In Friday's 7 section I have an interview with Elizabeth Fiester, director of the new Children's Musical Theaterworks production of "Sweeney Todd." Here's a continuation of the interview:

Did you see the recent film version? If so, what did you think?

Yes, I went to the midnight showing on it's opening weekend. I liked the movie, I thought Tim Burton adapted it to the screen wonderfully and I really enjoyed the performances.

What's the hardest part of staging this show?

There are several challenges with staging "Sweeney Todd." First, is a very large ensemble that I need to place throughout the stage and give purpose too. Also, using the set to it's full advantage has been a challenge, we have moving staircases, huge ovens that need to come on and off stage all without stopping the action. Sweeny Todd is meant to move from one scene to the next without stopping and I love that but it's also a challenge.

What's your favorite musical number?

I don't know if I can name one. The "Sweeney Todd" score is so beautiful and haunting with such imaginitive lyrics that is just overwhelms you from start to finish.

Fiester passed the following question on to CMT board member Elizabeth Wettstead:
"I thought that CMT usually did its summer productions in order from youngest performers to older. Is there a reason that "Sweeney" is coming second in the lineup?"

We switched the order of the age groups primarily to accommodate requests that we had from college age performers who were attending schools outside of the Fresno area. They often need to leave before the third show of the summer performs.