Sweeney Todd. Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, Book by Hugh Wheeler. From an adaptation by Christopher Bond. Eugene O'Neill Theatre. I was fortunate enough to see Harold Prince's original ground breaking Sweeney Todd production, and from prime house seats given to me by my old friend Anna Sosenko. That was an unforgettable experience, with a definitive performance by Angela Lansbury as Mrs. Lovett, but this new adaptation in which the small cast are also an onstage orchestra is mind bendingly brilliant. What happens is pure theatrical magic - the multi-talented cast, playing and singing Sondheim's complex score at the same time becomes an organic whole, with the drama pulsing right out of their instruments. The cast is amazing and the extraordinary sight of Patti LuPone playing the Tuba (and the Triangle) is worth the Bridge and Tunnel commute alone. I've never heard an ovation so primally erupt from an audience on Broadway as I did on this occasion. To say that this historic production passes the Bridge and Tunnel Test is an understatement - this is an experience of a lifetime. We didn't even mind being stuck in the tunnel on our way home, feeling as exhilirated as we did. One note of caution however, our daughter saw it on a different night and Patti LuPone did not perform and though she enjoyed the performance, evidentally it was not at all the same. So with Patti LuPone, we give Sweeney Todd an A+. Without Patti LuPone, it falls to B+.