Reviews: What Did Critics Think of the Re-Imagined U.K. Into the Woods? | Playbill

The Verdict Reviews: What Did Critics Think of the Re-Imagined U.K. Into the Woods?

The Stephen Sondheim-James Lapine musical is co-directed by Terry Gilliam and Leah Hausman.

Lauren Conroy and Nathanael Campbell in Into The Woods at Theatre Royal Bath Marc Brenner

Theatre Royal Bath's revival of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Into the Woods officially opened August 25, and the reviews are in. The new production is co-directed by Terry Gilliam and Leah Hausman, with the latter also choreographing.

Frequent Sondheim interpreter Alex Young stars as the Baker's Wife alongside Olivier nominees Audrey Brisson (Amélie) as Cinderella and Nicola Hughes (Fosse, Porgy and Bess) as the Witch, Julian Bleach (Shockheaded Peter, The Grinning Man) as the Mysterious Man, and Rhashan Stone (All About Eve) as the Baker.

Read the reviews below.

The Arts Desk (Gary Naylor)

Daily Mail (Patrick Marmion)

The Guardian (Arifa Akbar)

The Stage (David Fargnoli)*

The Telegraph (Dominic Cavendish)

Theatre Cat (Libby Purves)

Theatre Vibe (Lizzie Loveridge)

Vigour Times (David Fleury)

*This review requires creating a free account or a paid subscription.

Playbill will continue to update this page as reviews come in.

Rounding out the cast are Gillian Bevan (Billy Elliot) as Jack's Mother, Nathanael Campbell (Come From Away) as the Wolf/Cinderella's Prince, Maria Conneeley as Rapunzel, Lauren Conroy as Little Red Riding Hood, Jamie Birkett (The Play That Goes Wrong) as Lucinda, Samuel Holmes (Crazy For You) as the Steward, Charlotte Jaconelli (Heathers) as Florinda, Henry Jenkinson as Rapunzel's Prince, Barney Wilkinson (Sunset Boulevard) as Jack, Alexandra Waite-Roberts as Cinderella's Stepmother, and Jessica Barton and Annabelle Denny alternating as Little Girl. Michael Larcombe, Jordan Paris, Faith Prendercast, and Cath Whitefield comprise the ensemble, while understudies include Aliza Vakil, Lucyelle Cliffe, Cassiopeia Berkeley-Agyepong, Isabel Canning, Taite-Elliot Drew, and Johan Munir.

The re-imagined take on Sondheim and Lapine's fairy tale mash-up musical places the story through the lens of a young girl playing with a Victorian toy theatre.

The production comes to Theatre Royal Bath after being canceled by The Old Vic following comments previously made by Gilliam about the #MeToo movement, described by the actor as a "witch hunt."

Gilliam and Hausman's creative team includes music director Stephen Higgins, designer Jon Bausor, costume designer Antony McDonald, video designer Will Duke, sound designer Adam Fisher, and casting director David Grindrod.

For more, visit TheatreRoyal.org.uk.

 
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