Into the Woods

This article is about the musical. For other uses, see Into the Woods (disambiguation).

Into the Woods
Poster for the original Broadway production
Music	Stephen Sondheim
Lyrics	Stephen Sondheim
Book	James Lapine
Basis	Inspired by Bruno Bettelheim's The Uses of Enchantment
Productions	1987 Broadway 1988 United States National Tour 1990 West End 2002 Broadway revival
Awards	Tony Award for Best Score Tony Award for Best Book Drama Desk for Best Musical Tony Award for Best Revival

Into the Woods is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. It debuted in San Diego at the Old Globe Theatre in 1986, and premiered on Broadway in 1987. Bernadette Peters' performance as the Witch, and Joanna Gleason's portrayal of the Baker's Wife, brought acclaim to the production during its original Broadway run. Into the Woods won several Tony Awards, including Best Score, Best Book, and Best Actress in a Musical (Joanna Gleason), in a year dominated by The Phantom of the Opera. The musical has been produced many times, with a 1988 national tour, a 1990 West End production, a 1991 television production, a 1997 tenth anniversary concert, a 2002 Los Angeles production and a 2002 Broadway revival. It was later loosely adapted into the hip-hop dance musical, Into the Hoods.

Inspired by Bruno Bettelheim's 1976 book, The Uses of Enchantment, the musical intertwines the plots of several Brothers Grimm fairy tales and follows them further to explore the consequences of the characters' wishes and quests. The main characters are taken from the stories of Little Red Ridinghood, Jack and the Beanstalk, Rapunzel, and Cinderella, tied together by a more original story involving a Baker and his wife and their quest to begin a family, most likely taken from the original story of Rapunzel by the Brothers Grimm. It also includes references to several other well-known tales.

Plot summary

Act I

A narrator opens the show with the classic words "Once Upon a Time". He introduces us to four people to whom wishes are more important than life itself: Cinderella, who wishes to attend the King's festival; Jack, a lonely, impoverished and simple young man who wishes that his cow, Milky-White, would give milk; and the Baker and his Wife, who wish they could have a child. Little Red Ridinghood enters and buys some bread from the Baker to take to her grandmother in the woods while Jack's weary mother, sick and tired of her son's devotion to the useless cow, begins to nag him into selling the poor creature. Meanwhile, Cinderella's cruel stepmother and vain stepsisters, Florinda and Lucinda, taunt her dreams of attending the festival. The Stepmother throws a pot of lentils into the fireplace, and tells Cinderella if she can pick all the lentils out in two hours, she may go to the festival. Aided by some friendly birds, which she can talk to, Cinderella completes the task, but her Stepmother breaks her promise on the grounds that Cinderella has no suitable clothing.

After Little Red Ridinghood leaves, a knock is heard on the Baker's door, and their neighbor, an ugly old Witch, enters to reveal the source of the couple's infertility. Many years ago, the Baker's father had stolen from the Witch's garden to feed his pregnant wife's craving, and was caught. In exchange for his life and the lettuce, he promised to give the witch his unborn child. She let him go, but did not know that he had also stolen some of her magic beans. When the day arrived, the Witch cursed the family, including the infant Baker, to be barren, and took the Baker's sister, whom she named Rapunzel. The curse will be lifted if the Baker and his Wife can find the four ingredients that the Witch needs for a certain potion: "the cow as white as milk, the cape as red as blood, the hair as yellow as corn, and the slipper as pure as gold", all before the chime of Midnight in three days' time. All begin their journeys into the woods: Jack to sell his cow at Market, Cinderella's family to the Festival, Cinderella to her mother's grave to ask for guidance, Red Ridinghood to her Grandmother's house, and the Baker, refusing his wife's help, to find the ingredients ("Prologue").

