In this exclusive behind-the-scenes video from rehearsals for the upcoming New York City Center Encores! production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Into the Woods, get a sneak peek at the cast performing "Ever After” and “Stay with Me." The production is set to run May 4-15.
Playbill also spoke with some of the cast's stars, including Neil Patrick Harris, Sara Bareilles, Julia Lester, Gavin Creel, Heather Headley, Denée Benton, and Encores! Artistic Director Lena deBessonet, who serves as director of the production.
The cast features Harris as the Baker, Bareilles as the Baker's Wife, Lester as Little Red, Creel as the Wolf and Cinderella's Prince, Headley as the Witch, and Benton as Cinderella. They are joined by Jordan Donica as Rapunzel's Prince; Shereen Pimentel as Rapunzel; Cole Thompson as Jack; Annie Golden as Cinderella's Mother, Grandmother, and the Giant's Wife; Albert Guerzon as Cinderella's Father; Ann Harada as Jack's Mother; David Patrick Kelly as the Narrator and Mysterious Man; Ta’Nika Gibson as Lucinda; Brooke Ishibashi as Floridna; Kennedy Kanagawa as Milky White; Lauren Mitchell as Cinderella's Stepmother; and David Turner as the Steward.
The production will also boast choreography by Lorin Latarro and music direction by Rob Berman.
See inside the rehearsal room below:
Lear deBessonet, Denée Benton, Gavin Creel, and Heather Headley
Shereen Pimentel and Heather Headley
Shereen Pimentel and Heather Headley
Heather Headley
Shereen Pimentel and Heather Headley
Heather Headley
Shereen Pimentel and Heather Headley
Heather Headley and Shereen Pimentel
Heather Headley
Shereen Pimentel and Heather Headley
Denée Benton, Gavin Creel, David Patrick Kelly, Heather Headley, Neil Patrick Harris, and Sara Bareilles
Denée Benton, Gavin Creel, David Patrick Kelly, Heather Headley, Neil Patrick Harris, and Sara Bareilles
Neil Patrick Harris and Sara Bareilles
Kennedy Kanagawa as Milky White
Julie Lester, Cole Thompson, and Lauren Mitchell
Neil Patrick Harris, Julia Lester, Denée Benton, Gavin Creel, and Cole Thompson
Heather Headley, Brooke Ishibashi, and Ta’Nika Gibson
Heather Headley, Brooke Ishibashi, and Ta’Nika Gibson
Jordan Donica, Shereen Pimentel, and cast of Into The Woods
Neil Patrick Harris, Sara Bareilles and cast of Into The Woods
David Patrick Kelly and cast of Into The Woods
David Patrick Kelly
Gavin Creel and Denée Benton
Sara Bareilles and Neil Patrick Harris
With a book and direction by Lapine and a score by Sondheim, Into the Woods originally opened on Broadway November 5, 1987, playing 765 performances before closing September 3, 1989. The original Broadway company boasted Bernadette Peters, Chip Zien, Robert Westenberg, Joanna Gleason, Tom Aldredge, Barbara Bryne, Kim Crosby, Chuck Wagner, and Ben Wright. It won Tonys for Best Book, Best Score, and Best Actress in a Musical (Gleason), subsequently receiving a revival in 2002 starring Vanessa Williams, Laura Benanti, Stephen DeRosa, Gregg Edelman, Kerry O'Malley, and Christopher Sieber, and a film adaptation starring Meryl Streep at the head of the cast.
The Sondheim score features such tunes as "Agony," "On the Steps of the Palace," "Children Will Listen," "Giants in the Sky," "No One Is Alone," and the title tune.
For tickets and more information, visit NYCityCenter.org.
