Ford's Theatre: Into The Woods

I love Sondheim, I haven't see everything he's done, I have seen West Side Story, Gypsy, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Sweeney Todd: the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Sunday in the Park with George, Passion, A Little Night Music, Company, and Into the Woods.  It's a good start.  And of the ones I've seen, "Into the Woods" is my favorite.  I have seen it live on stage 4 times including today.  This production at the Ford's Theatre was good.  The cast is full of familiar faces from across the DMV theatre scene, as well as, a couple of new faces.  Everyone is very competent, and really excelling with the music, the libretto was more of a challenge.  Good lines were trampled over at times.

The structure of the show is such that it is a true ensemble piece.  Every major character is given one or two opportunities to shine as the story weaves all of their lives together.  As such success demands an ensemble approach wherein the actors feed off of one another to create a consistent energy dynamic.  And here lies what I found most disappointing.  In spite of the unquestioned talent, a lack of engagement knocks the wheel of the wagon and left me excited to see some of the characters and uninterested in others.

Standouts where the Baker (Evan Casey) and the Baker's Wife (Awa Sal Secka), Cinderella's Prince (Christopher Mueller) and Rapunzel's Prince (Hasani Allen), and above them all the non-speaking and added roll of Jack's Cow, Milky White (Tiziano D'Affuso).  Evan was perhaps the strongest member of the ensemble and his interactions with Awa where often fresh and imaginative.  His sense of timing and physicality were also noteworthy.  Awa's death scene in Act II after her liaison with the Prince was her standout moment and she made the most of it.  I have long been a fan of Christopher.  He has a fearless approach to quirky characters, from Houdini in "Ragtime" to "Dr. Zoltan Karpathy in "My Fair Lady".  As the chief steward in "Titanic" I watched in utter amazement as his gymnastically posed body slowly floated downward with piece of luggage and flotsam in the final scene--starting 25 feet from the sage and then dangling for several minutes, he has an athleticism that is uncommon.  This may have prompted the designer of this production to fit him with prosthetics extensions when in the dual role of Little Red Riding Hood's Wolf.  It was a daring choice, and Christopher made the most out of it, but it just didn't work.  It felt awkward in spite of his superior physicality, and it didn't communicate canine anything.  Alien creature something, maybe... 

This bring me to another aside, the use of projected images failed twice during this performance.  They were not catastrophic, but they also were obvious and led to an inner groan that I could feel shared by those around me. 

This leads me back to the principle favorites among the cast.  As Rapunzel's Prince, Hasani brought a sense of joy.  Tiziano was so adept at milking every scene as the cow and offered many irresistible opportunities for spontaneous laughter.  One reviewer accused him of stealing every scene--I, on the other hand, would have said, he saved more than a few!

A couple of honorable mentions include Little Red Ridinghood (Jade Jones) who nailed several key lines, and two lesser roles that were all they could have been given their size (Little Red Ridinghood's Granny (Karen Vincent) and the Prince's Steward (Wyn Delano).

The sets were beautiful and the most complicated I've ever seen in a production.  The sound was good and created a strong sense of the Giant's presence.  Those who know the show will wonder at the omission of comment concerning certain characters.  It wasn't an accident.