Sweeney Todd Pearls" and have persisted to the present day. In two books, Peter Haining argued that Sweeney Todd was a historical figure who committed his crimes around 1800. Nevertheless, other researchers who have tried to verify his citations find nothing in these sources to back Haining's claims. A late (1890s) reference to the urban legend of the murderous barber can be found in the poem by the Australian bush poet Banjo Paterson—"The Man from Ironbark". In his 2012 novel" Dodger", Terry Pratchett portrays Sweeney Todd as a tragic figure, having lost his mind after being exposed to the horrors of the
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street 2010, West Yorkshire Playhouse and Royal Exchange Manchester in 2013. The cast included David Arnsperger as Sweeney Todd and Janis Kelly as Mrs. Lovett. 2015-2016 Australasia Productions In 2015, the Victorian Opera company in Australia mounted an operatic production of the musical for a 10-day run at the Melbourne Arts Centre. The production later transferred to New Zealand the following year for a limited tour, visiting the country's major cities, Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. The production starred Teddy Tahu Rhodes as Sweeney Todd, Antoinette Halloran as Mrs. Lovett, Phillip Rhodes as Judge Turpin, Kanen Breen as Beadle Bamford (later replaced