In the forest Jack encounters a Mysterious Man who says he'd be lucky to trade his emaciated cow for beans, let alone the five pounds he is asking. Cinderella visits her mother's grave and receives a beautiful gown and shoes from her mother's spirit ("Cinderella at the Grave"). Little Red Ridinghood, on her way to her grandmother's house, meets a hungry and lusty wolf, who tempts her into biding her time while he races on ahead to devour her grandmother and lie in wait for the more tender granddaughter. ("Hello, Little Girl"). The Baker, who sees their encounter, is concerned but is frightened by the Witch, who points out the little girl's blood red cape to him and threatens him. He is so frightened that he forgets the ingredients. Luckily, his Wife has followed him into the forest and is able to remind him. They are arguing over her presence when they encounter Jack and his cow... who is white as milk. The pair con the sad Jack into selling Milky-White ("I Guess This Is Goodbye") for five beans that the Baker's father had stolen from the Witch (which the Baker has found in a coat pocket), telling Jack that they're magic (not knowing that they really are). The Baker has qualms about breaking the curse by such unethical means, but his wife attempts to rationalize their crime ("Maybe They're Magic"). He sends her home with the cow, and goes in pursuit of Red Ridinghood's cape.

The Witch has locked Rapunzel, who has hair "as yellow as corn", in a tower to shield her from the outside world ("Our Little World"), but a Prince spies on them and decides to ask Rapunzel to let her hair down for him the next day. When Little Red Ridinghood arrives at her grandmother's house, she is swallowed by the Wolf, who has also feasted on her grandmother. The Baker (who has been following her) slays the Wolf, pulling Little Red Ridinghood and her grandmother from the beast's innards, and Red rewards him with the red cape ("I Know Things Now"). Jack's mother is angry that Jack was duped, returning only with beans, and tosses them aside, not knowing they will grow into a beanstalk that reaches into the clouds.

The Baker's Wife runs into Cinderella as she flees the festival, and misdirects her pursuers, another handsome prince and his steward. The two women catch their breath and the Wife quizzes Cinderella on her time at the ball with the charming Prince ("A Very Nice Prince") when she spots Cinderella's pure gold slippers. She is about to make a grab for them when midnight chimes, Cinderella rushes home, and Milky-White runs away. The wife takes off in pursuit of the cow as the cast enters one by one to state morals and credos as the First Midnight chimes. ("First Midnight")

Jack describes his thrilling but frightening adventure in the clouds and the Giant's house that he has found there ("Giants in the Sky"). He gives the Baker five gold pieces to buy back his cow, but when the Baker, attempting to stall for time, indicates that he wants more, Jack rushes to climb back up the beanstalk. The Mysterious Man emerges and taunts the Baker, stealing the money. The Baker is about to chase after him when his wife appears and confesses that she has lost the cow. Their argument is broken up by the Witch, who threatens them again. They split up to look for the cow.

The Baker's Wife stumbles upon a clearing in which Cinderella's and Rapunzel's Princes, who are revealed to be brothers, meet up. The Princes brag about their new-found loves, the mysterious girl who ran from the ball and the beautiful maiden in the tower with hair as yellow as corn (of which the Wife takes note) before beginning a very musical contest over which is suffering more ("Agony"). The Baker's Wife fools Rapunzel into letting down her hair and yanks out a braid of her hair. Meanwhile, The Mysterious Man appears and gives Milky-White back to the Baker. The Witch appears, and injures the Man with magic for interfering.

The Wife and Cinderella meet up yet again, and the Wife makes a desperate grab for her shoes, almost succeeding before the maiden flees. The Baker and his wife reunite, now with three of the four items. The Baker realizes that his wife has helped considerably, and admits the need for them to join together in their quest ("It Takes Two").

Jack arrives with a hen that lays golden eggs and attempts to buy Milky-White back, but as the three squabble, the cow suddenly keels over dead as midnight chimes. Again, the characters enter one by one and exchange morals. ("Second Midnight".)

