Want to see ‘Sweeney Todd’ for ‘a lot of blood and guts and horror’? Then Aspire Theatre’s artistic, music-filled rendition may not be for you.

Director Trigger Weddle wants to make it very clear that there will be no need for a splash zone warning at the top of Aspire Community Theatre’s production of “Sweeney Todd.”

Yes, there will be blood, and meat pies of a questionable origin, but the production will keep the gore to a minimum, bringing a more artistic interpretation to the story of “the demon barber of Fleet Street.”

“Right at the beginning, I said ‘If you’re here because you think we’re going to do a lot of blood and guts and horror, this isn’t the show for you,’ ” Weddle said. “We’re much artsier than that and really diving into the art of it.”

“Sweeney Todd” opens Friday and runs through Oct. 12 at the Kroc Center in Coeur d’Alene. The musical features music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by Hugh Wheeler. It’s based on the play of the same name by Christopher Bond.

The character of Todd originated in a penny dreadful, a story published week by week, called “The String of Pearls.”

The story begins after sailor Anthony Hope (Abe McKinney) has rescued and befriended a peculiar man named Sweeney Todd (Duncan Clark Menzies). The pair docks in London where a beggar woman (Jessica Peterson) approaches and seemingly recognizes Todd before he brushes her off.

Todd then tells Hope about his past as a barber who was pushed aside by a corrupt judge, Judge Turpin (Corey Drake), who was interested in Todd’s wife.

Now on his own, Todd enters a meat pie shop owned by Mrs. Lovett (Krystin Skidmore), who complains about the lack of meat and customers. Todd asks about the apartment above the shop and learns its former tenant Benjamin Barker was sent away by Judge Turpin who, along with his servant Beadle (Daniel Renz), raped Barker’s wife.

Todd reveals to Mrs. Lovett that he himself is Barker, and she promises to keep his secret, explaining that his wife poisoned herself and their daughter Johanna (Helen Larreau) is now a ward of Judge Turpin.

Todd swears he’ll get revenge, and Mrs. Lovett gives Todd the straight razors he once used as a barber. He soon figures out how he’ll get his revenge while also helping with Mrs. Lovett’s problems at the shop.

The musical also stars Josh White as Tobias Ragg, Collin Thompson as Adolfo Pirelli and Harrison Pearl as Jonas Fogg. The ensemble, which acts as a Greek chorus throughout the show, features Blake Liden, Brent Starrh, Brienna Johnson, Erin Cleve, Genny Sherard, Ina Siemens, Jenner Davis, Jocelyn Caughlan, Lexi Gibson, Luke Odenthal, Michellea David, Paislee Dunbar and Sarah Anne Morgan.

“Sweeney Todd” is music directed by Scott Michaelsen and stage managed by Peyton Kellner. Abel Siemens is the intern director.

Todd and Mrs. Lovett are interesting characters in that they have a lot of antagonistic tendencies. Without giving too much away for those unfamiliar with the story, both characters make some, shall we say, interesting choices to solve their problems.

“It’s very hard to root for somebody that’s so hellbent on revenge, although we’ve seen it in classic literature over and over and over and over,” Weddle said. “But there’s that hubris at the end … I’ll say also that the character of Mrs. Lovett also fits that bill. She’s a terrible person, but we love to hate her. That’s the thing about the show that people don’t understand. It’s funny. It’s very well-written. The book and the score are very well-written, so they’re those characters that you love to hate.”

But bad characters don’t think they’re bad characters, Weddle said. Menzies and Skidmore then aren’t thinking about the consequences of their characters’ actions but the choices they’re making to get to their end goal.

Weddle said Sondheim pieces usually bring an above average number of actors to auditions, with many telling her “Sweeney Todd” specifically is a dream show. Even still, some performers can be intimidated by Sondheim’s scores.

“Sondheim music is not for the faint of heart,” Weddle said. “It’s very difficult… It’s beautifully written, but never in my gajillion years of doing theater have I seen a libretto so thick as what (the house that holds the musical license) sent us. They are measures and measures and measures of music. It’s difficult music. It’s all very rhythmic, and it’s fun. It’s Sondheim at his best. It’s a Tony award-winning score. It’s beautifully composed, and the lyrics are so smart.”

Weddle estimates the cast and crew spent more time on the music than on blocking the show. Much of the music underscores dialogue, so getting the timing of everything spot on took time. Weddle applauds music director Michaelsen and the orchestra for tackling the score and said if the story of “Sweeney Todd” doesn’t appeal to someone, the music will.

Led by Michaelsen on keyboard is Merilee Updike, clarinet; John Gardner, trumpet; Kim Snow, horn; Jon Williams, percussion; Brooke Bos, violin; Kristina Phillips, cello; and Dave Turner, bass.

For those in the know, the technical aspects of the show are also a big draw. How do you show a murder without relying on packet after packet of fake blood, or making it seem Shakespearean with someone being killed via a sword? How do you dispose of the bodies as quickly as possible?

Weddle said Drake, who plays Judge Turpin, was keen on working on the technical side of the show even if he didn’t get cast. He and the rest of the design team crafted a chair that reclines for characters who have met their demise to slide down as well as a meat grinder for Mrs. Lovett’s pie shop.

That sounds dark, and Weddle knows many are familiar with the story of the demon barber through the gory Tim Burton film starring Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter and Alan Rickman, but she reiterates that Aspire’s production maintains the story without relying on over-the-top horror.

“The theatrical production is much more fulfilling, because the movie, you lose that connection to the music and the movie really leans into that horror aspect. That’s not what our show is, so for those people that are like ‘No, I don’t want to see any horror,’ this show doesn’t fit that bill. The content and the story is, but the staging and the way we’re telling it is not.”