Title: Into the Woods

Music and Lyrics by: Stephen Sondheim

Book by: James Lapine

Directed by: Moisés Kaufman

Date saw the show: September 25, 2009

Place saw the show: Kansas City, Missouri

Company: Kansas City Repertory Theatre

Principal Leads: Zachary Prince, Brynn O'Malley, Michele Ragusa, Lauren Worsham, KC Comeaux, Tina Stafford, Euan Morton

Reviewed By Deborah Ground Buckner

Kansas City Repertory Theatre opens its season with the Stephen Sondheim-James Lapine study of fairy tales, Into the Woods. After seeing this play years ago in a community theatre performance, I was convinced I didn't like it. That assessment changed upon seeing this production.

Staging by director Moisés Kaufman, a Tony- and Emmy-nominated director and playwright, opens the show with bedtime for a small boy (Zackary Hoar). A cupboard opens, and he selects the book for his night-time story. In a scene of pure magic (which is likely to give some small people alarming dreams), characters emerge from the cupboard and under the bed and the bedclothes and come to life. Act I begins with the story of the Baker (Zachary Prince) and his wife (Brynn O'Malley), a childless couple desperate for a family. The Witch (Michele Ragusa) appears and tells them of the curse of barrenness she placed on the Baker's family. The Baker's father had stolen from the Witch's garden while his wife was pregnant with another child, Rapunzel (Lauren Braton), kept locked away in a tower by the Witch. To lift the curse, the Baker and his wife must give the Witch a cow as white as milk, a cloak as red as blood, hair as yellow as corn, and a golden slipper.

On their quest “into the woods” in search of the items, the Baker and his wife encounter Jack (KC Comeaux) of Jack and the Beanstalk, Little Red Riding Hood (Dana Steingold), and Cinderella (Lauren Worsham). As the Baker collects the items, the stories of the others unfold. Jack sells his milky white cow to the Baker for five magic beans, stolen from the Witch's garden by the Baker's father long ago, and a magical bean stalk grows. Red Riding Hood encounters the big, buff—that is, bad—wolf (Claybourne Elder, who doubles as Cinderella's Prince) and turns into a smitten, giggling adolescent rather than a frightened little girl. Cinderella's rags are transformed into a beautiful ball gown with golden slippers as she attends the Prince's Festival. Rapunzel's Prince (Brandon Sollenberger) finds her in the tower. Through it all, the Narrator (Euan Morton, nominated for an Olivier Award for originating the role of Boy George in the London musical Taboo), looking like Rod Stewart and sounding like Dudley Moore, keeps the stories straight and leads the audience along as everyone finds a “happily ever after.”

Act II picks up from where the storybook closes, showing a dark world of repercussions following the events of Act I. The Giant's wife comes seeking revenge for the death of her husband. Her voice is large and echoing, and the theatre thunders with the sound of her approach. With every step, leaves flutter off the trees of the woods. All the characters engage in a battle of blame, determining who is responsible for the state of things and who should be handed over to the giant. Even without the immediate problem of the giant, the characters are reduced to a less-than-happy state. Rapunzel cannot escape the psychological trauma of her childhood. In “Agony,” the two princes sing in wonderful harmony of the longing to seek other beautiful princesses, with clever lyrics alluding to Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. Cinderella is burdened with her tag-along step-relatives who enjoy palace life, and faced with the realization that life with a prince isn't always charming. In the end, the characters warn us “Children listen,” and to “be careful the tale you tell—that is the spell.”

There are so many stand-out performances it is hard not to gush. As the Witch, Michele Ragusa, has expert comic timing and a beautiful voice and makes an amazing transformation from withered old crone to gorgeous redhead. Dana Steingold, who I enjoyed a few years ago in the national tour of The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, plays the smart-talking Red with perfect sass. Lauren Worsham's Cinderella transforms from a wistful waif to a pratfalling princess, to a resigned royal accepting her less-than-perfect marriage and trying to do what is right for her subjects.

Set designer Narelle Sissons creates a truly enchanted forest. Costume designer Clint Ramos aids in each character's creation; Rapunzel's gown of hair and the regal transformation of Jack and his mother from rags to riches are especially notable.

This production has been extended for an additional week because of popular demand, and it is easy to understand why. It is a brilliant beginning for a season that promises excitement.

Written by :

Deborah

 

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