Theatre students of Brookswood Secondary are taking classic fairy tale favourites to combine them into one play showing this week, Feb. 14 to 17, and next week, Feb. 21 to 24.
“Into The Woods” musical will follow a baker and his wife who want a child, Cinderella who wants to attend the king’s festival, and Jack who wishes for his cow to produce milk.
The story will kick-off with the baker and his wife when they set off to break a curse a witch placed on them, which is the reason they cannot conceive.
Theatre teacher and show co-director, Sheri Eyre, said she was inspired to select this play from a recent drama teachers conference in which she saw the Broadway revival of the show.
When looking over plays best fit for students, her and co-director Gordon Hamilton chose “Into The Woods.”
“This show has many rich and interesting characters that our students can sink their teeth into,” she said.
The play also involves popular characters like Red Riding Hood and Rapunzel, and weaves their stories into the overall plot.
Eyre said her favourite part of the production is the music.
“The music is both simple and complex at the same time. The audience will go home humming their favourite tunes, and yet the closer you look at the music, the more you see how everything is woven together.”
The cast is made of 37 students and 20-person crew from Grades 8 to 12.
Eyre explained the first act follows the characters as they navigate their way out of the woods, and the second act takes a closer look at the characters as individuals.
“The second act is a touching look at how growing up, and becoming an adult, means we often make mistakes and then are forced to learn hard lessons. It is funny and moving all at once,” she said.
Each evening from Wednesday to Saturday, the show starts at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased for $17 online at showtix4u.com.
Eyre added that the school’s theatre will be holding auditions in March for its annual director’s festival, which are one-act plays written and directed by Grade 12 students, and will be performed at the end of May.
“Live theatre is a collaborative endeavour. It teaches you to think on your feet, to problem solve, to build community, and to work with others under pressure,” she said. “Support theatre groups in schools.”
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