The Witch discovers that the Prince has been visiting Rapunzel and begs Rapunzel to stay safe in the tower with her ("Stay with Me"). When she refuses, the Witch angrily cuts off Rapunzel's hair and banishes her to a desert, and her Prince is blinded while trying to escape from the Witch. The Mysterious Man gives the Baker money to buy another cow, and Jack, goaded on by the sarcastic Little Red Ridinghood, who is now sporting a wolf skin cape and a knife for protection, returns once again to the Giant's home to steal a magical harp.

Cinderella's Prince is giving the last night of the festival, but this time, spreads pitch on the stairs to try to capture and identify his lady love. She escapes, but passive-aggressively leaves one of her slippers as a clue to her identity ("On the Steps of the Palace"). The Baker's Wife arrives and attempts to trade her remaining bean for Cinderella's one remaining slipper; Cinderella throws the bean aside but, needing more suitable running footwear, trades shoes with the Wife and flees. The Baker arrives with another cow, and they have now found all four items sought by the Witch before the end of the third day. The Prince's steward appears and attempts to wrest the shoe from the Baker's Wife when a great crash is heard and the forest shakes. Jack's mother runs in, reporting that a Giant has fallen from the beanstalk in her backyard and is dead. As the third midnight approaches, the Witch discovers that the new cow is not pure white—it has only been covered with flour. However, the Witch revives Milky-White, and the items are fed to her by the Baker and his Wife. Jack milks her, but when he turns the goblet upside down, he reveals that it is empty. The Baker's Wife reveals that she plucked the hair from Rapunzel. The Witch furiously explains that the magic will not work because the Witch had touched Rapunzel's hair that they had used in the potion, and she cannot have touched any of the ingredients. The Mysterious Man appears and tells the Baker to feed the hair-like strands on the ear of corn to the cow. Now Milky-White gives milk, and the new potion works. The Witch reveals that the Mysterious Man is the Baker's father, who had abandoned him instead of being "killed in a baking accident", but the Man dies before the Baker can talk to him. The curse is broken, and the Witch is restored to youth and beauty, which were lost when her magic beans were stolen.

Cinderella's Prince searches for the maiden whose foot will fit the golden slipper. The stepsisters mutilate their feet trying to cram them into the slipper, but the prince finds Cinderella, whose foot fits the slipper, and she becomes the Prince's bride. Rapunzel, who has borne twins, and her Prince are reunited and his sight is restored by her tears. The witch attempts to regain Rapunzel's affections, but when the girl refuses she attempts to curse the couple, only to find that her Power has been lost when her youth was regained.

At Cinderella's wedding to the Prince, the stepsisters are blinded by birds as they try to win Cinderella's favor. The Baker's Wife, visibly pregnant, thanks Cinderella for the slipper. Everyone but the Witch and the stepsisters congratulate themselves on being able to live happily "Ever After", though they fail to notice another beanstalk growing sky-high in the background.

Act II

Once upon a time, later, in the same far-off kingdom, everyone is still wishing: the Baker and his Wife have their precious baby boy but wish for more room, Jack and his mother are rich and well-fed but Jack misses his kingdom in the sky, and Cinderella is living with her Prince Charming in the Palace but is getting bored. Still, they are all happy despite these minor inconveniences ("So Happy").

Suddenly, everyone in the Kingdom is knocked over by an enormous crash, and enormous footprints have destroyed the Witch's garden, sparing only a few beans. The Baker and his Wife decide that they must tell the Royal Family, although the Witch says that the Royal Family can't do anything about it, and they safely escort Little Red Ridinghood to her grandmother's house after her mother was killed by the Giant. Jack decides that he must slay the Giant (as he knows how, from his previous experiences), and Cinderella learns from her bird friends that her mother's grave was disturbed and decides to investigate. ("Into the Woods" Reprise)

While everyone else is drawn back into the woods to deal with the new threats, the two Princes have grown bored with their marriages and now lust after two new princesses: Snow White and Sleeping Beauty ("Agony" Reprise). Rapunzel, overcome with post-partum depression, becomes hysterical, and flees from the Witch.

