(photo credit: Carina Morales /Merage JCC )
Written by Patrick Chavis
Stephen Sondiem’s dark musical fairy tale Into the Woods is at Merage JCC April 20 – 28, 2024.
Merage JCC’s production of Into the Woods gives fans of the musical plenty of its darker highlights — or, should I say, bloody highlights and a little more. Though it does play out rather conventionally, an artsy hand-drawn aesthetic from scenic designer Haven Hanson and performances from some very talented upcoming performers bring a little bit more to the table.
Story:
In the musical Into the Woods, a baker (Ron Gutterman) and his wife (Abigail Kinnahan) are cursed by a witch (Mabel Schreffler), who prevents them from having children. The only way to lift the curse is to provide the aging witch with four ingredients from various fairy tale characters. On their musical journey to collect the ingredients, they meet many other fairy tale characters.
Direction:
Carina Morales’s direction of Into the Woods was pretty straightforward and transparent. Vocals took priority, which is not a bad thing. Overall, the ensemble provided more than adequate vocals for most of this production. The pacing was fast, and it made some of the acting feel forced, as if the actors were trying to get through it as soon as possible rather than being in the scene.
Set Design:
The set design from Haven Hanson uses a peach-colored set with what looks like hand-drawn lines to form the structure. Set pieces are put on rollers for functionality. A lifted riser is used for many applications. The night sky background is gorgeous, and there is smoke for days. It’s all quality work from Hanson.
This production’s shadow work and compelling, gruesome blood effects intensify certain scenes.
Acting:
Claire Manson delivered a superb performance as Cinderella in this production. I can’t pick one tune; every tune she was in was performed wonderfully. Plus the physical side of the role — the running on stage, the stage falls — it was beautifully done.
Little Red Riding Hood (Emily Cintron) also performed incredibly well. She performed one of the better songs of the night, “I Know Things Now.”
When the ensemble is singing together, it sounded great.
While the music was prerecorded, the speaker system at J Stage did its job. The tune “No One is Alone” was performed and choreographed particularly well. Overall, this cast delivered a strong second act.
Despite some inconsistencies, this musical had intense moments and seems to get better with age.
Agreed