Into the Woods is a musical that intertwines many fairy tales.  Those tales are that of Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, and a tale about a baker and his wife.  The first act contains the stories that everyone knows – those Grimm brothers’ fairy tales with a little twist.  The audience gets to see their favorite character’s happy-ending.

“So far I like it; I like the costumes. I think the wolf was creative,” said Amy Harleson, a junior Nursing major, during intermission.

The second act, though, is where things change.  This second portion of the play answers a question – what happens after the happy-endings, the wedding, and the poor boy made rich?  In this act, the audience sees the consequences of getting everything that you think you want.  The characters portray the truth of human nature: that sometimes people may turn against one another but that in the end people stand together.

This play is wonderful for many reasons. It is beautiful in that even with all of the little changes, the lessons that fairy tales are meant to teach are still part of the performance.  The actors portray their fairy tale characters well; every emotion that the characters are feeling the actors exhibit.

“‘No One is Alone’ is my favorite part,” senior Theater Education major Julia Rucker said, “because of what happened this summer.” Rucker plays the role of Cinderella in Into the Woods.

“Cinderella’s dress lights up with Fabian’s lighting, it is just enchanting,” said Melissa McCallum, a senior Theater major with an emphasis in Tech and Design.  The costumes in this production are beautiful.

“The Baker is my favorite part,” said Tyler Bunch, a junior Musical Theater major who also played the role of Rapunzel’s Prince.