The Baker, his Wife and Little Red get lost in the Woods and find the Witch, who brings news that their houses have been destroyed, and the Royal Family and their steward, who reveal that the castle was set upon by the Giant. The Giant then appears, and everyone realizes that this Giant is a woman, the widow of the Giant that Jack killed by chopping down the beanstalk. The Giant's booming voice proclaims that she wants Jack's blood in revenge. To satisfy the Giantess, everyone offers her the narrator as a sacrifice, until they realize how lost they would be without him. Nevertheless, the Witch throws him into the Giant's arms and he is killed. Jack's mother finds the group and aggressively defends her son, angering the Giant's widow, and the steward clubs Jack's mother to make her be quiet, inadvertently killing her. The Giantess leaves to search for Jack, and Rapunzel runs underneath her and is trampled, to the horror of the Witch and her Prince ("Witch's Lament").

The Royal Family leaves to hide in a Hidden Kingdom. The Witch declares she will find Jack and sacrifice him to the Giantess, and the Baker and his Wife decide they must find him first and split up to search. The Baker's Wife meets Cinderella's Prince, and he seduces the willing Wife ("Any Moment"). Meanwhile, the Baker discovers Cinderella at her mother's destroyed grave and convinces her to join their group for safety. The Prince, satisfied, leaves the The Baker's Wife with a few platitudes, and she realizes her error and decides to return to her happy life with the Baker and their son ("Moments in the Woods") just moments before being accidentally crushed by the angry Giantess.

The Baker, Little Red Ridinghood, and Cinderella anxiously await the return of the Baker's Wife when The Witch drags in Jack, whom she has found burying the Baker's Wife. The Baker, grief-stricken, agrees to give him to the Giantess, causing an argument. The characters first blame each other for their predicament, Jack for stealing from the Giant, Little Red for goading him on, The Baker for giving him the beans for the cow, Cinderella for throwing away the bean that raised the last bean-stalk, until finally they all decide to blame the Witch for growing the beans in the first place ("Your Fault"). Disgusted, the Witch curses them, purposefully throws away the rest of her magic beans, reactivating her mother's curse and making her vanish ("Last Midnight").

The Baker, grieving after his Wife's death, leaves his child with the others and flees. He does not get far before he is visited by his father's spirit, who convinces him to face his responsibilities ("No More").

The Baker returns to the group and helps them plan to kill the Giantess, using Cinderella's bird friends to peck out the Giant's eyes at an area smeared with pitch, where Jack and the Baker can finally deliver a fatal blow. Cinderella confronts her unfaithful Prince, and they take a tearful but necessary good-bye. Little Red returns with the news that her grandmother has been killed by the Giantess as well. Meanwhile, the Baker, perched in a tree with Jack, tells Jack that his mother is dead. Jack vows to kill the steward in revenge, until the Baker convinces him that killing the steward wouldn't benefit anyone. Cinderella comforts Little Red and tries to answer the young girl's qualms that killing the giant makes them no better than she is, while the Baker explains to Jack his inability to say what is really morally correct ("No One Is Alone").

The four remaining characters slay the Giant, and each of the previously deceased characters returns to describe the lesson they learned. The survivors plan to rebuild their lives together, and The Baker's Wife returns (in the form of a spirit) to give her husband one final lesson: tell their child the story of the Woods—actions have consequences, even for future generations. The Baker begins to tell the story, as the Witch appears, leading the company in the show's final moral: to be careful what you pass on to your children. ("Children Will Listen"). All join in on a last reprise of the title song, surmising that we all must venture Into the Woods, but never to forget the past. All seem to be satisfied, before Cinderella lets out a final "I wish." ("Finale")

Productions

San Diego production, 1986

Into the Woods began at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, where it opened on December 4, 1986 and ran for 50 performances. Many of the performers from that production were in the Broadway cast. John Cunningham, who played the Narrator, Wolf and Steward, was replaced by Tom Aldredge, who played the Narrator and Mysterious Man. LuAnne Ponce, who played Little Red Ridinghood, was replaced by Danielle Ferland. Ellen Foley, the Witch, was replaced by Bernadette Peters.

