The Public Theatre's Shakespeare/Park presents INTO THE WOODS -- Discussion — Page 22

As for the sexualization of Little Red (and Jack), I thought it was handled rather brilliantly, especially in the direction and costuming. What kept it from being completely inappropriate was the casting of Little Red. It was very tongue-in-cheek that she was so blatantly neither “little” nor a “girl”. And her change in character after I Know Things Now made so much more sense than compared to any other production I’d seen.

I agree. I LOVE what was done with Little Red's character. I watched both the Regent's Park filming and the 1988 Broadway filming this week, and after watching the Regent's Park filming first, I was underwhelmed by Little Red's character in the 1988 version. I definitely agree about I Know Things Now making more sense.

Also, question: How do they propose to do this if it transfers to Broadway - will they cover the stage in leaves and damp moss, and have the two-level set, or will they re-imagine it for a proscenium arch staging?

I was wondering this too, but I guess it really could work in a proscenium if the proscenium is tall enough to accommodate the trees and towering structure of staircases and platforms. The one thing I noticed while watching the Regent's Park production is that the set is very far back from the audience, and a lot of the action takes place on the various levels and staircases. The audience would be able to be closer to the action in a proscenium theatre.

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^ Ohh good I was hoping for a report to see how the show is tonight!

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As of tonight, many of the changes that needed to be implemented and/or tweaked (in my opinion) have happened. From the first preview to today, it's already a much tighter show and is well on its way to finding its footing. This includes the installation of a conductor monitor for the actors and a swifter costume change for the Witch, among other things.

I was indifferent to the show on Tuesday and chose to reserve my opinion until they kept working. Seeing the amazing progress they've made in just 3 days is a very positive sign. I seriously enjoyed myself tonight and I'm excited to see how it continues to grow and improve.

Double post, sorry.

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Updated On: 7/28/12 at 01:26 AM

I could definitely feel tonight that the show is already becoming much more finely tuned than how some of the earlier reports here portrayed it to be, but I'm sad to say I agree that something's just not clicking.

I think, fundamentally, the problem really lies in the casting. All of the principals have their own individual merits, but they're all incredibly distinct performers who feel like they're in their own individual shows. There's absolutely no sense of cohesion among them.

For example, Donna Murphy's dark, heavy handed, relentless Witch feels at odds with the lightness that Tim Sheader has found in so many of the whimsical aspects of the physical production, and her voice sounds incredibly harsh singing what is such a melodic score. I was really rather shocked by how unsuccessful I found her when it came to the comedic bits in the first act. She really scores when she gets to the character's scariest, most threatening scenes in the second act, but it all felt very flat and one note to me. She established a very particular energy from the moment she made her first entrance, and she never went beyond that, which is odd considering The Witch has such complex, rich material.

Likewise, I was initially was charmed by Denis O'Hare and Amy Adams in their early book scenes, but his singing and her physical presence are both so lacking that The Baker and The Baker's Wife tend to come off annoying more often than they are endearing. O'Hare really, really botched "No More" tonight to where it was almost physically painful to listen to. Adams is more successful, I think, particularly for someone who hasn't been on stage at all in the last ten years. She'll just never have a "big" energy, and that is sorely needed in the moments where the character really comes into her own. In terms of musicality, I felt very similarly about Gideon Glick- a quirky, cute, fun presence, but with really obvious musical difficulties in the singing department. That seems to be a big issue all around.

The exceptions to the rule are Jessie Mueller and Sarah Stiles, who are both giving specific, lovely, multi-faceted performances that display an incredible amount of growth from beginning to end. They are far and away the shining stars of this production. I thought that was lacking too- all these characters really go on very big journeys over the course of the story, but with the exception of Mueller and Stiles, I didn't feel that anywhere else. While I usually find the end of the show incredibly poignant and moving, tonight, it just left me cold.

