INTO THE WOODS To 17 October.
London.
INTO THE WOODS
music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim book by James Lapine.
Landor Theatre 70 Landor Road SW9 9PH To 17 October 2009.
Tue-Sat 7.30pm. Mat 27 Sept, 11 Oct 2.30pm.
Runs 2hr 30min One interval.
TICKETS: 020 7737 7276.
www.landortheatre.co.uk
Review: Geoff Ambler 22 September 2009.
The Landor takes on Sondheim again with Woods, Witches and Fairy Tales.
Into The Woods is a fantastically imaginative musical, intricately coupling well-known fairytales, and accompanying happy endings, with the writers’ take on what happens after ‘Ever After’. The result is a wonderful mélange involving Jack (of beanstalk fame), Cinderella, Rapunzel, Red Riding Hood and other fairytale inhabitants, along with a Baker and his wife who set out on a journey to remove a Witch’s curse so they can have a child.
It’s more than just another moralistic musical tale, for it deals with such matters as death, parenthood and understanding the consequences of actions; empowerment, preconceptions, right and wrong. The music never falls below Sondheim’s highest standards, and the lyrics remain some of his wittiest and most poignant.
Getting into the queue late left me sitting to the side of the stage under the piano, the show’s only accompaniment. This drowned out a lot of the quieter songs for me. However when given a chance to belt, some wonderful voices arose, particularly from key protagonists Sue Appleby, Leo Andrew, Sarah Head and Jonathan Eio as Cinderella, The Baker, his Wife and Jack respectively.
A curious set of actor-sized books stacked along the back of the stage gives Mischief and Mayhem something to clamber over and the cast various opportunities for entrances, as well as an opening-book containing a Fairy Godmother (although I only saw her hand). But this design dominates the Landor’s limited stage area, leaving only a narrow strip for the cast of eighteen to work in.
The performance felt constricted, possibly by the heat (which sent another reviewer to sleep through most of Act 1), definitely by the piano overpowering the vocals. I lost a lot of Ian Dring’s narration, while Lori Hayley Fox was a little too much a panto witch; Into The Woods may share material with pantomime but it demands more respect for its intricate characterisations.
It might need a good place in the queue but thanks to some worthy performances from the key roles and a delightful collection of others it's worth going Back Into The Woods, but not to end up by the piano.
Narrator/Mysterious Man: Ian Dring.
Cinderella: Sue Appleby.
Jack: Jonathan Eio.
Jack's Mother: Tricia Deighton.
Baker: Leo Andrew.
Baker's Wife: Sarah Head.
Cinderella's Stepmother: Judith Paris.
Florinda: Jessica Boshier.
Lucinda: Kellie Higgins.
Little Red Riding Hood: Rebecca Wicking.
Witch: Lori Haley Fox.
Cinderella's Mother/Granny/Giant - Sarah Dearlove.
Wolf/Cinderella's Prince: Ryan Forde Iosco.
Rapunzel: Jenny Perry.
Rapunzel's Prince: Luke Fredericks.
Steward: Eric Nordell.
Mayhem: Andrew Keates.
Mischief: Frank Simms.
Director: Robert McWhir.
Lighting: Richard Lambert.
Musical Director: Iain Vince-Gatt.
Choreographer: Robbie O Reilly.
2009-09-28 11:05:10