Terry Gross replayed a 1988 interview with Stephen Sondheim today on Fresh Air and they spoke about his motivations for some of the changes in the story.

I saw Angela Lansbury in Sweeney Todd when I lived in New York, one of the few musicals I went to (couldn't afford 'em!). In 1982 I saw the full play, with Lansbury, broadcast on PBS. I suspect that is the source of the VCR mentioned above.

This audio CD looks like the one I saw, with Lansbury and Len Cariou, and only about $30. No tax and free shipping from Amazon! The broadcast version still had Lansbury, but Sweeney Todd was being played by George Hearne.

SRS