Blood-curdling drama at the Mill

But you certainly can in Sweeney Todd, the first production to grace the stage at the sparkling new Theatre at the Mill beside Newtownabbey Borough Council’s headquarters.

Stephen Sondheim’s acclaimed musical tells the eerie tale of Benjamin Barker who returns to London after spending 15 years in exile in Australia for a crime he never committed.

When Barker - now calling himself Sweeney Todd - learns from his former landlady Mrs Lovett that his wife poisoned herself after being raped by the judge who wrongly transported him, he vows revenge.

His aim - as is revealed as the story unfolds - is to entice Judge Turpin, his corrupt side-kick Beadle Bamford and any others who have crossed his path into his barber’s chair, where they will get much more of a close shave than they could imagine.

And, with the added advantage of an easy disposal of bodies through Mrs Lovett’s meat pies, it seems that Sweeney Todd will go down in history as the master of mass murder.

Peter Corry takes on the role of the demon barber of Fleet Street with considerable style and both his voice and acting ability rises to the occasion as his diabolical plot becomes apparant and his character ever darker.

Nuala McKeever tackles the part of Mrs Lovett head on and carries it off superbly. Although more recognisable for her humour than her singing talents, she flings herself into character and carries the whole show along. Songs like The Worse Pies in London, for instance, give her the opportunity to inject her own style of comedy.

Look out, too, for memorable scenes such as the flamboyant introduction of Pirelli's Miracle Elixir and the first time Sweeney Todd unveils his perfect chair of execution.

Throughout the show there is a sense of foreboding as the audience waits to see if indeed Judge Turpin will meet an untimely end at the hands of Sweeney Todd. But, for anyone who doesn’t know the ending of this story, it would be unfair to reveal the real tragedy that awaits. It’s just a case of sitting back and enjoying the screams ...

Sweeney Todd continues at the Theatre at the Mill until this Saturday (February 13). For details phone 028 9034 0202, email: [email protected] or check out the website www.theatreat the mill.com