Hartford Stage Company Inc. | Hartford, CT
Notice: Submission
LORT Non-Rep. Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Book by Hugh Wheeler. Based on an adaptation by Christopher Bond. Directed by Rob Ruggiero. Casting Directors: Alaine Alldaffer, Lisa Donadio.
$1,144 weekly minimum (LORT B) until 6/29/26. $1,213 weekly minimum (LORT B) after 6/29/26.
Equity actors for SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET. (See NYC audition: TBD.)
First Rehearsal: May 5, 2026. In partnership with TheaterWorks Hartford. First Preview: June 5, 2026. Opening: June 12, 2026. Closing: July 5, 2026.
Please submit your headshot and resume for consideration. Please include the name of the other project, the role, and your union status in the subject line. Submit materials to
AlaineAndLisaCasting@gmail.com.
Deadline: 01/26/2026.
We are committed to a strong anti-racist ethos and a collective recommitment to nurture and sustain a culture of equity, inclusion and belonging at our organization. We seek to build a team that is passionate about theatre and that reflects the abundant vibrancy and diversity of our city, state, and nation. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applications will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, gender identity, sexual orientation, familial status, religion, ability, age, national origin, class, or veteran or immigrant status.
While the characters are written with he/him or she/her pronouns in the original scripts, we welcome gender non-conforming, genderqueer, transgender, and non-binary actors to audition for the roles they most identify with. We will list race/ethnicity when specific to the character but are otherwise seeking all races and ethnicities. In addition, we will list disability when specific to a character but are otherwise seeking actors of all abilities. Thank you to First Folio Theatre for inspiring the language in this note as we work towards a more inclusive casting process.
This is an intimate chamber production. Most actors are cast to double with other ensemble roles. Seeking actors with excellent dialect skills. All characters speak with British dialects, except Pirelli, who speaks with an Italian and Irish dialect.
Male, 40s–50s. An impassioned, emotionally tormented man imprisoned on a false charge. He returns as a murderous barber seeking revenge and reconciliation with his family, which ultimately turns to dark obsession. He finds vengeance in his razors by systematically slitting the throats of all his enemies and becomes consumed by his thirst for blood. Strong baritone/bass who can whistle. Speaks with an Estuary or London dialect. Vocal range top: Gb4. Vocal range bottom: F2.
Female, 40s–50s. Hardy and entrepreneurial owner of a pie shop on Fleet Street. Hard-edged but with a savvy sense of humor. She is in love with Todd and hopes that he’ll forget the past and build a new life with her. Lovett aids Sweeney in his massacre by making meat pies out of his victims. Her love for him clouds her judgement and is ultimately her undoing. Charismatic with great comedic timing and depth. Speaks with a Cockney accent. Excellent mezzo-soprano voice. Vocal range top: E5. Vocal range bottom: G3.
Male, 20s. The idealistic handsome young sailor, befriended by Todd whom he rescued during the voyage home. Idealistic, romantic and a little reckless; his passions sometimes get the better of his reason, and his enthusiasm can make him unintentionally comedic. Over the course of the show, he awakens to the horrors around him and becomes disillusioned with London. Trusting, optimistic and romantic, prepared to fight for his beliefs. Speaks with a British accent. Excellent baritone voice with strong falsetto for ensemble moments. Vocal range top: F4. Vocal range bottom: Bb2.
Female, late teens to early 20s. Sweeney Todd's daughter, stolen from the barber many years ago by Judge Turpin who has taken her in as his ward. Locked up in her room, Johanna dreams of freedom outside. Rebellious, subversive and romantic, longing to escape her confinement. Aware that Judge Turpin isn’t her real father and suspects he might be a predator. Like her father, she has experienced trauma and possesses a buried capacity for violence. Youthful and innocent with a quirky side. Speaks with a British accent. Vocal range top: A5. Vocal range bottom: Bb3.
Male, late teens to mid-20s. Young, waifish and vulnerable. A bit of an urchin with a good heart. Apprenticed first to Pirelli and then to Mrs. Lovett. Industrious and eager to please, with a good sense of humor. Uneducated but innately clever and observant; Tobias responds quickly to Lovett's kindness but grows increasingly suspicious of Sweeney. He comes to view Mrs. Lovett as a surrogate mother figure. Speaks with a thick Cockney accent. Vocal range top: Ab4. Vocal range bottom: Bb2.
Male, 50s–60s. Pompous, self-centered, and powerful. A lecherous public official who portrays himself as a sanctimonious authoritarian. He takes advantage of his position to imprison Todd, assault Lucy, and take Johanna in as his ward. Embodies Puritanical hypocrisy. He lusts after Johanna, even as he professes to keep her innocent, and plans to marry her. Powerful, unforgiving, rich, and egocentric. Speaks with a British accent. Strong bass/baritone voice. Vocal range top: Gb4. Vocal range bottom: E2.
Male, late 30s–50s. Sleazy, pompous, menacing henchman of the Judge. Possesses a dry, deadpan sense of humor and enjoys wielding his power. He is not a sniveling civil servant. Deeply loyal to Turpin, though he believes he’s better than the judge. Can be subtly terrifying or outright threatening yet equally fastidious and fussy. Speaks with a British accent. A tenor with a strong falsetto. Vocal range top: D5. Vocal range bottom: D3.
Female, 40s–50s. An eerie, poor soul living on the streets of London. Once glamorous “Lucy,” she’s a mentally unstable unhoused woman and prostitute. Seemingly helpless and naïve until she lifts up her skirts and propositions any man who walks by. Emotionally damaged and out of touch from the hard life she has lived. It turns out that she is the wife of Sweeney, the man she loved deeply many years ago. Has significant musical skills, in particular a high, legit soprano. Vocal range top: F5. Vocal range bottom: Ab3.
Male, 30s–40s.
Adolfo Pirelli (Alfredo Pirelli): A flamboyant Italian rival barber; a charlatan with a secret past. An “Italian” traveling salesman/scam artist who invents a hair tonic and sells it to the inhabitants of Fleet Street. Long-winded, self-absorbed, and brazen; he challenges Sweeney to a shaving match—and loses. Later revealed as the Irish former employee of Sweeney trying to blackmail Todd. Unconventional, darkly comic. Speaks in both an Italian and Irish accent. Has a high operatic tenor voice.
Jonas Fogg: The owner of Fogg's Asylum. He sells the hair of madmen to wigmakers.
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