Local all star production of Sondheim’s classic is the must-see musical of the year.

Among Stephen Sondheim’s many works, Into The Woods remains one of his best and most enduring. On the surface, the musical, with a Tony Award-winning book by James Lapine, ostensibly seems like a colourful mash-up of the most renowned fairy tales, utilising the clever conceit of the woods to bring them all to their inevitable happy ending. But stay on, and it takes on a far darker tone as the logic of reality is applied to fiction, and they deal with the hidden costs and consequences of their wishes.

Paired with Sondheim’s music and lyrics, each song complex in its melody, changes in pitch and wild use of clashing, recurring motifs, and Into The Woods makes for a production that is complex to stage, making for an incredibly satisfying to witness a company pull off successfully. And in Singapore, Pangdemonium’s latest staging is perhaps one of the strongest local productions of it thus far, with an all-star cast of Singapore’s brightest musical talents led by director Tracie Pang to craft a fantasy world that is equal parts charming, affecting, and resonant in a world that’s becoming increasingly grey in its morals.

Taking on the guise of an innocent musical, Into The Woods essentially takes place in a world where one’s favourite fairytale characters co-exist, each with their own troubles, as narrated by Adrian Pang, with the curtains dramatically lifting to bring us the epic, nearly 15-minute opening number. Cinderella (Nathania Ong) wants to go to the ball, but is prevented from doing so by her evil stepmother and stepsisters (Victoria Mintey, Chloe E-Shyan Chua and Marissa Vojodi). Jack (Andrew Marko) and his mother (Candice de Rozario) are in poverty, and must sell his cow and best friend Milky White (Andy Yew) to make ends meet. Little Red Riding Hood (Frances Lee) is visiting her grandmother (Sharon Mah), but encounters a hungry wolf (Daniel Koek) along the way. Rapunzel (Inch Chua) lives alone in a tower, pining for a life of freedom.

Stringing all these stories together are the Baker and his wife (Benjamin Chow and Ethel Yap), who are cursed by a Witch (Mina Ellen Kaye) to remain barren, unless they gather four specific ingredients for her, which coincidentally, can be obtained from each of these characters, all of whom meet each other in the woods, where anything and everything could happen. All of this wraps up rather happily in the first act, with everyone having their stories satisfactorily concluded and wishes fulfilled. But come Act 2, and Into The Woods reveals that it was never intended to be that simple, and much like its own overarching theme of innocence lost, thrusts its characters into conflict as they face a potentially world-ending threat to the kingdom, where violent deaths and despair are abound.

Considering how long the production is, Pacing is everything, and under direction of Tracie Pang, the musical achieves an ideal snappy rhythm in the first half, ensuring that stories move at a brisk pace that ensures we’re kept engaged throughout. Much of this is thanks to the careful and well thought out casting, where every cast member matches their role, and share an incredible onstage chemistry, each one of them having natural affinity with each other in their interactions. There is simultaneously a heightened sense of unique personality traits that are played up for their characterisation, while also grounding each character in a fundamental sense of humanity defined by their wishes and desires and how it drives them to do whatever it takes to achieve them, while also struggling with the moral quandaries of that.

Later on, this is taken to greater extremes in the slower but more emotionally intense second act, and it is here that cast chemistry truly pays off as their arguments hold weight, and their decisions now have irreversible consequences, with our survivors showcasing genuine care and concern for each other in an apocalyptic world. As a whole, the cast knows exactly how to elevate their roles and work together, and this comes out particularly strongly in the group numbers. This may not be a dance-heavy musical, but choreographer Andy Benjamin Cai brings out the best in them in group numbers, with nods to ballroom and more classic presentations, strong as a united ensemble, but also including enough space and opportunity for individual cast members to showcase unique movements and gestures that represent their character.

As mentioned, this truly is an all-star cast, and praise must be lauded on individual performers for their excellent work. Among them, all eyes are likely on Nathania Ong, who shot to fame for being the first Singaporean to play Eponine in the West End production of Les Misérables. Watching this show, audience members would be curious if she lives up to the hype, and she does indeed prove her talent and more – not only does she possess a powerful voice she is in full control of, but her character work is also completely on point, presenting a Cinderella filled with innocence and quiet verve, a woman who has been shaped by tragedy and hardship and knows what she ultimately wants. Transforming from a dull scullery maid to her golden dress, and she practically emanates the spirit of royalty, her doubts coming to light in the fantastic ‘On The Steps of the Palace’.