Original Broadway production, 1987

Into the Woods opened on Broadway at the Martin Beck Theatre on November 5, 1987, and closed on September 3, 1989 after 764 performances. It starred Bernadette Peters, Joanna Gleason, Chip Zien, Kim Crosby, Ben Wright, Danielle Ferland, Chuck Wagner, Merle Louise, Tom Aldredge, and Robert Westenberg. The original production won the 1988 New York Drama Critics' Circle Award and the Drama Desk Award for Best Musical, and the original cast recording won a Grammy Award. Joanna Gleason won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical, and James Lapine (book) and Stephen Sondheim (original score) also won the Tony Award.

Peters left the show after 5 months due to prior commitments and was replaced by Phylicia Rashad, who was later replaced by Nancy Dussault. In 1989, Betsy Joslyn took over for Ms. Dussault, then left to join the national tour, and Ellen Foley returned to the role of the Witch at the end of the run.

Tenth Anniversary benefit performances of this production were held on November 9, 1997 at The Broadway Theatre (New York), with the original cast.

United States tour, 1988

The United States tour began on November 22, 1988 with Cleo Laine playing the Witch, replaced by Betsy Joslyn in May 1989. Rex Robbins played the Narrator and Mysterious Man, Charlotte Rae played Jack's Mother, and the Princes were played by Chuck Wagner and Douglas Sills. The tour played cities around the country, such as Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Los Angeles, California, Atlanta, and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

London production, 1990

The album cover of the London cast recording.

The original London Production opened on September 25, 1990 at the Phoenix Theatre and played until February 23, 1991. It was directed by Richard Jones, choreographed by Anthony Van Laast, and produced by David Mirvish, with costumes by Sue Blane and orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick. It starred Clive Carter, who was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award. Actress Imelda Staunton portrayed the Baker's Wife and did win an Olivier Award for her performance. Some story aspects and one song that were cut from the original production were added to the London production. The song "Our Little World" was added. This song was a duet sung between the Witch and Rapunzel giving further insight into the care the Witch has for her self-proclaimed daughter and the desire Rapunzel has to see the world outside of her tower.

Television production, 1991

Into the Woods, with the original Broadway cast, was taped in May 1989 and was aired on U.S. public television on March 20, 1991. This version has since been released on DVD.

Broadway revival, 2002

A poster for the 2002 Broadway revival.

The 2002 Broadway revival, directed by James Lapine and choreographed by John Carrafa, began previews on April 13, 2002 and opened April 30, 2002 at the Broadhurst Theatre, closing on December 29 after a run of 18 previews and 279 regular performances. It starred Vanessa L. Williams as the Witch, the recorded voice of Judi Dench as the Giant, and cast including John McMartin (Narrator), Stephen DeRosa (the Baker), Gregg Edelman (Cinderella's Prince/Wolf), Christopher Sieber (Rapunzel's Prince/Wolf), and Laura Benanti (Cinderella).

The plot was retooled, with a subplot added involving The Three Little Pigs restored from the earlier San Diego production. Other changes included the addition of the song "Our Little World," a duet between the Witch and Rapunzel that was part of the London production; Jack's cow was a puppet with a live performer inside who dances; "The Last Midnight" was sung by the Witch as a menacing lullaby to the Baker's baby held hostage. There were two Wolves rather than only one, sung by the two performers who also play the Princes, symbolic of their insatiable appetites.

The revival won the Tony Awards for the Best Revival of a Musical and Best Lighting Design.This Broadway revival wardrobe is on display at the Costume World Broadway Collection in South Florida.

