rachelh@myweeklysentinel.com
CANTON — Canton High School’s Drama Club will present Into the Woods, a production about several fairy tales intertwined, on Friday and Saturday, March 18 and 19, at 7 p.m. each night.
Into the Woods is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by James Lapine.
The story follows several plots with characters taken from Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, Rapunzel, Cinderella and more. The theme is community ensemble.
“The Into the Woods title, that’s really where most of the plot takes place,” says director and CASD vocal music teacher Randy Frye. “It’s really a larger allegory for life. It talks about life’s trials and tribulations and how you deal with them. It really talks about a sense of community. In the woods, you may feel like you’re by yourself, but then you realize there’s a lot of other people going through something similar (to what you’re going through.)”
The musical debuted in San Diego at the Old Globe Theatre in 1986 and premiered on Broadway on Nov. 5, 1987, where it won three major Tony Awards (Best Score, Best Book, and Best Actress in a Musical for Joanna Gleason, according to Wikipedia. In 2014, Disney released its own version of the production, in which it grossed more than $213 million worldwide.
Frye noted that it’s his first production as a director and as music teacher for CASD. Though it’s his first production, he has the help of Brenda Holland, who has been in a few productions herself, as well as Evelyn Katona, both continuing in their roles as assistant directors. Jacob Miller and Michael Asbury are assisting with set design and construction, and Jamie Huffman, Cindy Yellenic, and Adrianna Yellenic are assisting with costuming. The pit conductor for the orchestra accommodating this production will be Tammy MacWinnie, who will be directing a local orchestra to accompany the students.
There are 20 total cast members in grades seventh through 12th. The cast and crew have worked every day after school since the beginning of January for about an hour and a half, but the hours will pick up this week.
Frye said that he, as well as Katona and WacWinnie, went back and fourth between three different shows and decided this would be the best choice.
“We didn’t know what would happen because of Covid. They (the students) all thought it was going to be a pretty easy show,” Frye chuckled, “Brenda and I, having done theatre, knew it was not an easy show (to perform). There are parts of it that seem easy when done well, and that’s the beauty of theatre, and that’s what our students have seen.”
The show consists of generally smaller scenes, with only a couple cast members on stage at a time. There are two scenes where the entire cast is on stage at the same time.
“We’re a small school. These students have really made this (production) a priority. They’ve moved work schedules, athletics schedules, and they try to be at rehearsal as much as they can. So, for me, the commitment that these kids have shown is very different than their prior experiences,” said Frye, noting how challenging the show is.
Cast members: The baker- Chayton Wesneski; The Baker’s Wife - Sarah Begg; Cinderella - Melanie Kropf; Cinderella’s Father - Lawrence Halbfoerster; Cinderella’s Mother - Lily Drever; Cinderella’s Step-Mother - Kylie Luner; Cinderella’s Step Sister (1) - Zaia Huffman; Cinderella’s Step Sister (2) - Kiara Stone; Giantess/Court Attendant - Stella Rockwell; Jack- Taran Bellows; Jack’s Mother - Tabitha Tomlinson; Little Red Riding Hood - Samantha Morgan; Little Red Riding Hood’s Grandmother - Marissa Hess; Narrator/Mysterious Man - Hunter Huffman; Rapunzel - Madison McNeal-Buchanan; Rapunzel’s Prince - Blake Barnes; Steward/Court Attendant - Gwendolyn Wile; Witch - Kylee Kilmer; The Wolf/Cinderella’s Prince - Isaac Fleury.
Crew list: Sound, Wyatt Karpinski; Backstage, Hunter Hartford, Adriane Katona, Brendon Tuttle, Searesha Ward; Lighting, Tony Asbury, Kerrick Hughes; Wardrobe/Makeup, Ava Allen, Addi Yellenic, Addison Dibble.
“I’ve had dedicated students, but never a whole cast in it for the long run. This cast has worked very hard been trying to get lots of different things done. I’m definitely proud of their work ethic and how seriously they’ve taken this show,” said Frye.
The production will debut in Nelle Black Westgate Auditorium. Tickets for the production will be $10 for adults, $6 for seniors 60 and over and $6 for students.
Carnations will be available for purchase at the door for the public to support the students.
Into the Woods is presented through special arrangements with Musical Theater International (MTI) www.mtishows.com.