Opposite her is fellow West End star Daniel Koek, who plays Cinderella’s Prince. There is an unwavering confidence to his performance that allows him to channel the Prince’s arrogance to stage, while it is also impressive how Preston Lim as Rapunzel’s Prince, matches his energy in the comical duet ‘Agony’, showcasing the immense talent of both men. Koek also doubles as the Wolf, and in his top hat and coat (with nothing but his bare torso underneath), he encapsulates this perverse, predatory alter ego well, preying on Red Riding Hood with an almost salacious hunger each time he gets too close. As for Red Riding Hood, Frances Lee brings a child-like skip in her step as she stuffs her face with bread, while also presenting trauma manifesting through how quick she is to draw a knife on others. Frances also showcases her quick wit, winning the audience over with improvisational skills that seem completely natural, and you fully see her transformation from innocent happy-go-lucky child to disturbed adolescent fearful of the world.

Elsewhere, Candice de Rozario may not have been onstage in a theatre production for some time, but commands it with her presence each time, casting the fear of a child lectured by his mother into the audience, with how firm she is as Jack’s Mother. Andrew Marko, as Jack, plays off her well, always seeming small in her presence despite being physically larger than Candice. Moreover, Marko’s performance feels like comeback for the actor, and externalises his inner child, one who’s been through tough times but maintains that fervent curiosity and drive to survive, playing up his earnestness to turn him into a winsome character we can’t help but root for, wanting to prove himself in every scene. Marko also possesses strong chemistry with scene-stealer Andy Yew, who is almost entirely silent throughout the show, but excels at putting a smile on the audience’s face with his hilarious improvisation and physical humour, even in a massive cow suit.

Among the cast, Mina Ellen Kaye possesses one of the strongest voices, and has proven her acting chops time and time again with Pangdemonium’s musicals. This time around, she is particularly impressive for her ability to act past the prosthetic over the upper half of her face, while balancing stereotypical witch with great comic timing. Mina does especially well with her physicality, transforming completely from bent-backed, demanding and insistent, to possessing an aura of confidence later on, with a particularly emotional, angered and pained performance in ‘Witch’s Lament’ from the loss and blame and powerlessness she feels in spite of her new guise, and one feels that same softness in her interactions with the nervous, damaged Rapunzel, who Inch Chua plays with ditz and a hint of hysteria.

Finally, Benjamin Chow and Ethel Yap present some of their career best performances, displaying the complex husband-wife relationship between the baker and his wife, deeply loving underneath all the bickering. Ethel feels made for the role, a worried expression on her face as she ventures into the woods for her husband, knowing that he is bound to forget his task and needs her assistance. Benjamin too matches this care, in the sense that one can tell that he is always trying his best to make do and remain a moral person. The two of them show the peaks and valleys of their relationship throughout the musical, with ‘It Takes Two’ a highlight that feels like genuine affection sparked again between the two, with the graceful, elegant choreographic duet as they waltz with each other. Later on, as they find themselves alone, they emanate guilt and regret, with ‘Moments in the Woods’ and ‘No More’, each one allowing Ethel and Benjamin to show off their vocal ability and emotion as individuals.

Into The Woods is not a success by its performers alone, but from the designers to transform the Singtel Waterfront Theatre into a fairytale tome come alive. This time around, the team have decided to adopt a more classic proscenium stage setup with a twist – a catwalk that extends out from stage centre, allowing characters to run up to the audience from it, or give them space to perform solos away from the main stage. Eucien Chia’s set leans heavily into the fairytale setting of the show, with backdrops like giant, faded brown pages, complete with words like ‘Once upon a time’ and other similarly coloured illustrated cottages, such that it literally feels like a book come to life. Eucien also provides the space to play with levels even on a ‘flat’ stage – behind, a mid-sized slope with rocky steps allows characters to either slide down it, or climb up and down, while the front is flanked by twin towers, where characters appear at the window.

