his victim’s throats, sending them down a chute for their bodies to get
baked into pies that he has specialized. The revenge in the show has led to a corrupt
society. The article also explains the dependency of machinery and technology as well as
the class distinctions that occurred in the industrial revolution. This is similar to the
connection and reliance that Sweeny has with his razors as well as the class distinctions
that are present in the society of the show.
Photographic Research:

These photographs zone in on the mechanics of the inside of factories. They show the
coldness, hardness and stiffness of factories which resembles Sweeney’s character and
interactions with other characters. These gave me my inspiration and overall feel of the
show which I put into the set design. As Sweeny gets more and more carried away with
revenge throughout the show, the metal on pieces of the set and on props will start to
show corrosion. This destruction of metal indicates the overall destruction of Sweeney.
These photographs of Britain during the 1850’s gave me an understanding of the overall
feel of the play. The photograph on the left of factories helped me to see the conditions
and amount of pollution that occurred during the industrial revolution which goes back
to the pollution/conditions in the show. It also gave me the idea of having smoke being
released every time Sweeney kills someone to relate back to my team’s industrial
concept. The photograph to the right gave me inspiration of the setup in London of a
shop on the lower level, and an apartment on the upper level which is the setup of the
pie shop and tonsorial parlor in the show.

Oven (more worn)

Main Props

Meat pies
Mrs. Lovett’s pie shop cart
 Sweeney’s new barber chair (All
metal with gears for arm rests and on
the bottom)
Meat grinder Bird cages

Chest (more worn)

Sweeney’s Razor
Main Props:

These props all incorporate some aspect of metal, gears or wood to demonstrate the
machinery in factories. They all go with my team’s style of heightened realism in the
industrial revolution and support our concept. These represent the materials of what
machines in factories are made of. These cold metallics reflect the cold environment
Sweeney Todd is placed in as well as Sweeney’s character.

Works Cited

Ayabaal. “Collection of Photography, Fashion, Goth, Steampunk, Fantasy and Gothic

Art.” SteampunkTreasureChest. 24 January 2009. Web. 2 December 2016.

British Food. “British Food: A History.” History. 31 March 2015. Web. 28 November

2016.

Church, Joanna. “Meat Grinder, Late 19th Century.” A Fine Collection. 02 June 2012.

Web. 28 Nevember 2016.

Greensmith, Michael. “SteampunkSpeakers.” Steampunk Way of Life. 10 June 2016.

Web. 25 November 2016.

Industrial Revolution." Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia (2016): 1p. 1. Funk &

Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia. Web. 19 Nov. 2016.

Rogers, Joseph. “Steampunk Razors.” StraightRazorPlace. 07 October 2011. Web. 30

November 2016.

Steampunk Perceptions. “Steampunk No. 914 Symphony Birdcage Music box with

Vintage Clock parts.” Etsy. 11 March 2016. Web. 2 December 2016

TAAPWorld. “The Environmental Impact of the Industrial Revolution.” TAAPWorld. 16

April 2016. Web. 28 November 2016.

WarerKar, Tanya. “A 19th Century Noho Building Will Be Replaced By More Apartments.”

NYC Development News. Curbed New York. 18 May 2016. Web. 28 November

2016.