Stage & Theatre Reviews by Al Bresloff

Theatre & Stage reviews by SalsaChicago.com critic Al Bresloff

"Into The Woods"

Witches and wolves, Princes and potions, Oh, My! What really happened to Cinderella, Jack (of Jack and The Beanstalk fame), Rapunzel, The Baker and his wife, Little Red Riding hood and many more beloved characters, all comes to life on the stage of The Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire in Stephen Sondheim's "Into The Woods", one of my favorite musicals (with a clever book by James Lapine to bring out the best of Sondheim's imagination). As a childless baker ( Michael Aaron Lindner) and his wife (Susie McMonagle) set to undue a curse that was put on his house by going "Into The Woods", we meet a great number of these fairy tale characters and have what is a great adventure. Director Dominic Missimi has assembled a "who's who" of Chicago actors to grace the stage and bring this production to life. I must take a moment to tell you that many years ago, I convinced my wife and her kids to see this show, which I so love. The production was so-so and they teased me for years as to how I could have such feelings for this show. Well, I am hear to tell you, that after seeing this production, Jane called them all to say that it wasn't the show- it was the production. She LOVED the Marriott production and advised them to forget the past- get tickets and see the show the way it was meant to be, crisp and sharp with a talented cast who make Sondheim's words attain perfection.

Some of the cast members in this show, who in most cases have leading roles have taken on much smaller roles and each takes even the smallest of parts and brings life to them. Cinderella's father for example has perhaps three lines, but Roger Mueller makes us aware of the importance of this role. The two Princes, Briann Herriott and Bernie Yvon sparkle in their smallish roles and prove that there are "no small parts, only small actors". Both are outstanding. Jack's mother is deftly handles by Paula Scrofano, who as always makes every line lyrical and Susan Moniz, a Marriott regular, delightfully plays the Witch. Cinderella is played by Abby Mueller (daughter of Roger, who plays her father/ type casting?) and what a voice she brings to Sondheim's music. Brandy McClendon as Little Red Riding hood steals almost every scene she is in. What a comic. Her timing is perfect and one can see a mixture of Carol Burnett and Lily Tomlin in her flawless interpretation of this naive ( or is she?) little girl. The Narrator/Mysterious Man is played with style by Peter Kevoian and as always the ensemble of this theater fills the stage with song and dance (choreographer Linda Parsons moves them nicely, but unlike most productions on this stage, this is not a "dance" show) Sondheim is a wordsmith and the lyrics are of most importance and this cast gets it done to perfection. You will find yourself leaving the theater singing "Into the woods, out of the woods, and happy ever after", but although the play appears to be "over" when Act One ends, it is not! As most fairy tales have a moral, so does" Into the Woods" and we all learn a lot about, not just that characters, but about ourselves.

If you have never seen this show- get out to Lincolnshire before it closes November 19th. It is not that far from the city, there is free parking and lots of restaurants on the grounds or in the area at prices far less than downtown.

The performance schedule is as follows: Wednesday 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday 8 p.m. Saturday at 5:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Sundays at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.

Wednesday and Thursday is a special DINNER performance special ( subject to availability) $45 gets you a ticket and dinner (a bargain if I have ever heard of one). Tickets are $42 and available at the box office, by phone at 847-634-0200 or visit www.marriotttheatre.com

The Theater is located on the grounds of Marriott Lincolnshire Resort, just south of Route 22 (Half Day Rd) and just east of Rt. 21 ( Milwaukee Ave.).

Late Night at The Metropolis- After Dark Comedy Series is now featuring a new show called "Dates From Hell" written by Scott Woldman and supposedly based on actual stories and deals with dating- first dates, breaking up and all of what we are used to seeing on sit-coms and shows like Saturday Night Live. Just as "I Love You" is made up of small sketches, "Dates" attempts to follow this pattern, but the script is weak and despite some fine performances by the cast of six, it just doesn't hold a candle to the show it follows on Saturday nights, so see "I Love You" and then go for a drink and see what evolves... perhaps you will end up with a story that is far better than those Mr. Woldman chose to use and perhaps he will review the 200 entries he read and see if he can redo this show with better dialog- the concept is good, it just needs new stories. I will say that I was impressed with Paul Perroni, Eric Lenhart and Christy Koesters. I would love to see what they would do with a stronger script.

If you do want to check this out for yourself, �Dates From Hell� will run every Saturday at 10 p.m. thru November 11th with performances at 10 p.m.. Tickets are $15 and you can bring your drinks into the theater (I would suggest you do so). For tickets call 847-577-2121 or visit www.metropolisarts.com.