INTO THE WOODS


Over a dozen star turns make Musical Theatre West’s staging of a Stephen Sondheim/James Lapine classic that rarity among Into The Woods revivals, a big-stage, big-talent triumph that captures the magic of the 1987 Broadway original while treating audiences to inspired new interpretations of the fairytale musical’s now iconic roles.

In the four decades since Into The Woods got its Old Globe World Premiere in 1986, Sondheim and Lapine’s magical musical has captivated audiences with its clever juxtaposition of a first act that ingeniously combines some of the best-loved of Grimm’s Fairy Tales and a post-intermission “To Be Continued” that explores with considerable depth what happens after “happily ever after,” resulting in a show which retains its freshness and originality 38 years after it first dazzled Broadway audiences, not to mention that it features some of Sondheim’s most memorable songs.

All of this adds up to a musical that I long considered my all-time favorite (or at least for the first twenty or so years after I saw its First National Tour at the Ahmanson in 1989), and even now, 22 more productions later, I rarely pass up the chance to see yet another Into The Woods (albeit perhaps less enthusiastically than in those early years).

I’ve seen it scaled down to 99-seat proportions, I’ve big-and-small-stage student productions, I’ve seen it reconceived for a radically reduced cast (who in one particular production played all the instruments), I’ve seen it staged with ladders taking the place of trees, I’ve seen it set Frozen-style in mid-winter, I’ve seen it performed in a DTLA warehouse… You name it, I’ve seen it.

But only a handful of times have I seen it restaged in its original Broadway proportions adhering to Sondheim and Lapine’s original Broadway concept, and though rented sets prevent director Kari Hayter from doing Into The Woods entirely her own way, she has made this Musical Theatre West revival all about the performances, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much brilliant work being done in a single Into The Woods.

Daebreon Poiema makes for the most spectacular of Witches, wildly hilarious pre-transformation, Beyonce-level glamorous in Act Two, and there’s probably no one in L.A. musical theater with pop diva pipes as magnificent as hers.

There’s also no legit soprano on either coast who can match Madison Claire Parks’ instrument, just one reason her luminous Cinderella dazzles, and she’s got dramatic chops to match.

Seattle star Cayman Ilika’s return to the MTW stage following her unforgettable Nancy in 2019’s Oliver! is one to be celebrated for the warmth and humor and gorgeous vocals she brings the Baker’s Wife and her Baker (L.A. intimate theater treasure Derek Manson) matches her in all three departments, and together Ilika and Manson make for as memorable a couple as stage couples get.

Fresh-out-of-UCLA Davide Costa gives Jack adorable naivete, abundant teenage spunk, and a soaring tenor, and Amanda Angeles follows her electrifying dramatic turn as Carrie White in Hayter’s stunning USC production of Carrie: The Musical with the sassiest, scene-stealingest of Red Ridinghoods.

Richard Bermudez lights up the stage as both Cinderella’s swoonworthy Prince and the slyest, sexiest of Wolves, Antwone Barnes is dashing as all get-out as Rapunzel’s Prince, and the matched pair make “Agony” every bit the showstopper it’s meant to be, twice.

The inimitable Bree Murphy takes the usually ditzy Jack’s Mother and makes her a force of nature to be reckoned with, and Wayne Bryan does terrific double duty as Into The Woods’ all-seeing, all-knowing Narrator and a quirky Mysterious Man who pops up just as often.

  Camryn Hamm plays Rapunzel such comic zing, I was reminded of Carol Burnett in Once Upon A Mattress mode.

Janna Cardia, Marisa Moenho, and Aya Sherian add up a trio of hilarious hoots as Cinderella’s Stepmother and her stepsisters Florinda and Lucinda (and Cardia gets to voice the Giant in a booming baritone to boot).

Christine Negherbon is a double delight in a tree as Cinderella’s (deceased) Mother and and in a bed as Red Ridinghood’s Granny; Brian Kim McCormick makes the comedic most of the Steward, and Michael J. Washington, Erika Mireya Cruz, and Penny Davlin deliver topnotch cameos as Cinderella’s Father, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty.

Choreographer Negherbon inserts some lively ensemble and pair dance bits along the way and the entire cast vocalize to perfection under Anthony Zediker’s expert musical direction. (A+ too to conductor Zediker and the production’s Broadway-caliber orchestra.)

Tom Buderwitz’s 3D Theatricals set works far better here in simplified form than it did when attached to a turntable 11 years back, Elizabeth A. Cox’s costumes, Garrett Ruiz’s wigs, and Melanie Cavaness and Gretchen Morales’s props are fairytale treats, and thanks to Brandon Baruch’s exquisite lighting design, the entire production looks like a million bucks. (Kudos too to Cece Smith’s sound design.)

Joshua Jun understudies the role of Jack. Into The Woods is produced by Paul Garman. Bren Thor is associate producer. Talia Krispel is production stage manager and Julian Olive and Audrey Colindres are assistant stage managers. Kevin Clowes is technical director. Cat Fox-Uruburu is production manager.

Though I’d probably had my fill of Into The Woods about seven or eight productions ago, every time I get invited to a new revival, like Ado Annie “I cain’t say no.” This all-around fabulous production makes me very glad indeed that I RSVPed yes for the 23rd time.

Musical Theatre West, Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center, 6200 Atherton St., Long Beach.
www.musical.org

==Steven Stanley
March 29, 2025
Photos: TAKE Creative

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