Naturally, the woods themselves are an integral part of the performance, and comprise tall, flat birch trees, creeping onto the stage and shifting about during scene changes to emphasise how nothing is as it seems, making it easy to imagine the woods as a sprawling, ever changing space, far too easy to stray and get lost. This is frequently supported by James Tan’s lighting cues, which not only subtly depict changes in time with colours depicting dawn and dusk, but also make for particularly dramatic moments with well-placed spots that single out individual characters, or sudden harsh lighting that signal when something terrible is about to happen. With Jing Ng’s sound design, we hear clear crunches of leaves underfoot, or more comic sounds to punctuate the humorous scenes. Pangdemonium should also be commended for always being brave to try new technology, and Into The Woods utilises an innovative spatial sound mapping system, where cast members’ mics change in volume depending on which part of the stage that they’re at, that remind us of the illusions and tricks a forest can play on our mind.

Completing the visual elements are Leonard Augustine Choo’s costumes and Leong Lim’s wigs, with well-made outfits filled with little details that tell an entire story of their own. Take for example how the baker’s wife’s dress still has remnants of flour all over it, in contrast to the baker, showcasing who’s really doing all the work around the house, while Red Riding Hood swaps her hood out for a fur shawl that uses the same material as the coat worn by the wolf earlier on. Even the seemingly innocuous green women’s jacket several sizes too small that Jack wears, suggests being a hand-me-down from his mother to indicate how poor they are. Costume changes are also done with finesse, not simply a tearaway or illusion, but entire constructed pieces – the Witch, for example, exudes a sinister air in her ruffled and ridged black dress, suggesting something sharp or dangerous, while her transformation later on showcases details that catch and reflect the light, and grandness in the rich, velvety royal blue material.

Into The Woods is a twisted tale about the loss of innocence, to be exposed to the darkness of the world around us and that one day, we must wake up from the dreams that fairytales gave us as a child. Pangdemonium and the theatre scene as a whole have been having a tough time in the pandemic years and recovery after. And to round off their 2023 season, this production seems to capture that feeling of loss and of being lost, searching for some kind of spell to make it all better while struggling to make ends meet, so much that it can become tempting to betray our own morals. Thankfully, it feels like we may just be experiencing a sea change.

If anyone was ever in doubt that Singapore was capable of producing musical talent rivalling that of Broadway or the West End, then Pangdemonium’s Into The Woods will surely allay them. Rarely does a local production feel so complete and so accomplished, with our biggest and brightest theatre performers, a spectacular live band, innovative design that is true to the production while ensuring each designer also has their own spin on it, and above all, direction from Tracie that is sure of exactly what she wants to push to the audience. Sondheim’s musical is a classic for good reason, but Pangdemonium has elevated it, made it their own, and is assuredly the best musical you’ll see in Singapore this year. Watching the cast come out for curtain call, you feel nothing but pride for our performing arts, amazed at the quality of their performance and that we are living in a time that we can witness it having grown to such an extent, and we urge you to see this musical, for the talent on show, and to believe in how 2024, local theatre is only set to get better than ever.

Photo Credit: CRISPI

Into The Woods runs from 27th October to 12th November 2023 at the Singtel Waterfront Theatre. Tickets available here

Production Credits:

Music & Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim Book: James Lapine Orchestrations: Jonathan Tunick Director: Tracie Pang Assistant Director: Timothy Koh Cast: Benjamin Chow, Chloe E-Shyan Chua, Inch Chua, Candice de Rozario, Mina Ellen Kaye, Vanessa Kee, Daniel Koek, Frances Lee, Preston Lim, Sharon Mah, Andrew Marko, Victoria Mintey, Nathania Ong, Adrian Pang, Gaby Rae, Marissa Vojodi, Ethel Yap, Crenshaw Yeo, Andy Yew Music Director: Joel Nah Orchestra: Joel Nah (Keyboard 2), Jane Foo (Keyboard 1), Rizal Sanip (Percussion), Brandon Wong (Bass), Ryan Sim (Cello), Zaidi Sabtu-Ramli (Woodwind), Kenneth Lun (Trumpet), Christina Zhou (Violin), Han Oh (Viola) Choreographer: Andy Benjamin Cai Vocal Coach: TJ Taylor Set Designer: Eucien Chia Associate Set Designer: Grace Lin Lighting Designer: James Tan Sound Designer: Jing Ng Associate Sound Designer: Guo Ningru Costume Designer: Leonard Augustine Choo Wig Designer: Leong Lim