Take a walk into the woods
The Memorial Centre will be transformed into an enchanted woods this week as Showbiz Queenstown take over with Into the Woods. Fairy tales will collide and reality bites in the magical production.
You can expect to see some of your favourite characters; Cinderella, Jack, Little Red Riding Hood, as they navigate the darker side of happily ever after. With Stephen Sondheim's iconic score and James Lapine's witty book, Into The Woods is a cautionary tale of wishes, consequences, and the power of community.
Music is a huge part of the production – setting the tone and helping to immerse the audience into the world on stage. Musical director Natasha Wilson said that tackling the score for this year’s production has been a fun challenge. Her role is to teach the music and give the performers the tools to be able to put on the best vocal performance possible.
“The composer of Into the Woods is kind of a musical genius, who created these compositions which are really quite obscure – some of the pieces have five different time signatures in one song, which is a real challenge,” Wilson says. “My job has really been to come to grips with that and then teach it to the cast.”
This year, they’re also using click tracks as opposed to an orchestra, which has meant the cast have had to learn to count the timings. Wilson says that everyone has done an amazing job and that everyone involved is so talented. For her, the highlight is the end of Act One, when the whole cast are on stage.
“They’re singing the song ‘Ever After,’ which is the climax of the show where everybody thinks they’ve got their happily ever after. They’re all singing together beautifully, and everybody’s happy, and the sound they create together is just amazing.”
Unfortunately for the characters, there’s a dark twist coming and things start to go horribly wrong. The message is to be careful what you wish for, and while there’s a lot of familiar storylines and characters throughout, there’s some morals and lessons to be learnt.
Nicole Mclean is the show’s choreographer and has been involved with Showbiz Queenstown since 2013. She first choreographed last year’s show of Spamalot and was excited to be involved again this year.
“I didn’t think I’d love being not-on-stage, I thought that it was more fun to be on stage than off, but actually it was a real thrill to have something in your head, teach it, and put it together, then sit back and watch the cast do an amazing job of it,” Mclean says.
This year’s style was also a little different for the dancers – not so many big dance numbers. Mclean and the director, Marty Newell, worked together to achieve his vision.
“He wanted the movement to be more organic and just happen, rather than ‘here’s a big song and dance number coming up.’ I think we’ve achieved that because we’ve interwoven the dancing movement, and it’s become part of the story as it unfolds.”
Mclean has loved working with everyone and says her favourite numbers are the ones with all 20 of the characters on stage. There’s also more poignant scenes, where everything quietens down and pulls you in. She says the audience can expect laughter and tears, and is looking forward to seeing everyone’s reaction on the night.
Both Wilson and Mclean agree that the production is a great showcase of our local talent and will leave the audience amazed.
“Come along because this is a slightly different show. It’s not a jukebox musical, it’s a really compelling story. It pulls you right in – into the woods, literally. You’ll be laughing, you’ll be sad, sometimes, and you’ll be wowed by the cast – their voices, the acting is exceptional and the dancing. Once it starts, it doesn’t stop,” Mclean says.
Showbiz Queenstown’s Into the Woods will take place at Queenstown Memorial Centre from Thursday, 15 May until Saturday, 24 May. The show is on evenings at 7.30pm, with a matinee performance at 2.30pm on Sunday, 18 May. For more information and to grab your tickets, head to showbizqueenstown.com
