Once upon a time, in the hills of Fremont, a company of young performers began telling stories to their community. These were stories of joy and sorrow, struggle and triumph, and the troupe told them with great talent, boundless energy and much good humor. With each passing year they gained new players and tales, and grew in skill and brotherhood.
When the calendar found the troupe in their 30th year, they were faced with a legendary giant called Sondheim. Never ones to back down from a challenge, there was only one thing to do: go Into the Woods.
Stephen Sondheim’s fairy tale mashup Into the Woods is a musical whirlwind of wish-filled characters on an interwoven journey to get their heart’s desire. Cinderella just wants to go to the king’s festival. The baker and his wife long for a child. Jack wishes to keep his bovine friend.
Determined to run down their dreams and reverse their fortunes, the characters are compelled into the forest where they cross paths with other familiar storybook favorites, and are met with questions, doubts, triumphs and setbacks, and a giant or two. But getting what you want is never where the story ends, and one should be mindful: “Are you certain what you wish is what you want?” cautions Cinderella’s mother.
With its rich history, it is no surprise that StarStruck Theatre is equal to the journey. Director Lori Stokes has assembled a capable and entertaining cast, whose young voices are up to the challenge of Sondheim and repeatedly impress. A live adult orchestra, led by Nancy Godfrey, is an integral part of production, setting the tone and uplifting the voices of the performers.
Narrator Kevin Flanagan is a confident and friendly guide through the lively tale and its diverse collection of characters and woes. Lilia ten Bosch (Cinderella), Jaden Maspaitella (Jack), Russell Lym (Baker), and Sydney Freeman (Baker’s Wife) are a strong core, and shine individually as well as together. Ten Bosch’s “On the Steps of the Palace” is notable, as well as her physicality and overall strength of presence throughout. “Giants in the Sky” showcases the openness and enthusiasm of Maspaitella’s Jack, who is completely sweet and endearing, while Lym’s earnest Baker is at his most moving in “No More.”
Ishaan Wankhade’s Wolf is enticingly sleek and devious, and makes “Hello Little Girl” a winning woodland stroll. Reappearing as the insincere but charming Cinderella’s Prince, Wankhade teams up with Ben Chen (Rapunzel’s Prince) as bounding brothers who lighten each scene they leap into (or out of) with playful spirit. Their vocal misery duel “Agony” is one of the show’s most enjoyable highlights.
A Witch is not as straightforward as you may think, and Venice Barbiran excels at both the fierce and motherly sides of her character, shown in the moving “Stay With Me” and the commanding “Last Midnight.” Taia Kao’s Little Red Riding Hood is also a complex cookie, at times amusing, childish, wry and earnest, making a memorable mark.
Alongside ten Bosch and Barbiran, Jing Yee-Bowen (Rapunzel) and Maya Cavestany (Harp) must also be mentioned as part of the impressive female vocal charge.
There are many enjoyable numbers throughout the evening, but Stokes keeps it simple in several of them, letting the vocals do most of the work without much choreography or creative engagement, which at times feels like something is missing. The group numbers come off the strongest; “Your Fault” arguably the best in the bunch.
Scenic designer Stephen C. Wathen’s woods are pleasant rather than perilous; the thin trees and leafy canopies, rocky landscape and Rapunzel’s stone tower a well-crafted setting befitting a fairy tale.
Playing through Aug. 3 at the Smith Center at Ohlone College, Into the Woods is at turns funny, moving, silly and sad, (not to mention lengthy) but the journey is relatable and skillfully handled with heart and humor. Wishes may bring problems, but they also bring theatrical delight.
Into the Woods
July 25 – Aug. 3
Fri and Sat: 7:30pm
Sun: 2:30pm
Smith Center at Ohlone College
43600 Mission Blvd., Fremont
510.659.1319
Tickets: $25 – $35
Parking: $4
