Into the Woods, composer Stephen Sondheim’s modern take on Grimm fairy tales, seems especially suited to Milwaukee’s Skylight Music Theater. With previous blockbusters such as Hair, Sunday in the Park with George and In the Heights, expectations were high. And while Into the Woods doesn’t disappoint, it doesn’t completely excel, either. What emerges through the shadowy “woods” of the title is a gorgeous show, complete with a fantastically detailed set, lavish costumes, and elaborate lighting. It also has a skilled cast under the direction of Edwin Cahill.
The musical began at San Diego’s Old Globe Theater in 1986, which this reviewer was fortunate enough to see. Most of the cast stayed with the tuner when it opened on Broadway in 1987 at the Martin Beck Theater. The notable exception was the Witch, played by Bernadette Peters. The show went on to earn 10 Tony Award nominations and won three, including awards for Best Original Score, Best Book, and Best Leading Actress (Joanna Gleason). The tall, willowy Gleason was exceptionally well cast as the Baker’s Wife. The baker’s story is a completely new fairy tale that weaves together all the traditional ones.
In the Milwaukee production, the Baker’s Wife is played with a sturdy fortitude by well-known actor Karen Estrada. This versatile actor has appeared with many local theater companies. This includes First Stage, a nationally recognized, award-winning children’s theater. The adult cast members are often called on to inject some magic (either real or imagined) into the productions.
Perhaps it is these roles that have shaped Estrada’s performance in Sondheim’s musical. Although each character in Into the Woods pursues his/her own dreams, the Baker’s Wife demonstrates determination, joy, grief, fear, cleverness, lust, guilt and bewilderment. Not only that, her own “wish” – to have a child – is easily the most poignant.
With the assistance and prodding of a Witch (Susan Spencer), the Baker and his wife must complete a series of odd tasks that will allow the wife to become pregnant. For the bewildered Baker (Jonathan Altman), the thought of parenthood rekindles painful memories of his own childhood.
Although all of the characters move smoothly through the woods – the woods being a metaphor for the unknown world – they do so in a way that is merely acceptable. Cahill’s direction focuses more on technical details than the musical’s dreamy, enchanting and emotionally heightened aspects. Despite the appearance of giants, witches and a hungry wolf, there’s little of the storytelling skill that has kept these stories alive for generations.
All of the music is nicely performed by a talented orchestra and liltingly sung by the cast. Interestingly, the sarcastic tune “Agony,” sung by Cinderella’s Prince (Joe Fransee) and Rapunzel’s Prince (Ian Toohill), is undoubtedly the best duet in Act I. Clever staging allows the tune to reach its maximum effect. The two princes, decked out like upscale tin soldiers, haven’t a clue how the audience perceives them. That’s part of the fun. The song that precedes it, “Giants in the Sky,” is a gentle ballad sung by Jack, the kid who climbs the Beanstalk (Ryan Stajmiger). His pure voice almost gave this reviewer the shivers.
The standout song in Act II is “No One is Alone.” In this moment, the surviving cast members (those who haven’t been crushed by one of the giants) realize they must band together and become a makeshift family in order to survive. That the Baker’s Wife isn’t among them is a tough pill to swallow, given the strong impression Karen Estrada makes earlier in the show. In addition to those actors mentioned above, praiseworthy performances are given by Natalie Ford (Cinderella), Kaylee Annable (Little Red Riding Hood), Ray Jivoff (doubling as the narrator and an old, mysterious woodsman), Rhonda Rae Busch (Jack’s mother) and Liz Norton (Cinderella’s stepmother). Although a few glimmerings in this production demonstrate what Into the Woods can be, it is best remembered by what it teaches us – like a fairy tale itself.
