Into the Woods [Original Broadway Cast]

by Bernadette Peters

Overview

With Into the Woods, songwriter Stephen Sondheim and librettist/director James Lapine retold a group of children's stories in an intricate, moving way that worked on many levels. In the show, which opened on Broadway on November 5, 1987, and ran 764 performances before closing on September 3, 1989 (making it Sondheim's most popular work in 25 years), Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, and other familiar fairy tale characters, joined by a few newly invented ones, engage in interrelated adventures. Sondheim and Lapine's interpretation is informed by child psychologist Bruno Bettelheim's book The Uses of Enchantment, and they not only retain some of the gorier aspects of the original tales, but also add adult complexities. Sondheim's score for Into the Woods is one of his most tuneful, and slyly acknowledges the melodic simplicity of the Disney movie versions of some of these fairy tales, but his lyrics are typically witty and, not infrequently, employ tongue twisters. Song highlights include Cinderella's "On the Steps of the Palace"; the two versions of "Agony," sung by two princes; and "Hello, Little Girl," sung to Little Red Riding Hood by the Wolf. An ensemble cast led by Bernadette Peters (as a witch) navigates those words well. Particularly impressive are Danielle Ferland as Little Red Riding Hood; Robert Westenberg, who plays both the Wolf and Cinderella's Prince; and Tony winner Joanna Gleason. Into the Woods succeeded in enchanting children (some of whom, it must be admitted, probably could have left after the deceptive "happy ending" that closed the first act) along with adults who understood the grown-up references. Recorded at a time when the advent of CDs was expanding the previous length limitations of albums, the original Broadway cast recording used its 69-minute running time to give a good sense of the show as a whole rather than being just a collection of musical highlights. ~ William Ruhlmann

Product Details

Release Date:	05/31/2011
Label:	Masterworks / Masterworks Broadway / Sony Classical
UPC:	0886979025622
Rank:	1896

Tracks

1. Into the Woods~Act 1. Prologue: Into the Woods
2. Into the Woods~Act 1. Cinderella at the Grave
3. Into the Woods~Act 1. Hello, Little Girl
4. Into the Woods~Act 1. I Guess This Is Goodbye / Maybe They're Magic
5. Into the Woods~Act 1. I Know Things Now
6. Into the Woods~Act 1. A Very Nice Prince / First Midnight / Giants in the Sky
7. Into the Woods~Act 1. Agony
8. Into the Woods~Act 1. It Takes Two
9. Into the Woods~Act 1. Stay with Me
10. Into the Woods~Act 1. On the Steps of the Palace
11. Into the Woods~Act 1. Ever After
12. Into the Woods~Act 2. Prologue: So Happy
13. Into the Woods~Act 2. Agony (Reprise)
14. Into the Woods~Act 2. Lament
15. Into the Woods~Act 2. Any Moment / Moments in the Woods
16. Into the Woods~Act 2. Your Fault / Last Midnight
17. Into the Woods~Act 2. No More
18. Into the Woods~Act 2. No One Is Alone
19. Into the Woods~Act 2. Finale: Children Will Listen
20. Into the Woods~Giants in the Sky
21. Into the Woods~Back to the Palace
22. Into the Woods~Boom Crunch

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Bernadette Peters   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals
Joanna Gleason   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals
Benjamin F. Wright   Primary Artist
Ben Wright   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals,Vocals
Chip Zien   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals
Kim Crosby   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals
Pamela Winslow   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals
Trip Aldredge   Primary Artist
Paul Gemignani   Primary Artist,Musical Director,Musical Direction
Robert Westenberg   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals
John Cameron Mitchell   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals
Tom Aldredge   Primary Artist,Lead Vocals,Vocals
Chuck Wagner   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals
Danielle Ferland   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals
Maureen Moore   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals
Merle Louise   Primary Artist,Vocals,Lead Vocals
Richard Hagen   Horn
Barbara Bryne   Vocals
Edmund Lyndeck   Vocals
Scott Frankel   Keyboards
Eileen Folson   Cello
John Beal   Bass
Marilyn Reynolds   Violin
Jean Ingraham   Violin
Maxine Roach   Viola
Laura Corcos   Violin
Les Scott   Flute,Piccolo
Joy Franz   Vocals
Ronald Sell   Horn
Richie Hagen   Horn
Maureen Davis   Vocals
Jean Kelly   Vocals
Paul Ford   Keyboards
Jeanne Ingraham   Violin
Lesley Scott   Flute,Piccolo
Philip Hoffman   Vocals
Adrienne Wilcox   Percussion
Lowell Hershey   Trumpet
Ron Sell   Horn
Kay McClelland   Vocals
Lauren Mitchell   Vocals
John Campo   Bassoon
Robert Ayers   Percussion
Karl Bargen   Viola
John Moses   Clarinet
Gloria Agostini   Harp
Wilmer Wise   Trumpet

Technical Credits

Anthony Salvatore   Audio Engineer,Engineer
Paul Goodman   Audio Engineer,Engineer
Jay David Saks   Audio Production,Producer
Into the Woods Cast Ensemble   Cast
Chip Zien   Cast
Barbara Bryne   Cast
Glenn Korman   Tape Research
Edmund Lyndeck   Cast
Martha Swope   Photography
Kim Crosby   Cast
Ben Wright   Cast
Darcy Proper   Mastering,Reissue Producer,Mastering Engineer,Reissue Coordinator
Didier C. Deutsch   Reissue Producer,Reissue Coordinator
Jonathan Tunick   Orchestration
Pamela Winslow   Cast
Jonathan Rudnick   Composer
Matthew Kelly   Tape Research
Marilyn Reynolds   Concert Mistress
Stephen Sondheim   Text,Composer,Lyricist
Darren Salmieri   A&R
Robert Ginyard   Composer
Robert Westenberg   Cast
John Cameron Mitchell   Performer
Patti Matheny   A&R
Joy Franz   Cast
Tom Aldredge   Narrator,Cast
Karl Held   Producer
Elizabeth A. Wright   Editorial Director
Ronald Sell   Contractor,Orchestra Contractor
Chuck Wagner   Cast
Maureen Davis   Cast
Jean Kelly   Cast
Glenn Kormann   Tape Research
Joy Gilbert Manfried   Project Director
Danielle Ferland   Cast
James Lapine   Book,Production Director
Maureen Moore   Performer
Philip Hoffman   Cast
Frank Rodriguez   Recording,Technical Engineer
Roxanne Slimak   Art Direction
Richard Jay-Alexander   Liner Notes
Ron Sell   Contractor,Orchestra Contractor
Kay McClelland   Cast
Merle Louise   Cast
Joy Gilbert Monfried   Project Director
Karl E. Held   Producer
Lauren Mitchell   Cast
Steve Berkowitz   A&R
Steven Berkowitz   A&R
Bernadette Peters   Cast
Bill Allen   Post Production,Technical Engineer
Joanna Gleason   Cast