London

Revival, 2007

A revival at the Royal Opera House's Linbury Studio in Covent Garden had a limited run from June 14 through June 30, 2007. This is the second Sondheim musical to be staged by the company, following 2003's Sweeney Todd.

Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, 2010

The Regent's Park Open Air Theatre production, directed by Timothy Sheader, will be held August 5 to September 11 to conclude their 2010 season.

Catalan production, 2007–2008

Boscos endins was the Catalan adaptation by Joan Vives with the collaboration of Joan Lluís Bozzo. It was first presented by the Theatre Company Dagoll Dagom in Girona at the Festival Temporada Alta on November 22, 2007, and in January it was held at Teatre Victòria, in Avinguda del Paral·lel, Barcelona.

Adaptations

Junior version

The musical has been adapted into a child-friendly version for use by schools, with the second act completely edited out, as well as certain elements from the first. The show is shortened to fit in a 60–80 minute range, and the music transposed into keys that more easily fit young voices.

Film

In October 1994, a reading of a screenplay (written by Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel) was held at the home of director Penny Marshall, with a cast that included Robin Williams as The Baker, Goldie Hawn as The Baker's Wife, Cher as The Witch, Danny DeVito as The Giant, and Roseanne Barr as Jack's Mother. In late 1995, Daily Variety reported that Jim Henson Prods. and Storyline Entertainment would be producing the movie, with director Rob Minkoff. In January 1997, Daily Variety reported that the projected film was put in "turnaround" by Columbia Pictures, still with director Rob Minkoff; that two new songs were written by Sondheim for the film; and that Billy Crystal, Meg Ryan and Susan Sarandon were in talks to star. However, more recent information about Storyline's upcoming projects no longer count the film among them.

Casting history

The principal casts of notable productions of Into the Woods

Role	Original Broadway production 1987	London production 1990	Broadway revival 2002	London revival 2007
Witch	Bernadette Peters	Julia McKenzie	Vanessa L. Williams	Beverly Klein
Narrator	Tom Aldredge	Nicholas Parsons	John McMartin	Gary Waldhorn
Cinderella	Kim Crosby	Jacqueline Dankworth	Laura Benanti	Gillian Kirkpatrick
Baker	Chip Zien	Ian Bartholomew	Stephen DeRosa	Clive Rowe
Baker's Wife	Joanna Gleason	Imelda Staunton	Kerry O'Malley	Anna Francolini
Jack	Ben Wright	Richard Dempsey	Adam Wylie	Peter Caulfield
Jack's Mother	Barbara Bryne	Patsy Rowlands	Marylouise Burke	Anne Reid
Little Red Ridinghood	Danielle Ferland	Tessa Burbridge	Molly Ephraim	Suzanne Toase
Cinderella's Stepmother	Joy Franz	Ann Howard	Pamela Myers	Elizabeth Brice
Florinda	Kay McClelland	Elizabeth Brice	Tracy Nicole Chapman	Louise Bowden
Lucinda	Lauren Mitchell	Liza Sadovy	Amanda Naughton	Lara Pulver
Cinderella's Father	Edmund Lyndeck	John Rogan	Dennis Kelly	Martin Nelson
Cinderella's Mother	Merle Louise	Eunice Gayson	Laura Benanti
Mysterious Man	Tom Aldredge	John Rogan	John McMartin	Martin Nelson
Wolf	Robert Westenberg	Clive Carter	Gregg Edelman & Christopher Sieber	Nicholas Garrett
Rapunzel	Pamela Winslow	Mary Lincoln	Melissa Dye	Christina Haldane
Rapunzel's Prince	Chuck Wagner	Mark Tinkler	Christopher Sieber	Nic Greenshields
Grandmother	Merle Louise	Eunice Gayson	Pamela Myers	Linda Hibberd
Cinderella's Prince	Robert Westenberg	Clive Carter	Gregg Edelman	Nicholas Garrett
Steward	Philip Hoffman	Peter Ledbury	Trent Armand Kendall	Byron Watson
Giant	Merle Louise	Eunice Gayson	Judi Dench (voice)	Linda Hibberd
Snow White	Jean Louisa Kelly	Megan Kelly
Sleeping Beauty	Maureen Davis	Kate Arneil	Jennifer Malenke
Milky White			Chad Kimball

