Beyond the fairy tale
Fairy tales often have happy endings that some may think ring hollow. An upcoming stage musical goes the extra mile and shows what happens after the 'happily ever after'.
Into The Woods is presented by The Thespians theatre group. It is a musical by Stephen Sondheim, a composer known for creating shows with slightly twisted plots and unusual harmonies; Sweeney Todd, the tale of a murderous barber, is one of his most famous.
Into The Woods premiered on Broadway in 1987, winning several Tony Awards in a year dominated by The Phantom of the Opera. It intertwines the plots of several Brothers Grimm tales and follows them past the famous endings to explore the consequences of the characters' wishes and quests.
The main characters are taken from the likes of Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, Rapunzel, and Cinderella, and tied together by an original story involving a baker and his wife and their quest to begin a family.
'In the first act, the story develops as we know it: every one of the characters gets their wishes fulfilled and they live happily ever after, like they do in their original stories,' says Micah Sandt, who directs and also plays the simple-minded Jack, whose only friend is his cow. 'But the second act is about what happens after living happily ever after ... we don't want to reveal too much, but it will be mind-blowing and make you want to take your Kleenex out.'
Most productions with a young cast adopt a youth-friendly version with the second act completely edited out, as well as certain elements from the first. But The Thespians' version will be performed in its entirety, even though most of the cast members are still teens.
'While Act One is totally hilarious and slapstick, Act Two covers more mature topics like death and morality,' Sandt says. 'It's fitting to show people how things unfold with young actors, because in the original stories they are all very young.'
Without giving any of the plot away, the 20-year-old Sandt says audiences will be shocked by the realistic turn of events. 'The show is about growing up,' he says. 'When we're little, we're told we will live happily ever after, but as we go into the woods, we know not everything ends that way.'
The young cast have had only two months to rehearse, but they are embracing the challenge. For Emeline Sandt, 16, who plays Little Red Riding Hood, being in a play is a new experience. 'Some of the songs are very difficult and fast-paced,' she says. 'We have to dance as well, which doubles the difficulty,' she says.
As in any fairy tale, there are baddies. Megan Leung, 15, plays Florinda, Cinderella's 'evil, rude and mean' stepsister, and sees it as a chance to enjoy herself. 'I can go out there and be as entertaining as possible. It's so much fun.'
Karina Curlewis, 19, who plays the other stepsister, Lucinda, started out as a regular in Christmas pantos, and took to drama as she discovered its magic. 'Scores for pantos are mostly based on pop songs. It's a delight to be singing songs which were exclusively composed for the show,' she says.
Curlewis says rehearsals have been a welcome respite from her day job, a sentiment shared by Yona Sandt, 17, who plays a steward. Although his IB exams are looming, Yona says being part of the show is time well spent. 'Every time I walk into rehearsals, I am overwhelmed by the power of the play, and the talent of the cast.'
Into the Woods is showing from Wednesday to Saturday at the Fringe Club. Tickets from Hong Kong Ticketing on 31 288 288