SPECIAL ISSUE: Going deep "Into the Woods"

Analyzing the heck out of Sondheim and Lapine's beloved classic

Sep 01, 2022

Welcome to a Special Issue of the Weekly Blast. It’s the first issue of the month, so the full version is FREE to all subscribers, and you’re in for a treat.

With landmark versions of Into the Woods playing both on Broadway and in England, and after a successful class on the show last week at the Broadway Maven (a recording is below), I’ve decided to share reflections — some quirky, some deeper — on Sondheim and Lapine’s wonderful show.

There are no regular classes next week.

This Special Issue of the Weekly Blast includes:

A) a series of THOUGHTS about Into the Woods; and

B) the YouTube GEM recording of last week’s class.

In Into the Woods, the second-act death of the narrator evokes mid-20th-century “Death of the Author” literary theory. That movement set aside the motivations, biography, and stated intent of the author and focused on the text itself — thus empowering the reader to find meanings in a novel, film, or play without having to believe the author necessarily intended them.

So I feel justified in aggressively interpreting this show.

In alphabetical order:

BUTCHER: In the second act, when The Baker visits Jack’s house after the Giant attacks, Jack says “Look, Milky White, it’s the butcher” — correcting himself only after The Baker reminds him of his actual profession. It appears to be a throwaway line, emphasizing that addle-headed Jack confuses two common medieval professions that start with a B and and with an -er. But what if it’s more? In the first act, Jack was leading Milky White to market to sell her to a butcher. Jack likely blames The Baker at least in part for his beloved pet’s (temporary) death and thus on some level sees him as a butcher.

DWARFS: In the reprise of “Agony,” the rivalrous princes bicker over how to spell the plural of “dwarf.” Rapunzel’s Prince correctly says “dwarfs,” as opposed to his brother Cinderella’s Prince who mistakenly says “dwarves.” Ironic for “a very smart prince.”

HUSHED: In “Any Moment,” Cinderella’s Prince tells the Baker’s Wife, “Let your hesitations be hushed.” If I directed the scene (or played the Prince) I’d add an extra pause: “Let your hesi…tations be hushed.”

MYSTERIOUS: The Mysterious Man (ultimately revealed to be The Baker’s father) isn’t alone. A hidden relative revealed later is a distinct trope within the books of several major Sondheim shows. The Beggar Woman in Sweeney Todd turns out to be Todd’s long-lost wife assumed to be dead. We don’t know right away that the Old Woman in Sunday in the Park with George is George’s mother. And of course in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, the plot resolves when the engaged characters Philia and Miles Gloriosus discover they are Erroneous’s long-lost children and thus ineligible for nuptials. So when we find out the Mysterious Man’s secret late in Into the Woods, it’s part of a long line of familial twists in Sondheim shows.

OBJECTS: All four objects the witch demands to help The Baker and his Wife conceive relate to parenting. “One, the cow as white as milk” — something mothers nourish their children with. “Two, the cape as red as blood” — the symbol of biological inheritance. “Three, the hair as yellow as corn” — food is essential for sustaining the next generation. And “four, the slipper as pure as gold” — money is necessary to pay for a family’s expenses.

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PITCH: Pitch (tar) is an important part of the plot. It’s how Cinderella lost her shoe and how she engineers the Giant’s death. But pitch also refers to the notes of a song (and STEPS — see below — are the difference in pitch between two notes). Ironically, though, Cinderella’s big song doesn’t go very far up and down the piano — it only has an octave-and-a-half range. Ironic for a character who declares “I don’t meet a wide range.”

SANDWICHES: Lots of the Master’s shows are what I call “Sondheim sandwiches,” because they end where they started. In this case it’s “I wish,” but think also of “Comedy Tonight” and “The Ballad of Sweeney Todd.” Assassins, Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, and Sunday in the Park with George (in their own ways) are also Sondheim sandwiches.

STEPS: Cinderella’s big song is “On the Steps of the Palace.” But those aren’t her only steps - she has two stepsisters and a stepmother.

WANTS: For a story about wishes, it’s ironic that the first word of the story — “Once” (as in “upon a time”) — is (in many accents, including Sondheim’s) a homophone for “wants.”

WOULD: One way to express a wish is to say “Would that I could go to the ball!” or “Would that I could keep my cow!” Which works perfectly for a show whose name sounds like “Into the Woulds.”

Note: links to register for ALL classes are ALWAYS available at TheBroadwayMaven.com.

• Sunday, September 4 Toronto get-together with David and Mateo (Noon ET)

• Sunday, September 11 Anything Goes (Noon ET, FREE)

• Sunday, September 11 WATCH PARTY: The Rocky Horror Show (7 pm ET, ALL-ACCESS Only)

• Monday, September 12 Anything Goes (Noon and 7 pm ET, FREE)

• Tuesday, September 13 The Rocky Horror Show (Noon and 7 pm ET, ALL-ACCESS Only)

• Thursday, September 15 The Wizard of Oz (Noon and 7 pm ET, $5)

• Sunday, September 18 Wicked (Noon ET, FREE)

• Monday, September 19 Wicked (Noon and 7 pm ET, FREE)

Reminder: ALL-ACCESS Passholders do not need to sign up or pay for anything. Just show up!

The Broadway Maven, David Benkof, helps students further their appreciation of musical theater through his classes, his YouTube Channel, and his Weekly Blast. Contact him at DavidBenkof@gmail.com.

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