Denée Benton, Gavin Creel, Annie Golden, Ann Harada, and David Patrick Kelly have joined the cast of the upcoming New York City Center Encores! production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Into the Woods, set to run May 4-15 at the New York venue.
They join a previously announced cast that includes Heather Headley as the Witch, Sara Bareilles as the Baker's Wife, Christian Borle as the Baker, Julia Lester as Little Red, Jordan Donica as Rapunzel's Prince, Shereen Pimentel as Rapunzel, and Cole Thompson as Jack. Encores! Artistic Director Lear deBessonet will helm the production, with choreography by Lorin Latarro and music direction by Rob Berman.
Benton replaces the previously announced Ashley Park as Cinderella, with Creel as the Wolf and Cinderella's Prince; Golden as Cinderella's Mother, Grandmother, and Giant's wife; Harada as Jack's Mother; and Kelly as the Narrator and Mysterious Man.
Also joining the cast are Tiffany Denise Hobbs as Lucinda, Brooke Ishibashi as Floridna, Kennedy Kanagawa as Milky White, Lauren Mitchell as Cinderella's Stepmother, and David Turner as the Steward.
With a book and direction by Lapine and a score by Sondheim, Into the Woods originally opened at Broadway's Martin Beck Theatre November 5, 1987, playing 765 performances before closing September 3, 1989. The original Broadway company boasted Bernadette Peters, Chip Zien, Robert Westenberg, Joanna Gleason, Tom Aldredge, Barbara Bryne, Kim Crosby, Chuck Wagner, and Ben Wright. The musical won Tonys for Best Book, Best Score, and Best Actress in a Musical (Gleason). The 2002 revival—starring Vanessa Williams, Laura Benanti, Stephen DeRosa, Gregg Edelman, Kerry O'Malley, and Christopher Sieber—played 18 previews and 279 regular performances at the Broadhurst Theatre. Meryl Streep headed the cast of the film version.
The Sondheim score features such tunes as "Agony," "On the Steps of the Palace," "Children Will Listen," "Giants in the Sky," "No One Is Alone," and the title tune.
