Josh Groban to Star in Broadway Revival of ‘Sweeney Todd’

Josh Groban: singer, actor and demon barber of Fleet Street. As announced Tuesday (Sept. 6), a revival of Stephen Sondeheim’s Sweeney Todd will open on Broadway next spring, starring Groban in the role of its title character.

Also starring Annaleigh Ashford as Mrs. Lovett, the Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street revival will be overseen by two of the men behind Hamilton: director Thomas Kail and producer Jeffrey Sellerdirector. Following a run of preview shows starting Feb. 26, the musical will officially open on March 23 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.

More from Billboard

• Josh Groban Talks Love of Queen, Peter Gabriel on Behind the Setlist Podcast

• Did Harry Styles Spit on Chris Pine at the 'Don't Worry Darling' Premiere? Here's What the Internet Thinks

• Backstreet Boys Wrap Up Wham!'s 'Last Christmas' for an Early Holiday Present: Listen

The production will serve as a Broadway comeback of sorts for both Groban and the musical itself. The former hasn’t performed on Broadway since his debut in 2016, when he starred in the musical Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812; the latter hasn’t been revived since Patti Lupone and Michael Cerveris starred in a 2005 production that had the actors play instruments in place of a traditional orchestra, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

This time, Sweeney Todd will use a 26-person orchestra, something that hasn’t been done since the show originally debuted in 1979. Alex Lacamoire will work on the production as music supervisor and Steven Hoggett will choreograph.

Groban celebrated the news by posting a teaser video for the production on Instagram, which shows the musical’s title splashing across the screen in what looks like blood. “Attend The Tale,” he simply wrote in his caption.

Sweeney Todd, which is set in the 1800s and follows a murderer who works as a barber in London, is one of the most famed works put forth by Stephen Sondheim. It earned the composer the Tony for best original score and took home seven other Tony awards after it debuted in 1979.

See Josh Groban’s announcement that he’ll be starring alongside Annaleigh Ashford in Broadway’s upcoming revival of Sweeney Todd below:

Click here to read the full article.