On Saturday 14th March a number of the Theatre Goers group went to the Plaza to see a RAODS production of “Into the Woods”, a different take on some classic fairytales from a book written by James Lapine, with music by Stephen Sondheim. The story follows a baker and his wife, who wish to have a child; the virtuous Cinderella, who wants to attend the King's Festival and a rather dim Jack of “Jack and the Beanstalk”, who wishes his cow would give milk. The story also features a sulky and greedy Red Riding Hood, who eats most of the food she is taking to her sick grandmother and a drama queen of a Rapunzel, who spends the majority of her time screeching hysterically, especially when she can’t get her own way.
When the baker and his wife learn that they cannot have a child because of a witch's curse, they set off on a journey to break the curse. After many adventures and hardships, which show the reality of life rather than the “happy ever after” of the conventional fairy tale, everyone's wish is granted, but the consequences of their actions return to haunt them later.
Susan Tripp