Things like the pacing (which was very off tonight) will improve as time goes on, but I think it's hard to ignore that the bigger problems are much more deeply rooted in how things have been conceived.

For those who are curious, upon exiting the park tonight at 11:30, there were already 15 people or so in line for tomorrow's performance.

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Updated On: 7/28/12 at 01:46 AM

Hopefully a new costume and set designer as well.

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Saw the show with a friend on Tuesday and returned again tonight.

Morgan James' tweet was bitchy... but it came from a very real and emotional place a lot of the audience felt on Tuesday night. My friend is a professional actress, as well as James, with national tours under her belt. She also has a pretty high tolerance for mediocre material... she likes everything. I'm the critic (obviously). Tuesday night was one of the most miserable nights at the theater both of us have spent in quite a while. The production aside, seeing a two-time Tony winner not know her lyrics or lines (I'm talking about Miss Donna Murphy herself) was utterly and offensively unacceptable. Actors are required to know the material, especially in a show that has existed for 25 years now, by the first rehearsal. I don't care how many technical rehearsals they missed or how short the rehearsal process was, an actor has control over one thing and one thing alone and that is knowing the material. Actors get fined by the production for things like that.

Donna wasn't the only offender, the entire cast decided to take the unprofessional route of not knowing the material, but Denis O'Hare takes the cake for messing up at least a line or a lyric every time he was onstage. Again, these are celebrated professionals in OUR community. It was utterly disgusting. The only person I gave any leeway to was Ms. Adams because this is not her element. She was better than most though.

Despite the unprofessionalism of the actors onstage that has nothing to do with lack of rehearsal and production problems, one could be forgiving to orchestra issues. God knows how they can expect this show to work without any way of seeing the conductor. Pacing was so off it wasn't funny. But you can forgive that. They didn't have enough rehearsal.

That aside, the show was horrible. The concept doesn't work. The costumes are ugly. Sarah Stiles portrays Little Red Riding Hood as what appears to be a slightly mentally challenged little girl... wearing a red jacket adorned with buttons, ridiculous striped socks, and a red helmet that reminded me of Natalie Portman in the film Garden State. She makes it a point to do some strange grunty laugh as part of the character and also decides to "skip" like a mentally challenged person would. It was like watching the female version of Leif Coneybear onstage. Not my taste but she committed to it. No doubt the girl is talented, but this concept makes for something extremely uncomfortable when the shirtless wolf in tight pants literally rubs his penis area all over her... and later "eats" her... in a quite dirty way. Why are we watching a song and dance rendition of a pediphile taking advantage of a handicapped person? It made me and my friend both sick to our stomachs.

On monday night the entirety of the prologue got muffled giggles, if that. It frankly wasn't funny. You had no idea where to look. The fabulous gay kid as Hansel offensively licks candy with his sister during most of the opening stealing focus from anything we're supposed to be watching. Tonight's response wasn't much better. The entire production lacks the comedy necessary for the piece. Classic lines like "Oh, I pulled it from a maiden in a tower!" or "I need your shoe to have a baby!" don't land at all. All of the nuance of Jack's mom, including her classic scene with The Baker's Wife, is totally thrown away. I will say she fares better here than she did in 2002, though. The direction is so bad it hurts.

It's obvious this production is in the same camp as Peter and the Starcatcher. While Peter uses "found" objects to create a magical night at the theater from start to finish, there were only two moments that I truly felt this concept rose to the occasion. While done sloppily both nights I saw the show, the creation of the beanstalk with the umbrellas definitely feels magical. The creation of the giant also a moment where I feel like I was suddenly sitting watching a better show. Other than that there is nothing magical about the costumes and props that look like they were all picked up at the Good Will. Either these directors need to go sit through a performance of Starcatcher to get a better idea of how to make their misguided concept work better or they need to bring in Alex Timbers in as a consultant. I don't think this take on Into The Woods is necessary, but if you're going to do it, at least do it right. No one wants to see a show where it looks like everything came out of grandma's closets if you're not going to do anything with it. Into The Woods should feel magical. This production doesn't.

