Amanda’s pies won’t pass the taste test

Just one word of warning though…don’t try to eat any of them if you value you digestion and your teeth!

Amanda is part of the backstage team of Sheffield’s East Street Theatre Company.

And when she heard that the company’s next show, a new version of classic Stephen Sondheim musical Sweeney Todd, needed pies for every performance, she got straight down to baking.

In the dark Gothic thriller, of course, villainous pie maker Mrs Lovett’s culinary efforts enjoyed such fillings as dead priest, squire, grocer and vicar, not to mention shepherd and politician, tailor, locksmith and actor.

There’s nothing quite so cannibalistic in Amanda’s golden brown efforts but they are definitely just as inedible.

“We need more than 60 fake pies for the show so I made up some salt dough, which is perfect for modelling and won’t go off under the stage lights,” Amanda explained.

“The finished pies look good enough to eat, though it’s a good job that nobody will have to because you’d probably break a tooth.”

The Easy Street Theatre Company production of Sweeney Todd is at Sheffield Cathedral from May 1 to 4.

Easy Street - voted best Youth Theatre in the North East 2020 and 2021 - offers Sheffield's young creative talent the finest professional-grade theatrical training.

With 50 members, each year the company performs two large budget shows at some of Sheffield's most prestigious theatres.

Previous productions have included Cats, Jesus Christ Superstar, Footloose, West Side Story, Sister Act, Chicago, Grease, Back to the 80s - winner of the 2021 NODA Best Youth Theatre award - Disney’s Frozen and We Will Rock You.

For tickets to Sweeney Todd visit https://stagestubs.com/easy-street-theatre-company-2/sweeney-todd-the-demon-barber-of-fleet-street