28 November – 7 December

Directed by Atri Banerjee, this Bristol Old Vic Theatre School production of Into The Woods is a resounding success. Written in 1987 by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, Into The Woods is a musical that casts a somewhat cynical eye over that well-worn phrase, ‘and they lived happily ever after’. Recognising that perpetual happiness is a fantasy, this is a weaving together of familiar fairytales shot through with an astringent dose of cynicism. For example, when Cinderella discovers that her Prince is unfaithful, his deadpan explanation is: ‘I was raised to be charming, not sincere.’ For any performance of Into The Woods to be successful, that sardonic tone must be captured precisely. That is quite a challenge, given that Sondheim’s lyrics are often of the rapid-fire, tongue-twisting kind. In this delightful show all thirteen young actors respond to that challenge magnificently, singing with crystal clarity, and conveying each character’s personality with admirable precision.

Those characters include a childless couple, a Baker and his Wife, whose quest for ‘a cow as white as milk, a cape as red as blood, hair as yellow as corn, and a slipper as pure as gold’ is the thread that ties the different fairy stories together. As the Baker, Fletcher Garrard touchingly depicts a man who, after some struggles, discovers an inner moral strength.

As the resourceful Baker’s Wife, Roxanne Morgan gives a performance both comic and poignant, whose brief fling with a Prince illustrates the idea that a dark wood can be a place of dangerous disinhibition.

Wearing that ‘cape as red as blood’ is Little Red, played with sparky cheerfulness by Isobel Twist. Her encounter with the smooth-talking Wolf is performed as a cleverly choreographed dance of pursuit and teasing avoidance. Jamie de Villiers is the wily Wolf, and also Cinderella’s Prince, whose ‘Agony’ duet with Rapunzel’s Prince (Nuhazet Diaz Cano) is a comic masterpiece of self-pitying, self-regard.

Cinderella herself is played touchingly by Laura-Jennifer Banks, vividly conveying the idea that the man of one’s dreams may turn out to be a bit of a nightmare.

There is not space here to give due credit to all the other members of the cast, all of whom create clearly-defined, engaging characters. Designer Ken Harrison has created a set that is appropriately a little more hard-edged and functional than might be expected in a traditional, romantic fairytale. Here the woodland trees are starkly geometric, appearing more like baffling signposts, indicating that visitors to this wood will almost certainly become lost.

Standing ovations at the end of musicals have become the predictable norm at some venues, but the one awarded last night to this talented group of actors was thoroughly well-deserved. Bravo!

★★★★☆  Mike Whitton, 3 December 2023