A very young theater-goer and her father sat next to me at the Muny last night at the opening of "Into The Woods". They decided to leave at the end of the first act. It was another reminder of why this is a perfect show for the Muny. Take the little ones home at that point, which is when the old-style fairy tale ends, and spare them the darkness of the second life, when Grimm Brothers-style real life sets in. The rest of us had a swell evening through both acts.
Sondheim and James Levine's mash-up is becoming an evergreen for good reason. It's a great score, a fun book, a chance for lots of good performers to strut their stuff. And strutting is exactly what Heather Headley does in the role of the Witch. She grabs the material and absolutely owns it, one of the best performances I've seen on this stage abd big enough that she fits nicely into this huge venue. Things are well-balanced, though, both by the script and by director Gary Griffin. That means fine work by Rob McClure, for instance, playing the Baker and a Muny favorite with roles like Gomez in "The Addams Family", and Sara Kapner, as Little Red Riding Hood (coincidentally, Wednesday in that same "Addams Family") isn't overshadowed.
Ken Page strolls through his role as the narrarator with ease and authority. Rapunzel, whose role's music calls for serious pipes, is Samantha Massell. The mother of beanstalk boy Jack goes to Zoe Vander Haar, giving plenty of zip to the long-suffering mom. And speaking of pipes, Anna Blair is Cinderella's mother, showing off her voice, both there and as the Giant, not just two sides of a coin for these roles, but way beyond that. (She's also Little Red's grandmother.) Milky White, the cow, would make the cow in "Gypsy" quite jealous. Maggie Lakis is half of Milky White and I have it on good authority – but not the program or website – that the other half is Abigail Isom. . The Muny Youth ensemble is utilized not only singing but with props and stylized effects.
No matter how dark the woods are,they are, of course, no place for softly colored costumes. Andrea Lauer's really stand out, both in line and color, although it's nice that the now-traditional pale blue gown for Cinderella is retained. Unfortunately, a persistent sound problem left numerous lines unheard until several syllables in – you just knew that somewhere in a booth someone was whacking his head and gnashing his teeth, but it didn't clear up until quite late in the show.
For older kids, this is a great introduction to Sondheim, especially his delightful lyrics, which I heard another family group pointing out to their rookies. But for everyone, get on whatever communication you use and get tickets. This is bigger than the Big Bad Wolf.
And do note that this is not the Muny's usual Monday-to-Sunday schedule. This week's run ends on Monday night.
Into The Woods
through July 27
The Muny
Forest Park
314-361-1900