Discover Walla Walla

"Into The Woods", which just finished its opening weekend at The Little Theater, is a fast paced, although not short, Steven Sondheim and James Lapine musical that uses just about every fairy tale in the satchel to touch on just about every facet of life. The large cast and production crew of the Little Theater give a commendable performance, especially considering the complexity of the lyrics, staging, and props.

The singing is demanding as much of the narrative is injected into the lyrics and actors are constantly alternating from speaking to singing their lines in addition to the numerous conventional musical numbers imbedded in the play.

"Into the Woods" centers on the journey of a baker and his wife who conduct a scavenger hunt in hopes of ridding a witch's spell that forbids them from having a natural born child. I use the word "centers" loosely as we are witness to the journeys of many other characters, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Bean Stock, Rapunzel; you name it, and they're in the woods. The barren couple must find four items for the witch's potion: a cape as red as blood; a slipper as pure as gold - I think you're getting the idea --, a lock of hair as gold as an ear of corn and a cow as white as milk (that's owned by Jack); the play taking some liberty with the characters.

As the baker and his wife obtain and lose and then re-obtain their necessary items, the story delves into parenthood, redemption, infidelity, courage, marriage and the agony of longing, which is best captured in the signature song of the play "Agony" , sung by the two princes twice, the second a variation of the first.

What struck me the most about this performance by The Little Theater was the creativity with which the production was crafted. Much of the play occurs around a towering tree trunk wrapped by an ascending path. With every shift in action, the trunk is turned or moved forward and backwards by a stout lad that appears on stage, but somehow, you accept him even when he is incorporated into the performance.

In addition, the musical staff is stellar. All of the accompaniments come off without a hitch and the musical sound effects, critical to the performance, are "spot on." As for the players, they do a remarkable job with all of the synchronized singing and complex group staging. Singing more than half of your lines is fatiguing and this play runs about 2 hours 40 minutes so the lead cast members show incredible stamina.

"Into the Woods" runs through May 22nd. For further details on tickets and performance times, visit www.ltww.org/.