Musical numbers

Act I

• "Prologue: Into the Woods" – Narrator, company
• "Greens, Greens" (as part of Prologue) – Witch
• "Jack, Jack, Jack" (as part of Prologue) – Jack's Mother
• "Cinderella at the Grave" – Cinderella, Cinderella's Mother
• "Hello, Little Girl" – Wolf, Little Red Ridinghood
• "I Guess This Is Goodbye" – Jack
• "Maybe They're Magic" – Baker's Wife
• "Our Little World" – Witch, Rapunzel (added during the original London production)
• "I Know Things Now" – Little Red Ridinghood
• "A Very Nice Prince" – Cinderella, Baker's Wife
• "First Midnight" – Company
• "Giants in the Sky" – Jack
• "Agony" – Cinderella's Prince, Rapunzel's Prince
• "A Very Nice Prince" (reprise) – Cinderella, Baker's Wife
• "It Takes Two" – Baker, Baker's Wife
• "Second Midnight" – Company (Cut Song)
• "Stay With Me" – Rapunzel, Witch
• "On the Steps of the Palace" – Cinderella (with Jack and Little Red Ridinghood in 2002 revival)
• "Ever After" – Narrator, Witch, Florinda, Lucinda and company

Act II

• "Prologue: So Happy" – Narrator, company
• "Agony" (reprise) – Cinderella's Prince, Rapunzel's Prince
• "Witch's Lament" – Witch
• "Any Moment" – Cinderella's Prince, Baker's Wife
• "Moments in the Woods" – Baker's Wife
• "Your Fault" – Jack, Baker, Cinderella, Little Red Ridinghood, Witch
• "Last Midnight" – Witch
• "No More" – Baker, Mysterious Man
• "No One Is Alone" – Cinderella, Little Red Ridinghood, Jack, Baker
• "Finale: Children Will Listen" – Witch, company

Analysis of book and music

In most productions of Into the Woods, including the original Broadway production, several parts are doubled. Cinderella's Prince and the Wolf, who share the characteristic of being unable to control their appetites, are played by the same actor. Similarly, the Narrator and the Mysterious Man, who share the characteristic of commenting on the story while avoiding any personal involvement or responsibility, are played by the same actor. Granny and Cinderella's Mother, whose characters are both matriarchal characters in the story, are also typically played by the same person, who also gives voice to the nurturing but later murderous Giant's Wife.

The show covers multiple themes: growing up, parents and children, accepting responsibility, morality, and finally, wish fulfillment and its consequences. William A. Henry III wrote that the play's "basic insight... is at heart, most fairy tales are about the loving yet embattled relationship between parents and children. Almost everything that goes wrong—which is to say, almost everything that can—arises from a failure of parental or filial duty, despite the best intentions." Stephen Holden writes that the themes of the show include parent-child relationships and the individual's responsibility to the community. The witch isn't just a scowling old hag but a key symbol of moral ambivalence. James Lapine said that the most unpleasant person (the Witch) would have the truest things to say and the "nicer" people would be less honest. In the Witch's words: "I'm not good; I'm not nice; I'm just right."

The score is also notable in Sondheim's output because of its intricate reworking and development of small musical motifs. In particular, the opening words, "I wish", are set to the interval of a rising major second and this small unit is both repeated and developed throughout the show, just as Lapine's book explores the consequences of self-interest and "wishing." Sondheim also wrote the first act almost completely in iambic meter. This specific meter is abandoned in the second act, a symbol of the abandonment of the traditional fairy tale storyline. The dialogue in the show is characterized by the heavy use of syncopated speech. In many instances, the characters' lines are delivered with a fixed beat that follows natural speech rhythms, but is also purposely composed in eighth, sixteenth, and quarter note rhythms as part of a spoken song. Like many Sondheim/Lapine productions, the songs contain thought-process narrative, where characters converse or think aloud.

