What constitutes a good Toby?
I've asked myself this question throughout my scrutinization of the original 1979 Recording as well as the Revival recording. In general, all three portrayals follow the same Toby-blueprint. For example, both actors kept him child-like and submissive. However, both Ken Jennings and Manoel Felciano added a little something extra to the part. Jennings, I feel was less aware of the goings-on in Lovett's bakehouse but was more concerned for "his mum's" safety and had more hatred for Mr. Todd. Feliciano, I feel, was a little more intune with the inner workings of the business. It seems like when he's singing "Not While I'm Around" that he's trying to first hint to Mrs. Lovett what he feels and his suspicions before just outright expressing them. Feliciano!Toby is a little more clever than is Jennings!Toby but during the final scene, I feel like that completely changes.
In Toby's reappearence in the bake house, each actor takes his Toby in a different direction. Jennings!Toby, though clearly insane, seems to be the same brand of madness that Sweeney Todd himself was influenced by. The way in which he growls, "Mr. Todd!" is enough for me to say that he was aware of his actions in slitting the barber's throat and felt that it was the right thing to do to make good on his promise to Mrs. Lovett. Feliciano!Toby, to me, seems more just outwardly insane. His mind was overwhelmed by being locked up and witnessing murder and thus, he became completely insane. He no longer saw any reason for his doing and I think that if there were anybody else alive in that bakehouse, he would've killed them too.
In conclusion, I feel that each actor brought a different side to Toby and that just proves to me the complex inner-workings of this character and the many ways in which he could be interpretted.
~del
