Two Auckland students who had their throats cut in a college production of Sweeney Todd could have been killed, a WorkSafe report says.
Saint Kentigern College Photo: RNZ / Carla Penman
The newly released report said the two boys received potentially life-threatening cuts when their characters were killed on stage in the opening night of the Saint Kentigern College production last year.
WorkSafe said one of the cuts was about 5cm deep, and notes by St John staff stated trachea and some cartilage was visible.
"Major veins and arteries are located in the region where contact with the straight razors was made," it stated. "Damage to these veins, especially the arteries, was life-threatening."
Both the students had to be operated on under general anaesthetic to repair the lacerations.
The report also revealed two other students were injured in rehearsals prior to opening night, with one reporting a cut that bled slightly and another student suffering from friction burn.
WorkSafe said teachers failed to recognise the warning signs and no steps were taken to review the safety of the blades.
It said theatre props should have been used instead of the actual cut-throat razor blades, which were not properly dulled and only covered in duct tape, tin foil and sellotape.
The musical is about a barber who slits his clients' throats.
The report also said the school's board of trustees did not know how many blades were involved in the production, even after the incident occurred, and teachers gave different accounts of how many blades there were in total and where they came from.
The board stated it expected teachers would have used fake blades and only became aware of the real straight-razors used after the night of the accident.
WorkSafe said the musical's director did not have discussions with the student playing the character of Sweeney Todd about how much pressure to put on the neck when "cutting" the throats.
"I make contact with his skin, but not hard, just enough to be convincing," said the Sweeney Todd actor.
However, one of the students injured on the night said more pressure was applied than previous times during rehearsals.
Since the incident, the board has commenced a restorative justice process with the families concerned and expressed "deep regret" for what happened.