Sondheim drew on parts of his troubled childhood when writing the show. In 1987, he told Time magazine that the "father uncomfortable with babies [was] his father, and [the] mother who regrets having had children [was] his mother."

Awards and nominations

Original Broadway production, 1987

Award	Category	Result
Tony Awards (1988)	Best Musical	Nominated
	Best Original Score (Sondheim)	Won
	Best Actress in a Musical (Gleason)	Won
	Best Book of a Musical (Lapine)	Won
	Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Westenberg)	Nominated
	Best Scenic Design (Straiges)	Nominated
	Best Costume Design (Hould-Ward)	Nominated
	Best Lighting Design (Nelson)	Nominated
	Best Choreography (Lubovitch)	Nominated
	Best Direction of a Musical	Nominated
Drama Desk Awards (1988)	Outstanding Musical	Won
	Outstanding Book of a Musical (Lapine)	Won
	Outstanding Actress in a Musical (Peters)	Nominated
	Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical (Westenberg)	Nominated
	Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical (Gleason)	Won
	Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical (Ferland)	Nominated
	Outstanding Director of a Musical (Lapine)	Nominated
	Outstanding Orchestration (Tunick)	Nominated
	Outstanding Lyrics (Sondheim)	Won
	Outstanding Music (Sondheim)	Nominated
	Outstanding Costume Design (Hould-Ward)	Nominated
	Outstanding Lighting Design (Nelson)	Nominated
	Outstanding Set Design (Straiges)	Nominated
Grammy Awards (1989)	Best Musical Cast Show Album	Won
Theatre World Awards (1988)	Danielle Ferland	Won

London production, 1990

Award	Category	Result
Laurence Olivier Awards (1991)
	Best New Musical	Nominated
	Best Director of a Musical (Richard Jones)	Won
	Best Actress in a Musical (Imelda Staunton)	Won
	Best Actress in a Musical (Julia McKenzie)	Nominated
	Best Actor in a Musical (Ian Bartholomew)	Nominated
	Best Supporting Performance in a Musical (Clive Carter)	Nominated
	Best Costume Design (Sue Blane)	Nominated

Broadway revival, 2002

Award	Category	Result
Tony Awards (2002)	Best Revival of a Musical	Won
	Best Actor in a Musical (McMartin)	Nominated
	Best Actress in a Musical (Williams)	Nominated
	Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Edelman)	Nominated
	Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Benanti)	Nominated
	Best Scenic Design (Schmidt)	Nominated
	Best Costume Design (Hilferty)	Nominated
	Best Lighting Design (MacDevitt)	Won
	Best Choreography (Carrafa)	Nominated
	Best Direction of a Musical (Lapine)	Nominated
Drama Desk Awards (2002)	Outstanding Revival of a Musical	Won
	Outstanding Actress in a Musical (Benanti)	Nominated
	Outstanding Actress in a Musical (Williams)	Nominated
	Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical (Edelman)	Nominated
	Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical (O'Malley)	Nominated
	Outstanding Director of a Musical (Lapine)	Nominated
	Outstanding Set Design of a Musical (Schmidt)	Won
	Outstanding Costume Design (Hilferty)	Nominated
	Outstanding Sound Design (Schreier)	Won

External links

• ​Into the Woods​ at the Internet Broadway Database
• ​Into the Woods (revival)​ at the Internet Broadway Database
• Libretto for Into the Woods
• Into the Woods on The Stephen Sondheim Reference Guide
• Illustrated Book of Into the Woods article, Sondheim.com (2004)
• Into The Woods Jr. information from MTI Shows