Into the Woods

Wow, and wow, Alliance! On two different ends. So first, the first act was just boring - no excitement, the actors just seemed to be tired or just trying to catch up with the music. The latter part of Act I was great - caught up with everything, the audience was engaged, excellent. Act II was MUCH better than Act I - more movement, more investment in the story - everything! Not a lot of choreography in this show- just a lot of movement. Nothing to get excited about. The Baker's Wife, played by Courtney Balan, was fantastic! What a role for her! She was the character that most of the audience (around me, at any rate) was entertained by. The Witch, played by Angela Robinson, was ok, but she was an alto. I've done the show before (playing Lucinda, the Wicked StepSister) and our soprano,Samantha Friedman, was outstanding in the role of the Witch. My friend whom I saw the show with stated his confusion on the Witch's exit in the second act, as he expected her to turn back into ugly and she just walked off stage. Don't get that. We saw her move, we saw the smoke, and then she just turned and walked off stage. The Mysterious Man, played by Walter Hudson, could have done more, as he was one of the key people with information. The Wolf, played by Hayden Tee, was pretty funny in his sexually-suggestive sort of way. Little Red Riding Hood, played by Diany Rodriguez, was cute and did the character very well. It was also good to see inter-racial casting- the Cinderella's Father, played by the ever humorous Brandon O'Dell, married to a black woman, played by Chandra Currelley, and her daughters, Jeanette Illidge and Amber Iman. That was a very good choice in mixing that up. Cinderella's singing voice was wonderful -Jill Ginsberg was very clear, very concise, and her frustration was understood through her character. The Princes, played by Hayden Tee and Corey James Wright almost took the show from the Baker's Wife - they were hysterical with "Agony" and "AgonyReprise." Great stuff, gentlemen! Jack, played by Jeremy Wood, was pretty funny, too, and very real to his character. The set and lights were amazing! Well done to Todd Rosenthal, Set Designer and Ken Yunker, Lighting Designer, for reading the script and talking to one another - there's no way in the world that beautiful set would work without a conversation between lights and set. The moon upstage left was the most remarkable (according to those around me). Very subtle, but good idea. Mr. Rosenthal used the space very well and everything could be seen and it was just totally effective. It's a good show to see, even if you miss the first 10 minutes of the show...