Keywords: THESIS3

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## Johanna

Johanna, Todd's daughter, is a rather naïve young girl, who has lived rather a sheltered life. She longs to be free, a thought which she expresses in Green Finch and Linett Bird. This song stands stylistically apart from the rest of Sweeney Todd. Considering that Sondheim at various occasions aired his dislike of opera, this song shows that he can indeed write in an operatic style. This small, yet pretty coloratura-aria has been written mainly, I think to imitate the various birds Johanna sings about. Her naïeveté and innocence are reflected and indicated by the relatively relaxed harmonic scheme, and the limited use of dissonants. She really is still a child who likes to play and who yearns for some freedom. Yet, she must be 19 or older, but because the Judge has forced her to live a sheltered, not to say captive, life, she has been estranged from the real world.

Perhaps it is this innocence which attracts Anthony. In the play, she is like Anthony speaking in iambic meter. This is indicative of her relationship with both Todd and Anthony. In Kiss Me we note that her utterances are very short and staccato, not totally unlike Todd's.

Musically, she really can not develop her own personality because she is involved in only a few numbers and in most of them she remains in the background; this concurs with her naïveté. Johanna's personality is not strong so it can not be portrayed distinctly through music.

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