Review: Into the Woods is a fast, funny, and fierce masterclass of musical theatre

Toby Trusted’s Into the Woods was a triumph of comedy, spectacle, and drama, infused with a masterclass in musicality which will make you reconsider your next camping trip into the woods.

Originally composed by Steven Sondheim and James Lapine in 1986, Into the Woods is a retelling of the classic stories we all grew up with. The first act operates as a typical set of fairy tales (Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel) anchored by the everyman couple of the Baker and his Wife played with effortless ease and charm by William Brady and Stella Williamson respectively.

In the second half (after happily ever after) Into the Woods offers the characters a darker alternative as, forced to confront the implications of their actions, as crisis affects them randomly and indiscriminately.

via Anna Gungaloo

Brady and Williamson anchor the show as our audience surrogates. In a world of witches and princesses there is something strikingly modern about their bickering, their domestic problems and their flawed but constant love for each other. Brady, in his first ever Cambridge production, is the heart of the show.

His foppish cowardice and awkward English charm is ever endearing and his ultimate shift to an act of true heroism, stepping up to be a father, not just to his own son, but to the newly orphaned children around him, and breaking the cycle of fleeing from ones issues is a well-earned moment- a testament to the fantastic acting choices Brady made for the character and only further complimented by his incredible singing voice. This may have been his first show, but the Cambridge theatre scene will hopefully have much more look forward to from him in the future.

If the Baker is the heart of the show, then Stella Williamson’s ‘Baker’s Wife’ is its soul. A bucket of charisma only matched by George Clooney’s eyebrows, watching Williamson perform is like watching a star be born in real time. Her seemingly supernatural ability to conduct the audience deftly between laughter and tears as she searches with exasperation is a testament to the subtle changes Williamson can make in her voice and expressions.

via Anna Gungaloo

Williamson’s character has the most difficult moment in the show where she lapses in judgement with prince charming and reckons with the aftermath in Moments in the Woods. This moment underpins the primary theme of the show: the conflict between reality and fantasy. Her decision to choose reality and subsequent death before she can affirm her feelings, underpins the randomly cruel nature of the world.

This cruelty is shown in the stories of Cinderella (Julia Da Costa) and little Red Riding Hood (Olivia Mornin) who are seduced by a Prince (Will Bennet) and a Wolf (Wilf Offord) respectively. Da Costa, singing with the voice of an angel, tracks a beautiful arc of hopeful idealism to disenchantment with married life.

This is paralleled by Mornin’s Litte Red who starts the show as the embodiment of innocence and ends it seeing violence as a first response to troubles, having been traumatised by her predation at the hands of the wolf. There is an element of political commentary here about the exploitation of young and impressionable women to ‘stray from the path’ by powerful older men which feels particularly timely.

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To that extent Wilf Offord’s wolf is both deeply unsettling but simultaneously hideously charming. In a beautiful costume that would make any furry look twice he seduced the audience alongside Little Red, we know he has foul intentions and yet a part of us is innately drawn to him. Offord demonstrates that there truly are no small parts and remains a memorable addition to the cast.

Will Bennet and Jaeyen Lian as the Princes Charming are a fantastic double act. Across their manosphere-esque duet ‘Agony’ I noticed many audience members slowly coming to the realisation that their dates would rather go home with one the princes than them to great chagrin. The two play a brilliantly self-aware and hammy depiction of a conventional romantic trope and steal any scene they’re in. If anyone knows the Bridgerton casting director these two are my picks for diamonds of the season. Bennet offers a quiet sadness to his himboism of a man who seemingly can’t quite be enough, constantly shirking responsibilities, that one can’t help but view him as a parallel to the baker who ultimately steps up.

Batya Reich’s performance embodies Bernadette Peter’s original witch with an incredible balance of humour and pathos channelled through a show stopping voice. Reich has to tackle the hardest number in the musical, the iconic ‘Last Midnight’, and she doesn’t miss a single beat. Reich’s performance channels pain and anguish combined with a greater wisdom of the world, accompanied by brilliantly haunting choreography.

What is so wonderful about this rendition of Into the Woods is there is not a single weak link in the cast or crew. Each member of the supporting cast has a further stand out moment: Neo Birmingham is effortlessly empathetic and appropriately aggravating as Jack, reminding everyone of that frustrating little sibling you can’t help but love. Millie Chew, Mimi Latchman and Ditta Demeter as Cinderella’s step mother and sisters are hideously funny and Reuben Rackham and Patrick Tweedle shine as emotional hearts of the story. Every single cast member could be the lead of their own musical and that pool of talent in such a large ensemble creates an incredibly tight show.

Image Credit: Anna Gungaloo

A mention must go as well to the crew who crafted the most phenomenal series of sets and puppets who brought to life a world of magic and wonder in the ADC. Furthermore, Musical director Collier Ow led his orchestra with perfection, and pulled together a brilliant team of musicians who sounded pitch perfect. There are so many figures who go into crafting a show like this that just the fact it can run is an achievement in itself, but the fact it can run so well, look so good, and sound so good, is a testament to the fantastic team built and lead by Toby Trusted.

I encourage anyone who has the chance to venture off the path and Into the Woods.

5/5

Featured image via Anna Gungaloo 

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