Into The Woods

Into the Woods is a fascinating combination of children’s fairy stories cleverly intertwined making a show that requires concentration as it jumps from one tale to another. The setting for this production was superb and completely magical.  My congratulations to the lighting department who transformed a simple woodland scene into a land of make believe, sometimes friendly, sometimes dark and eerie and sometimes heartbreakingly emotional. The trees and rocks had texture, the tower was beautifully built and the moveable pieces of scenery were very clever depicting each change of scene or different location in the wood. Add to this a very cleverly handled sound track for dozens of sound effects, the costumes which were very appropriate and a complicated score expertly controlled by M. D, Dan Lacey, and this show was well on its way to being a great success.

Abigail-Esther Knight had an effortless voice as Cinderella introducing us to the first fairy tale characters. Her performance was convincing making the audience feel for her plight. She was well supported by Stepmother, Tracy Clayton, and her two horrible daughters, Claire Hunt as Florinda and Josie Simmons as Lucinda.  The three of them were everything one expects from the unholy trio. Next, we met the sad pathetic couple suffering from a witch’s curse which prevented them from having a much longed for baby. They became blackmailed by the wicked witch who promised them their dream family provided they found all her special needs. Tony Bright was perfectly cast as the Baker very well partnered by Caroline Bennett as his decidedly flighty wife. I loved their musical number ‘It Takes Two’. The unscrupulous Wicked Witch gave Caroline Lowe an opportunity to display not only her magnificent voice but also her dramatic acting ability. We were then to meet Jack, Harry Collins, a simple fellow, much berated by his mother Liz Lawrence, he swapped his pet cow for some beans. The cow, made and handled by Julie Waite, deserves a mention for its great facial expressions and head movements. As all fairy tale lovers know a giant lives at the top of the beanstalk. We never actually see him but we certainly heard him and mum and son more than brought him to life with their dialogue. Lily Armstrong as Little Red Riding Hood showed outstanding talent for her age and should be destined for a great future in the theatre if that is her desire. Mark Roberts was a well modulated and engaging Narrator while David Bennett the Mysterious Man, drew back the veil when he let us hear his excellent singing voice. Both the princes were great especially when they joined forces and sang ‘Agony’ and Rapunzel showed her talent for singing when joining with the witch for ‘Stay with Me’ and ‘Our Little World’. All the supporting roles did well, with too many to mention by name. In fact, there was something to do for all 20 cast members.

This was a great credit to the entire cast and production team.

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