Review: INTO THE WOODS at White Theatre

Imagine the Grimm bedtime stories presented on steroids buttressed by the occasional homage to animated motion picture favorites.  This is the basic recipe for “Into The Woods,” an imaginative and odd musical mashup of the Grimm’s tales with music, libretto, and lyrics from Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine performed at the Jewish Community Center’s fine White Theatre.

Although remembered as Sondheim and Lapine’s funniest confection, “Into The Woods” is very difficult stage material; complicated for any producing company.  This production has an interesting cast of mostly experienced and talented performers plus huge and complex settings depicting all the stuff you find “In The Woods.”  Typical of Sondheim’s work, the lyrics are narrative in nature and sometimes discordant for singers (especially early on in Act 1).  Sondheim and Lapine require a lot from both their actors and their audiences. 

Director/Choreographer Kacy Christensen has made a bold choice with “Into The Woods.” Christensen’s characters perform their roles in a broadly presentational mode more common to shows during a much earlier time.  Some of the actors slide right into this vibe.  Others are perhaps are not so comfortable with the stylized characterizations. I will leave it to individual audience members to decide whether or not this choice resonates for them.

The four basic fairy tales easily recollected are “Rapunzel,” “Cinderella,” “Little Red Riding Hood,” and “Jack and the Beanstalk.”  There are also a few oblique references to other of the tales.

“Into The Woods” begins, as do all good fairy tales, with a narrator (Doug Jones) who re-appears at intervals throughout the show and as the “mysterious man.”  Doug Jones is very impressive in the role and offers a strong performance. Although we easily recognize each of the introduced fairy tales, the main plot mover, “Rapunzel” depends on a piece of the story that may have been popularly forgotten. 

The Baker (Scott Cruse) and his Wife (Jennifer Renfrow) plan on starting a family.  They are prevented from doing so by a curse spun by the ugly and ancient Witch (Krista Eyler).  The Witch (also their neighbor) accuses the Baker’s deceased father of having stolen magic beans from her garden. She requires four complex conditions be met within three days as a kind of ransom for her to lift the curse. 

Unbeknownst to the Baker, the Witch has also stolen his sister, Rapunzel (Jasmine Hall), and raised her up in a remote tower.  The only way she can be visited is through a request to lower her massive braids of hair.  She is a fairy tale version of Crystal Gayle.  Mr. and Mrs. Baker decide they must attempt to satisfy the Witch and set out to seek the four demanded items by venturing “Into The Woods.”   The Rapunzel Witch’s demands tie its story to the other three fairy tales

The Baker has a customer.  It is “Little Red Riding Hood (Haley Knudsen).” “Red” is there to buy bread for Grandma but turns out also to be a serial shoplifter.  She skips off to “Into The Woods.”

Meanwhile, over at Jack’s (Tony Console) house (of Beanstalk fame), the cow, Milky White, has gone dry.  Jack's Mother (Jenny Hines) has dispatched him to sadly sell the dried-up cow for more than five pounds to purchase groceries.  She has no have confidence in Jack.  She is the fairy tale equivalent of a helicopter Mom. 

Jack meets up with the Baker and his Wife (in the woods of course) and they agree to buy to cow with five of six magic beans.   Jack’s Mom had wanted money for food, gives Jack a good talking to, and pitches the magic beans out the window.  Any idea what happens next? No matter now, the cow is one of the Witch’s desired items.

At about the same time, we meet Cinderella (Tori Porteous) and her family. She is offered the chance to attend the Prince’s dress ball if she can complete her household tasks.  She is assisted by a flock of birds (an homage to the animated songbirds from Disney’s version of Cinderella).

The Baker saves Red Riding Hood and her Grandmother from the wicked Wolf and acquires her Scarlet coat.   Witch demand two is satisfied.

Meanwhile, the Baker’s Wife meets a frightened Cinderella unsure about her Prince (Tom Nelson).   She is attempting to avoid him, of course, "in the woods."  The wife trades her practical boots for Cindy’s golden slippers.  And now they have satisfied three of the four demands.  

In another particular corner of the forest, Rapunzel has been enjoying the company of the Prince’s unnamed brother (Alec Walberg) by allowing him access and throwing down her long braids.   Suspecting foll-der-roll, the Witch scolds Rapunzel to keep away from the world.  Rapunzel, of course, is not too keen on the idea of being stuck in a tower. 

The Witch retaliates with a really bad haircut and banishes her, "from the woods."  But she reunites with her Princely lover and bares him twins.

The plot turns a little more complicated than I’ve explained, but the Baker and his Wife satisfy the Witch’s demands, the curse is lifted and the Witch transforms from ugly and old to young and beautiful.  The Baker and his Wife are blessed with a son.  Cinderella ends up with her prince and Rapunzel with hers.  “Red Riding Hood” is happy to be alive except that she now wears a wolf fur coat rather than a red cloak.

Back at Jack’s house, he has climbed the beanstalk.  While up there, Jack has discovered the realm of a Giant.  He has hoovered up a number of the Giant’s treasures and descended the stalk.   A second trip to get the remainder of the Giant's goodies results in him getting caught.  Jack chops down the stalk and does in the scary Giant. I wonder if there is such a thing as Grand Theft - Giant?  Giant-cide?

The end of the first Act has been reached. Everyone seems to have what they want.  Maybe it is time to just take a break.

Act II is significantly darker than Act I.   The characters have achieved their heart’s desires, but perhaps things aren’t so jolly.  In a way Act II reminds me of Act II of a simpler show called “The Fantasticks.”  Everyone has what they want until they don’t.

Cinderella is bored at the castle alone. Rapunzel is being driven mad by the twins.  And similarly, The Baker and Wife are dealing with the travails of being new parents.  Off "in the Woods," the Prince brothers meet up and lament having to settle down.   Their funny and inappropriate lament is called “Agony.”

Meanwhile, someone has foolishly thrown the sixth magic bean out a second window where it can grow into another Beanstalk.  It turns out that the realm of the now-dead, scary Giant is now re-occupied by the Giant’s even scarier Wife.  She wants revenge. Several characters die including the Baker’s Wife, the mysterious man, and Jack’s Mother.  Faced with having to flee Dodge City or kill the Giantess, they choose the latter course of action.   The four remaining characters plus the Witch rearrange their lives to live most productively together. End of Act II.

Like many of Sondheim’s musical compositions, the twenty-seven musical numbers in this show don’t mean much out of the context of the show for which they are written.  I once heard him say in an interview that in all his years of writing songs, he had achieved only one hit. It was “Send in the Clowns” emerging several years after the show it was written for had closed its original run.   This is a tad of an exageration by Sondheim. A number of his compositions were successful standing alone. Several of the songs from “Into the Woods” survived outside the show.   The theme number itself “Into The Woods,” The Prince brothers' “Agony,” And the tender “Children Will Listen” which is reprised several times during the show have all become part of the canon.

This production of “Into the Woods” is blessed with some excellent singers.  Unfortunately, they are not all the same style of singer and that can make parts of this very narrative score seen disconnected.  The comedy tends to be subtle, but played broadly the humor can zoom past the audience.  Dance is an important part of “Into The Woods.”  There are a lot of people in this show and a huge set and these dances bring back visions of other major productions of "Into The Woods."  

“Into The Woods” continues at the White Theatre inside the Jewish Community Center through November 19.  Tickets can be purchased online at the White Theatre or by telephone at 913-327-8054.  

Photos provided by the White Theater and Ryan Bruce.

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