Into The Woods

Recently, we got NetFlix streaming through the Wii.  How cool!  Now, we don't even have to wait for the movies to come in the mail.  Anyway, one of the categories of movies is Musicals and, flipping through the list, I found one that I had to watch for, about, the 15th time.  A show that's always too much fun to pass up, Into the Woods.



I guess on a technicality this isn't really a movie but, actually the original Broadway stage production filmed for video.  The show, written by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, is basically a story of fractured fairytales, "Once upon a time in a far off kingdom..."

With the exception of the Baker and his wife, the characters are all from old stories we grew up hearing as kids.  The main plot focuses on these two new characters and their quest to break an evil Witch's spell.  Along the way, they encounter Little Red Riding Hood, Jack (who's beanstalk also plays into the story) and Cinderella who also have their own quests that have led them into the woods.

Here's a brief rundown of why the characters have gone into the woods:

1)  The Baker and his Wife need to reverse the witch's curse in order to have a child.

2)  Cinderella sneaks away from her wicked Stepmother and Stepsisters to go to the ball.

3)  Little Red is going to Grandmother's house.

4)  Jack has been sent to the market to sell his best friend and cow, Milky White.

By the end of Act One, everyone has done what they needed to do and everyone lives "happily ever after".... or so they think.  Act Two, has the group working together to defeat a giant that has found it's way into the kingdom.  The show definitely shifts into a much darker tone for the second act because, I think, they were going for a "Bad things happen to bad people" thing.

Stephen Sondheim is just a genius and it's hard to ever find fault with any of his work.  Here, he's in his usual fine for with a score that give almost every character a chance to shine.  James Lapine wrote a book that works perfectly with the music.  Both the book and score won Tony Awards back in 1988 (they beat out Phantom of the Opera).

The show managed to put together an excellent cast for the original production who smoothly move from the lighter first act into the somewhat morbid second act.  Of course the star of the show, besides Mr. Sondheim's music, is Bernadette Peters.  She plays the witch in a such a way that I couldn't help but cheering for the "bad guy".  With her humor and realism, she made the witch the most likable character in the show.  Why she wasn't nominated for a Tony, I'll never know.

Joanna Gleason won the Tony for Best Actress in a Musical for her role as the Baker's Wife.  She did it by doing the same things Ms. Peters did only, in this case, even better.  She has probably the most "normal" character in the show and still manages to steal nearly every scene from everyone else.  It's no surprise that she won.

The rest of the cast is also fun to watch, especially Chip Zien as the Baker and Robert Westenberg in a dual role as the Wolf and Cinderella's Prince.  They all keep these mashed up tale s going at full speed.  And as with all fairy tales the shows finale teaches us a lesson in the song, "Children Will Listen."

It was cool to come across this musical section and I'm gonna have to go back and watch more.  Maybe I'll write about them here but, for now, if you have NetFlix and haven't seen "Into the Woods,"  I suggest you take the time to watch it.  Unfortunately, I can't find any clips online that are worthy of sharing with you here but, it's a lot of fun AND has Sondheim and Peters!  You can't go wrong with that.

Until next time...