Into the Woods review: a ‘spellbinding’ and ‘irresistible’ production
This show, now staged in Bath, is spectacular to behold

This production of Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods was summarily cancelled by the Old Vic last year, said Clive Davis in The Times, a few months before it was due to open. Co-director Terry Gilliam – “still a free spirit at the age of 81” – had, it seems, fallen foul of younger staff who were reported to have felt “uneasy” about remarks he had made about the #MeToo movement and transgender issues. His “thought crimes”, said Patrick Marmion in the Daily Mail, apparently included recommending a Netflix special by the African-American comedian Dave Chappelle. “What a relief, therefore, to see that artistic merit can still triumph over small minds.” The production, now staged in Bath, is spectacular to behold, and takes a “childlike delight in every aspect of James Lapine’s story”, weaving together an assortment of fairy tales.
Gilliam deserves “three cheers” for his resilience, said Dominic Cavendish in The Daily Telegraph. And Theatre Royal Bath should be applauded too for stepping in – “fairy godmother-fashion” – to stage the piece. The production itself? “Two-and-a-half cheers.” Visually, it is indeed “spellbinding” – an almost “hallucinogenic” feast, full of “surreal surprises”. Animal-headed figures prowl the woods, while Rapunzel is “confined to a tower made of two outsized baked beans and garden peas tins, as if inside some installation by the late Claes Oldenburg”. Vocally, it’s “a mixed bag”, however, with more “heft, attack and pace” needed at points.
What makes Into the Woods so “irresistible” is that it combines quirky fun with a “profound exploration of parental anxiety and loss”, said Arifa Akbar in The Guardian. “First we laugh at its wisecracks and wit, then we feel for its lost folkloric icons.” Gilliam and Leah Hausman’s production captures the first quality: it’s “visually enticing” and playful, and “excels in its aesthetics of dark, dreamlike otherworldliness”, with fluttering puppetry, gorgeous masks and “fabulous” lighting – all wonderfully “elegant”. But it lacks true emotional power, and it never “quite manages to pull us into the musical’s mournful depths”.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Until 10 September at Theatre Royal Bath (01225-448844); theatreroyal.org.uk
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Anne Hillerman's 6 favorite books with Native characters
Feature The author recommends works by Ramona Emerson, Craig Johnson, and more
-
Book reviews: '1861: The Lost Peace' and 'Murderland: Crime and Bloodlust in the Time of Serial Killers'
Feature How America tried to avoid the Civil War and the link between lead pollution and serial killers
-
Brian Wilson: the troubled genius who powered the Beach Boys
Feature The musical giant passed away at 82
-
Grilled radicchio with caper and anchovy sauce recipe
The Week Recommends Smoky twist on classic Italian flavours is perfect to grill, drizzle and devour
-
Echo Valley: a 'twisty modern noir' starring Julianne Moore and Sydney Sweeney
The Week Recommends This tense thriller about a mother and daughter is 'American cinema for grown ups'
-
Larry Lamb shares his favourite books
The Week Recommends The actor picks works by Neil Sheehan, Annie Proulx and Émile Zola
-
Stereophonic: an 'extraordinary, electrifying odyssey'
The Week Recommends David Adjmi's Broadway hit about a 1970s rock band struggling to record their second album comes to the West End
-
Shifty: a 'kaleidoscopic' portrait of late 20th-century Britain
The Week Recommends Adam Curtis' 'wickedly funny' documentary charts the country's decline using archive footage