The Public Theatre's Shakespeare/Park presents INTO THE WOODS -- Discussion — Page 24

Ingrates! How could they do this! they owe us!

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I think there's a way to make this show emotionally effective without bashing the audience over the head with sudden sentiment. I thought the finale was a cheap way to make people forget how confusing and busy the rest of the staging of the show is. I think the reason why many bring up Lapine's original production is that it was effective and you actually took the journey with these characters you really cared about (instead of figuring out this poor child's psyche). I'm all for breathing new life into a show, but I don't see how this concept is 100% valid.

I read on a Spider-Man cast member's Facebook how she finds it interesting that people are saying they should be supportive of the theatre community instead of bashing it, but that's not what they did when Spider-Man was in previews. No one seemed to mind Michael Riedel's bashing of the show either. Or the general distaste for the Godspell revival. How is criticizing this production of Into the Woods this early in the game any different?

Maybe *Spoilers* below?

Saw the show last night. There was some rain throughout, but nothing too heavy. My dad was #102 on the standby line, and he got in before the start of the show. So a lot of people stayed away because of the weather. They were letting people in all throughout the first quarter of act 1.

I loved the production. It was a great reimaging of the piece. The evening went by smoothly. There were only a few sound and mic issues. Very few flubs, in general. Only once did Murphy and O’Hare step over the other's line. Murphy almost flubbed a lyric in "Last Midnight," but she recovered quickly.
Initially, I found the opening number hard to follow, but that could have been because it was still light outside. I found it hard to figure out where to focus my eyes. The staging and choreography just might have been too busy. I did find act 2 to be more cohesive as a whole.

I liked much of the cast. Adams was quirky and down to earth. She had a lot of stage presence and charisma. Her wig looks much better in person. The modern/punk costume also grew on me as the evening progressed.

Murphy’s old Witch was phenomenal. Her “Stay With Me” was stunning; I was surprised at how good it was. Her transformation didn’t take very long, but it could be much more exciting. She did look great after though. Her vocals and pitch were mostly good throughout the performance, but I still think she’d benefit from all of Vanessa Williams’ keys. It was a brilliant choice for her Witch to get more and more decrepit by the third midnight. I was surprised to hear the tempo changes in “Last Midnight.” But the slower ending was really effective. It made the number creepier and more impactful.

Stiles has completely reinvented the role of Little Red. At first, I wasn’t sure where the performance was going, but she sure won me over.
I absolutely loved Hernandez as the Wolf and Cinderella’s Prince. I found nothing offensive about “Hello, Little Girl” and his interaction with Little Red. Sure it had a sexual tone, but a few seconds of simulated oral sex hardly ruined the production. And I actually thought “Any Moment” was lacking sex. So maybe they toned certain things down.
Also, Rapunzel's Prince is still out, and the understudy did a nice job for only his second performance.

The one downfall of the production is O’Hare. I hate to pull the “told ya so” card. But the second he was announced for the role, I knew it wouldn’t be good. His age isn’t the problem. His Baker just so lacking of charm. The slurred speech and singing is really perplexing. I enjoyed the father/son framing device, but it could be even more powerful with a better Baker.

I think a transfer could work nicely, but I’d assume that they’d really like to keep Adams. O’Hare should absolutely be replaced. It’s obvious too early to tell, but I think Adams, Murphy, Stiles, and even Hernandez could have great shots at Tony nominations.

The orchestra sounded good, although I thought it was a little too keyboard heavy at times. If it transferred, I’d like to see the 16 piece orchestration reinstated.

Overall, I think they are on their way to having a fantastic production.

Updated On: 7/29/12 at 12:22 PM

Thanks, Kad. It was really interesting how it worked out. It started drizzling before the show, then stopped once the show started. Then it began again before "Ever After" - and lasted throughout intermission, then stopped once act 2 started.

Glad to hear you liked the show ljay!

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Thank you for the astute post about "Last Midnight," Something Wicked. The song is built on The Witch's 11th hour perspective on the Giant's demand for Jack's sacrifice, and so dragging the Baker's baby into the mix, placing another child in danger (and making the pronouns "he" and "you" all the more confusing), only obfuscates the dramatic intention of the song and muddies the story stakes at a late point in the show. We end up with an embarrassment of jeopardy to two male heirs, and when the Witch simply abandons the baby, as Williams did in the last revival, the concept isn't even carried out. The song has always been troubled, functioning as a kind of annotation/explication of the show's plot machinery ("I'm the witch ...I'm the hitch ... etc.) It's a rarity in Sondheim, an unfinished song that's only grown less effective with revision.

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Updated On: 7/29/12 at 01:22 PM

I too saw it last night after doing the borough distribution ticket line.

I actually really like O'Hare and found him beyond funny and charming. My friend really didn't like him though so I think his style is just divisive. I also loved how sincere Amy Adams is as an actress. She's not reinventing the wheel, but she's giving a terrific down to earth performance. My favorite was Gideon Glick's charming and adorable Jack.

Murphy is giving full blown Murphy bag of tricks. Don't get me wrong, a Murphy trick is still better than almost anything. I never understand why she pronounces words so oddly (Cohm-pOnee) and why she seems to scream all in lines in anger. She was definitely solid, but the transformation seemed to take forever (one cast member couldn't seem to unhook her arm/cane piece). The slower tempo towards the end of "Last Midnight" was really creepy and her disappearance was very strange but effective.

There were more than a few line/lyric flubs but only noticeable if you really knew the show. Murphy made a rather funny one in "Stay With Me" saying "What would you have me be? What have I been to you? Handsome like a prince?" and Adams switched "There are vows, there are ties, there are needs..." around.

...and all you proved with that statement is that, perhaps, Auggie's post was too smart for YOU to grasp.

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As a board (and sometimes bored) BW vet, I never cease to giggle at what provokes outrage here, faux and otherwise.

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I get exactly what he's saying. And it's dead wrong.

Anyone attending this evening or know of anyone attending?

...and all you proved with that statement is that, perhaps, Auggie's post was too smart for YOU to grasp.


And you're going to back up that statement with...absolutely nothing. Good job.