Tonight was tighter than Tuesday. The show is still not great. O'Hare is miscast. Amy Adams doesn't have a big enough range to sing this score, but she does have a very pleasant voice and strong presence when she's singing within the range she does have. She's also not The Baker's Wife. Her and Jessie Mueller should be playing each other's parts. Mueller doesn't quite feel right as Cinderella, as talented as she is.

Regardless, my friend and I both felt very similarly to the sentiments expressed by Morgan. As huge fans of the show and self-proclaimed Sondheimites, HOW can you f*ck up Into The Woods? I can possibly see how people who HATE Into The Woods might enjoy this production because there is nothing about it that is true to anything the show as anyone knows it.

ljay, I was thinking tonight that transferring the show might actually make it look worse.

The atmospheric feeling of being in the park is so lovely and so ingrained in the concept of this production that I think it leads you to forgive many of the flaws that are so apparent elsewhere. For a staging that's already incredibly problematic, moving it indoors and losing that element of magic may put a microscope on the show that creates even bigger problems than what they're already dealing with.

I also think the incredibly wide and deep sense of perspective that's so integral to the design would be very, very difficult to translate to a traditional proscenium stage, but that's only one of many specific technical elements that would need to be re-thought anywhere outside of this particular space in the park.

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Updated On: 7/28/12 at 02:11 AM

SO glad to hear the production is working out the kinks! And great that everything is better musically even without a working monitor.

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How is the death of the Baker's wife staged? Same as Regent's Park?

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"Actors are required to know the material, especially in a show that has existed for 25 years now, by the first rehearsal. I don't care how many technical rehearsals they missed or how short the rehearsal process was, an actor has control over one thing and one thing alone and that is knowing the material. Actors get fined by the production for things like that.

Donna wasn't the only offender, the entire cast decided to take the unprofessional route of not knowing the material, but Denis O'Hare takes the cake for messing up at least a line or a lyric every time he was onstage. Again, these are celebrated professionals in OUR community. It was utterly disgusting."



What crap you are spilling, dawson...Yes I'm sure Donna, Denis and the whole cast are just lazy slackers who didn't feel like bothering to memorize the material. I mean why would they care? If an entire cast of top professionals is messing up....I would dare to venture perhaps something is unnerving them and causing stress....you and your friend ("who has been in national tours!!!" Oh my!!) need to join Mogan James on a bus back to the creek.

"No, I'm sorry, we all have jobs and are expected to do them."

you are expected to do them BUT do you always do them pefectly, every time, every day, even on the first day of a new job? and what is this crap of it is 25 years old? Not to this cast. Not everybody memorizes every show that comes out and what is this SHE has Two Tony awards crap...like that makes her perfect? (and BTW she only got the second one...because...well I'm sure a know it all blowhard such as yourself knows why)

Actors flub or forget lines for a variety of reasons, not just because they are underrehearsed or didn't spend enough time in advance, learning them on their own.

Disorientation or distraction on a giant outdoor set can easily be a contributing factor. This cast has had a very limited time rehearsing in costume in the actual performance space, especially at night.

Once you realize you can't see, hear, or even find your fellow actors (as some have pointed out), it's little wonder several of them blew their lines.

I'm not giving them a free pass, though. My advice to the production: with a show of this size and complexity, you MUST allow enough rehearsal time in the actual space, or don't start your first preview.

Considering the many issues of this particular production, it's a wonder any of them got their lines right at the first preview.

Again, I'm not excusing it at all. I'm only pointing out that sitting at home with your script and a tape recorder or a buddy to run you cue-to-cue isn't going to mean squat when you get out there in the park in those clunky wigs and costumes on that gigantic anthill of a set and try to act and sing. Good luck with that.

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Updated On: 7/28/12 at 07:33 AM