Looking at the forms of verbal communication we see that the solo-forms are almost non-existent in Sweeney Todd. There are no real soliloquies or monologues in the show. There is always at least one addressee on stage. Only the Epiphany has some soliloquial characteristics. This may be caused by the fact that speech in Sweeney Todd is strongly related to action. There is always dramatic progression during the speech/song act. Even during pieces like the Epiphany or during the various love songs, there is progress. In this aspect Sweeney Todd differs from the 'normal' Broadway musical where a song almost always stops the action.
Another reason for this strong relationship between action and speech may be the fact that the music is constructed like movie score. In other words: the music is almost continuous. As we can see from Appendix B, there are numerous underscores. This means that music is used to accompany the action. Because the dramatic tension needs to be kept, this continuity is reflected in the songs. Hence the strong relationship between song/speech and action.
Another observation we can make is that music is frequently used to characterize a dramatic figure. I've given several examples of this in the previous chapters. This characterization is not only done by using lead-motives, but by other musical characteristics, like voice-type, the rhythms a figure uses, melody-type, ambitus of a melody etc. These other characteristic are even more noticeable than the lead-motives, which play only a rather secondary role in Sweeney Todd, in my opinion.
Apart from the fact that music has a strong characterizing function in Sweeney Todd it is also has a strong characterizing function when it comes to the individual function. The function of an utterance is amplified by the music. I have given several examples of this in the previous chapter.
What we have in Sweeney Todd is a piece with a great amount of dramatic as well musical continuity. Although its pace is not really opera-like, its coherence is that of an opera. I would not hesitate to call Sweeney Todd an opera, in the great tradition of the German Singspiele and the British ballad opera's. In its social criticism it's closely related to many of the works of Brecht and Weill especially the Driegroschenoper.
The unity of music, as we have seen, is retained throughout the piece, as the music supports the dramatic progress. I think we can safely say, that Sweeney Todd is more an opera than a musical.