The next time you eat a meat pie, check the ingredients -- and make sure your baker isn't named Mrs. Lovett. You might not be getting what you paid for.

The Penn State Thespians will perform Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Schwab Auditorium today through Saturday for their fall show.

In the comedic yet gruesome musical, a falsely imprisoned man seeks murderous revenge on society in London. His accomplice, Mrs. Lovett, bakes meat pies out of his victims' remains.

Though the story has grotesque parts, director Bram McGinnis said he didn't want to focus on them.

Johnny Depp starred in a 2007 Sweeney Todd major motion picture, a film McGinnis said focuses on blood and gore -- exactly what he wanted to avoid. He's a fan of the way the play was originally produced.

"I think the plot is so much stronger than just the violence," McGinnis said.

He said he wanted the set to be 1800s London, but not dark and eerie, because he said he believes the action in the plot is what drives the show to become dark.

McGinnis said the play -- a 1979 Tony award winner -- is primarily a tale of revenge, with love and determination intertwined in the plot.

"Sweeney is a show that really dives into what we would all be capable of when we have nothing else to lose," McGinnis (junior-management) said.

In the play, barber Benjamin Barker is banished from London and sent to prison on false charges because the judge lusted over his wife. Years later, he comes back as Sweeney Todd -- and finds his family situation completely different.

Sweeney's biggest target is Judge Turpin, who falsely accused him of a crime to get to Lucy, Barker's wife.

Enter Mrs. Lovett, a baker who befriends Sweeney and gives him a place to live. The two go on a murderous rampage in revenge.

"She is the first to discover his true identity when he stumbles upon her meat pie shop and takes him under her wing while they plot to help piece his life back together," Erin McCullough, who plays Mrs. Lovett, said.

With so many things happening in the story, those involved expressed different ideas of the most crucial parts and scenes.

McCullough (senior-music) said her favorite scene to perform is a number titled "A Little Priest."

She said the song is one of the most famous and important ones in the play because it is the first time Sweeney and Lovett really come together and are on the same page with their ideas -- and it's the first time the show's darkest humor comes into play.

"It's fun with its dark content and light tune," she said. "It's hilarious because of all of the plays on words, and you get to sing about chopping people up into meat pies -- what else would you really want in a song?"

However, McGinnis said he thinks the most important part of the play is when Lovett gives Sweeney his old razors after hiding them while he was away so no one would steal them.

"It is the first time something from his old life comes back to him," McGinnis said. "I believe this is a very defining moment because it really sets the tone for the rest of the show."

Courtney Lope, who plays Sweeney's daughter Johanna, said she thinks the most significant scene in the show is one sung by Sweeney, entitled "Epiphany." It's the song that illustrates Sweeney's mental and emotional turning point, she said, where he defines his priorities -- to stop at nothing in seeking revenge.

In addition to the importance of specific scenes and songs, several of the actors described their characters and how each is essential to the play's plot.

McCullough said her favorite part about playing Mrs. Lovett is that she goes through a huge emotional journey throughout the show.

"On the one hand, she has this unwavering affection and loyalty to Sweeney," McCullough said. "On the other hand, she doesn't think twice about conning, killing, lying or stealing."

She said Lovett is constantly battling between good and evil, which makes it a "crazy challenge" as an actress to play her.

The Penn State Thespians only have one large production per semester, as opposed to other theater companies that perform many smaller plays.

Lope said she is impressed with the production staff for Sweeney Todd.

"This is an incredibly difficult program for them to put together, and their enthusiasm in tackling this one is very encouraging," she said.

Not only is it a difficult and demanding show to produce, but the rehearsal timeline is also constraining.

McGinnis said the Thespians choose the two plays they will produce for a given year the spring before. But that doesn't mean they got a head start.

McGinnis said rehearsals started mid-September, less than two months before the main stage play was to be performed.

And though the Thespians have been rehearsing Sunday through Thursday for four to five hours a night, McCullough said it's still a heavy task to prepare for such a vocally and emotionally demanding show.

"If you would ask any professional if they would want to be a part of putting on a production of Sweeney Todd in only six weeks, they'd probably tell you that you were crazy," she said.

McCullough isn't a member of the Thespians but won the role of Mrs. Lovett through a lengthy audition process.

She said the tough rehearsal schedule, which gets more grueling as show time approaches, is different from other groups she's been in.

"Needless to say, everyone's pretty wiped out by the end of rehearsal," she said. "But then again, no Sondheim show is a walk in the park."

Sweeney Todd has the ingredients to make it fitting for any occasion, including Halloween.

"It's a story about redemption, revenge, love, and murder, and includes all of the elements of a drama, thriller and a comedy," McCullough said.