Governor Simcoe’s ‘Into the Woods’ dazzles
With entrancing staccato-like lyrics and a persistent chorus, “I wish, I wish, I wish,” Governor Simcoe Secondary School’s production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s dazzling “Into the Woods” brings an authentic set of emotions into the land of make-believe.
The story, comprised of interacting sub-plots of beloved fairy tales, is interweaved with characters known and unknown, contending with both giant catastrophes and everyday dilemmas. This joyfully magical intersection in the woods reveals the underlying realities of the familiar cherished iconography.
Lucas Romanelli embodies the Baker in expressive fashion, bringing a touching naturalness to the man plagued with the reallife challenges of betrayal and infidelity in a fairy-tale world. Singing in counterpoint is the headstrong Elisa Davis, as the Baker’s Wife. The pair effortlessly display their fluctuating relationship in the powerhouse “It Takes Two,” cursed with infertility by the hilarious, yet menacing Witch, as personified by Rachel Sheehan. She executes, with pizzazz, her moment of transformation from wicked witch to magical monarch, signified by a clever costume change.
Mathew Taylor navigates his dual responsibilities as the Narrator and Mysterious Man with ease, portraying the admirable story facilitator and the impish woodman with equal charm. Taylor contrasts the two characters in mannerism and inflection, each individual character remarkably convincing, as he lurks about the woods alongside his princely contrasts. The finevoiced duo of Noah Bondoc’s Cinderella’s Prince and Adam McIsaac’s Rapunzel’s Prince enchants with two spirited deliveries of the sardonic “Agony.”
The company gracefully navigated the ambitious musical pieces, carrying the tune into the woods, then out of the woods, and nearly happily ever after. While the extensive use of synchronized ensemble vocals highlighted the make-shift fairy tale family, the choir vocals rarely strayed from ’togetherness.’
The charmingly-boyish Jack, performed by Declan Platakis, is a disarming idealist who is forced to sell his cow, Milky White, for magic beans. Similarly youthful, Emily Boyd glimmers as the mischievous Little Red Ridinghood, gracefully displaying the challenging character transformation that is coupled with her loss of innocence. Brandishing a pocket knife and sporting a wool-fur cloak, Red is no longer as little as she seems. This yields the theme of the performance, a call-and-answer portrayal of the triumphs and consequences of wish-making.
The cast soars with aplomb through the story’s coincidental meetings and interconnected misadventures, aided by scenespecific lighting, as operated by Jacob Dillon, carefully illuminating the distinctions between sections of the woods. Spurred along by the impressive orchestra, the use of timely sound effects in conjunction with onstage movement added another layer of enchantment. Mysterious Man is tossed to the forest floor with the accompanying flick of the witch’s wand and a bright roll of the xylophone, and each bean is thrown skyward with a sharp staccato, an ode to the magic that was quick to follow.
The enchanting production puts to music the joy, and outcome, of each fairy tale character’s wish, playing off one another with a sense of charm and precision. Interweaving voices and precise comedic timing render the musical intrinsically amusing and effortlessly captivating, yielding the lesson: you are not alone in the woods, whether it be friend or foe.