CURWENSVILLE – “I wish” . . . these are words that each of us has uttered when we long for something that seems out of reach.
If we are fortunate, our wishes come true and we live happily with the results. On the other hand, what we wish for isn’t always what we get in the end.
This is the underlying theme of “Into the Woods,” which will be presented by the students at the Curwensville Area High School on March 22, 23 and 24.
With music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine, it’s no surprise that “Into the Woods” has won several Tony Awards, including best musical score and best book.
The story begins as the Narrator (Christopher Daniel) introduces four characters who each have a wish: the Baker (Jonah Bell) and the Baker’s Wife (Macin Sheeder), who wish for a child; Cinderella (Elizabeth Mileski), who wishes to go to the King’s festival; and Jack (Michael Daniel), who wishes that his cow would give milk.
In the first act, the baker and his wife learn the reason for their childless existence, a curse by the Witch (Amethyst Bias), who lives next door.
The witch gives them the opportunity to have the curse reversed if they can collect four ingredients: a cow as white as milk, a cape as red as blood, hair as yellow as corn and a slipper as pure as gold.
Their quest brings them into contact with Little Red Riding Hood (Emma Crittenden), Cinderella, Jack, Rapunzel (Carley Swatsworth) and other familiar characters from the fairytale world, as they all venture into the woods in pursuit of their own wishes.
Their tales intertwine as the articles are successfully retrieved, but as their stories reach their happy conclusions, new elements are developing.
In Act Two, the characters’ continuing stories are shown to be not as happy as we thought. As their individual stories unravel, the wife of the giant (who was killed when Jack chopped down the beanstalk) is looking for revenge and is destroying everything in her way as she searches for Jack. The characters must band together to destroy the giant and bring some peace back to their kingdom.
“Take a journey into the woods with many of your favorite storybook characters on March 22, 23 and 24 at Curwensville Area High School. These are the woods that you want to get lost in,” says a press release for the production.
“Into the Woods” starts at 7:30 p.m. and tickets are $8 each. Contact the Curwensville Area High School office at 814-236-1100 or check the school’s Web site (www.curwensville.org) for details about purchasing tickets.
