A Utah Theater Review by B.J. Wright
On October 14th my friend and I had the pleasure of attending Into the Woods, which is now playing in the Grand Theater at Salt Lake Community College. Be sure to check out their website for parking information. If you are unfamiliar with the area, like I was, the parking lot may be a little tricky to find.
Into the Woods has been around since the mid 1980’s. The story combines several of Grimms’ Fairly Tales together to create an original story about the Baker and his wife, and a curse they need to break in order to have children. During the play the audience is introduced to Jack (who climbs a beanstalk), Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Rapunzel, and many others. Each character discovers that when you get your wish, sometimes it isn’t all you thought it would be.
From the beginning I was impressed by the interactions between the characters. I especially enjoyed Jack (Jacob Tonks) and his mother (Camille G. Van Wagoner). Both had great expression in their voices, used gestures well, and delivered their lines with great comedic timing. During the opening scene three different stories unfold on stage. While one group of actors tell their story, the other two groups remain frozen on stage. One of my favorite memories of the night comes from watching the different facial expressions Van Wagoner would freeze in. Little touches like this were scattered throughout the play by many different actors. It was fun to see the amount of thought each actor had put into their character.
The Baker (Jonathan McBride) and his wife (Stephanie Purcell) were very entertaining to watch. I could tell that there were some parts of the play that they enjoyed more than others. When McBride and Purcell were fully invested into their characters, their interactions with each other were believable. Both had lovely singing voices, and were able to portray a range of emotions that helped pull the audience into the story. I especially enjoyed their reactions to the witch as she reminded them of the curse she had placed on their family.
Cinderella (Ashley Gardner Carlson) stood out with her strong acting, and beautiful voice. Even with the sound problems (which I will address later) I was always able to understand her lines. In this play several times Cinderella falls onto the stage because she is running in heels and a formal dress. Carlson should be commended for her acrobatics in her formal evening wear!
The Witch (Julie Silvestro Waite) was perfectly cast for her part. Growing up I was introduced to this play with a video cassette recording where Bernadette Peters was cast as the Witch. Peters set a high standard in my mind, and I often am disappointed with the local portrayals of the character. However, Waite was a delight to watch. I especially enjoyed her portrayal of the Witch during the first act.
I wish that I had space to write about each individual cast member. It is obvious that they are all very talented singers. I was very impressed by both “Act I Finale” and “Act II Finale.” I was also impressed with the actors’ interpretation of “No One Is Alone,” but my favorite song of the night was “Your Fault.” This quick-moving song was performed as well as I have ever heard. However, sometimes I felt that when the actors were singing they forgot they were also acting. An example of this came during the song “Agony.” While the Princes (Jake Miskimins and Doug Irey) sang the harmonies beautifully, I missed the melodramatic feelings that I have come to love in this song.
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Director Neil Vanderpool blocked the scenes well, and provided some memorable pictures with the stage. One such picture came as the entire cast set off “into the woods.” It was fun to watch the paths each character took. My friend and I were very entertained by the carriage that took Cinderella’s family to the festival. Nicholas Cavallaro was in charge of the lighting design. The lighting always added to the mood of the scene. I particularly enjoyed the use of lights near the front and sides of the stage which cast eerie shadows all around when both the Wolf (Doug Irey) and the Witch (Julie Silvestro Waite) came to the front of the stage during their solos. The hair and make-up (Yancey J. Quick) along with the costumes (Amanda Resier) were simple, yet perfect for telling this story.
Overall, I enjoyed my evening; it was a good performance. The problem is this could have been a great performance but there was a rather large distraction. Throughout the entire play there were microphone problems. I can understand a missed cue once or twice, but repeatedly microphones were turned on midway through an actor’s line. Hopefully it was just a glitch, and future audiences will be able to more fully understand all of the actors on stage.
I appreciate the effort the cast put into this show, and the important message it brings. We all must go “into the woods” to go after our dreams. In our trips to the woods we learn things, and it is important to pass that wisdom on to the next generation. One bit of wisdom I gleaned from this performance is that “nice is different from good.” Though it was not a perfect performance, I would still encourage you to go Into the Woods, and see what wisdom you can glean to pass on to future generations.
The Grand Theater at Salt Lake Community College Presents:
Into the Woods
October 11-27 7:30pm
$10-$24
1575 South State Street
Salt Lake City, UT 84115
801-957-3322
http://www.the-grand.org/
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