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Bullets Over Broadway presents: INTO THE WOODS BY STEPHEN SONDHEIM Into the Woods blends various familiar fairy tales with an original story of a childless Baker and his Wife, who catalyze the action of the story by attempting to reverse a curse on their family in order to have a child. In the first act, the characters set out to achieve their goal of living "Happily Ever After" through familiar routes - Cinderella goes to the Ball and captures the heart of Prince Charming, Jack climbs the Beanstalk and finds a land of Giants and Gold, Little Red Riding Hood survives her clash with the wolf at Grandma's house, and Rapunzel manages to escape her tower with the aid of a handsome prince who climbs her long hair. The Baker and his Wife move through their stories while pursuing their own goal - the witch who keeps Rapunzel (revealed to be the Baker's sister) has put the curse on his house, and agrees to lift it if the Baker and his Wife can find the ingredients to help her reverse a spell which her mother has laid on her, keeping her old and ugly. Those ingredients are: A Slipper As Pure As Gold, which the Baker's wife gets from Cinderella, A Cow As White As Milk, which the Baker buys from Jack in exchange for the fateful magic beans, A Cape As Red As Blood, which the Baker gets from Little Red Riding Hood in exchange for freeing her and Granny from the Wolf, and Hair As Yellow As Corn, which they get from Rapunzel. The ingredients are gathered, and the spell works, stripping the Witch of her power, but restoring her beauty. At the end of Act I, all characters seem poised to live "Happily Ever After". Act Two, however, deals with the consequences that traditional fairy tales conveniently ignore. What does one do with a dead Giant in the back yard? Does marrying a Prince really lead to a happy and fulfilling life? Is carving up the wolf the solution? Is the Giant always wrong? In Act Two, all the characters must deal with what happens AFTER "Happily Ever After". As they face a genuine threat to their community, they realize that all actions have consequences, and their lives are inescapably interdependent, but also that that interdependence is their greatest strength. - June Abernathy Show Data Original Broadway Production Info: Opened ................ November 5, 1987 Ran ................... 764 Performances Theatre ............ Martin Beck Theatre Music ................. Stephen Sondheim Lyrics ................ Stephen Sondheim Book ...................... James Lapine Producer ............... Heidi Landesman ........................ Rocco Landesman ........................... Rick Steiner ...................... M. Anthony Fisher ................... Frederic H. Mayerson ...................... Jujamcyn Theaters Executive Producer ....... Michael David Associate Producers ..... Greg C. Mosher ........................... Paula Fisher ......................... David B. Brode ........... The Mutual Benefit Companies ............... Fifth Avenue Productions Directed .................. James Lapine Set Designer ............. Tony Straiges Lighting ................ Richard Nelson Costumes ................ Ann Hould-Ward ...................... Patricia Zipprodt ......................... Ann Hould-Ward Magic Consultant ...... Charles Reynolds Sound ....................... Alan Stieb ........................ James Brousseau Hair Design ....... Phyllis Della Illien Casting .................. Joanna Merlin Gen. Manager . David Strong Warner, Inc. Musical Staging .......... Lar Lubovitch Musical Direction ....... Paul Gemignani Orchestrations ......... Jonathan Tunick Originally Produced .. Old Globe Theater Original Broadway Cast: Narrator .................. Tom Aldredge Cinderella .................. Kim Crosby Jack ........................ Ben Wright Baker ........................ Chip Zien Baker's Wife ............ Joanna Gleason Cinderella's Stepmother ...... Joy Franz Florinda ................ Kay McClelland Lucinda ................ Lauren Mitchell Jack's Mother ............ Barbara Bryne Little Red ............ Danielle Ferland Witch ................ Bernadette Peters Cinderella's Father ..... Edmund Lyndeck Cinderella's Mother ....... Merle Louise Mysterious Man ............ Tom Aldredge Wolf ................. Robert Westenberg Rapunzel................. Pamela Winslow Rapunzel's Prince ......... Chuck Wagner Grandmother ............... Merle Louise Cinderella's Prince .. Robert Westenberg Steward ................. Philip Hoffman Giant ..................... Merle Louise Snow White .................. Jean Kelly Sleeping Beauty .......... Maureen Davis Musical Numbers: 1. Prologue: Into the Woods 2. Cinderella at the Grave 3. Hello, Little Girl 4. Guess This Is Goodbye 5. Maybe They're Magic 6. I Know Things Now 7. A Very Nice Prince 8. First Midnight 9. Giants in the Sky 10. Agony 11. It Takes Two 12. Stay With Me 13. On the Steps of the Palace 14. Ever After 15. Prologue: So Happy 16. Agony 17. Lament 18. Any Moment 19. Moments in the Woods 20. Your Fault 21. Last Midnight Original London Production Info: Opened .............. September 25, 1990 Theatre ................ Phoenix Theatre Music ................. Stephen Sondheim Lyrics ................ Stephen Sondheim Book ...................... James Lapine Produced ................. David Mirvish General Manager ........... Andrew Leigh Directed ................. Richard Jones Set ..................... Richard Hudson Costumes ..................... Sue Blane Choreography ......... Anthony Van Laast Orchestrations ......... Jonathan Tunick Musical Director ......... Peter Stanger Musical Supervisor ......... Martin Koch Lighting ................... Pat Collins Magic ........................... Kovari Sound ..................... Andrew Bruce Original London Cast: Narrator .............. Nicholas Parsons Cinderella ........ Jacqueline Dankworth Jack ................... Richard Dempsey Baker .................. Ian Bartholomew Baker's Wife ........... Imelda Staunton Cinderella's Stepmother ..... Ann Howard Florinda ............... Elizabeth Brice Lucinda .................... Liza Sadovy Jack's Mother ........... Patsy Rowlands Little Red ............. Tessa Burbridge Witch ................... Julia McKenzie Cinderella's Father ......... John Rogan Mysterious Man .............. John Rogan Cinderella's Mother ...... Eunice Gayson Grandmother .............. Eunice Gayson Giant .....................Eunice Gayson Wolf ...................... Clive Carter Cinderella's Prince ....... Clive Carter Rapunzel .................. Mary Lincoln Rapunzel's Prince ......... Mark Tinkler Steward .................. Peter Ledbury Snow White ................. Megan Kelly Harp ....................... Megan Kelly Sleeping Beauty ............ Kate Arneil Once upon a time there was a beleaguered young maiden called Cinderella, an abstracted boy named Jack and a childless Baker and his Wife. The curtain rises on their cottages, where the much-put-upon Cinderella cleans the kitchen; the impoverished Jack futilely attempts to milk his haggard cow and companion, Milky-White, and the Baker and his Wife prepare the next day's bread. A Narrator begins to tell their tales, as they express musically their various wishes, cross-cutting from one to the next: Cinderella wants to go to the King's three-night Festival, Jack is hoping that Milky-White will give some milk, and the Baker and his Wife dream of a child. Each of their reveries is interrupted: Jack's mother appears and insists her son sell his beloved "pet"; a ravenous Little Red Ridinghood comes calling on the Baker in preparation for a visit to her sick Grandmother, and Cinderella's Stepmother and stepsisters, Florinda and Lucinda, enter and mock her. The Stepmother throws a pot of lentils into the ashes and tells the girl that if she can remove them within two hours, she may come along to the ball at the Festival. Cinderella, who can talk to birds, enlists their help in accomplishing the task. But when her family, including her Father, leaves for the palace, she is left behind. Just after Red Ridinghood, her basket filled with breads and cakes, begins her journey into the woods, the Baker and his Wife hear another knock at the door. It so happens that they live in the house of the Baker's parents, who died years ago in a "baking accident"--or so the Baker believes--and the cottage next door belongs to an ugly old Witch, who has come to pay the couple a visit. She reveals that years ago the Baker's father, to please his wife, stole greens from her garden, including some special beans. In exchange the Witch insisted that the Baker's parents give up their unborn child, a sister the Baker never knew he had--a girl named Rapunzel, whom the Witch has hidden somewhere in the forest. But the Witch didn't stop there. She laid a curse: their "family tree would always be a barren one." However, she tells the Baker and his Wife they can undo the spell if, before the stroke of midnight in three days' time, they can go into the woods and find the four ingredients needed for a potion: "the cow as white as milk; the cape as red as blood; the hair as yellow as corn; the slipper as pure as gold." The Baker insists that, since the curse is on his house, he must lift the spell without the aid of his Wife, who wants to help. Before he begins his quest--alone--he discovers six beans in a jacket belonging to his father and takes them along in case they are the special beans the Witch spoke of. So the Baker sets out to break the spell; Jack goes off to sell Milky-White for "no less than five pounds," as his Mother warns him, and Cinderella travels to her Mother's grave, to ask for guidance-- Prologue: Into the Woods. As the characters begin their journeys their homes disappear, and we are in the woods. Cinderella stops at a hazel tree, watered by her own tears, which marks the spot where her Mother is buried. Here she reiterates her desire to go to the Festival--Cinderella at the Grave. Her wishes are answered, as a silvery gown and golden slippers drop down from the tree. After she runs off to attend the ball, Jack is seen roaming through the forest with Milky-White. He is greeted by a Mysterious Man, who lingers just long enough to tell the boy he'd been lucky to exchange his useless cow "for a sack of beans." In another part of the forest, Red Ridinghood encounters a surprise of her own: a hungry, lascivious Wolf--Hello, Little Girl--who convinces her to take a brief detour en route to Granny's. Unknown to the Wolf or Red Ridinghood, the Baker has witnessed this scene and is concerned for the little girl's safety. But the Witch admonishes him to forget about the girl and go after her red cape. The Baker is now so frazzled he can't remember the precise ingredients needed to break the spell. Fortunately his Wife, looking for any excuse to join him, has come after him with his scarf, and sets him straight. An argument ensues about whether she should return home, but they stop fighting when they spot Jack and his cow "as white as milk." The Baker's Wife suggests to Jack that he swap Milky-White for five of their six beans, and leads him to believe they carry magic. Remembering the Mysterious Man's warning, Jack agrees to the exchange and then tearfully tells Milky-White I Guess This Is Goodbye. The Baker is upset about using deceit to get the cow, but his Wife stands firm and, speaking of the beans, rationalizes that Maybe They're Magic. The Baker insists his Wife take the cow and go home. Elsewhere, the Witch goes to visit Rapunzel, who spends her time singing wordlessly and combing her hair, locked away in a doorless tower, which now rises into view. In order to gain entrance, the Witch calls out, "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair to me." From a window on high, hair "as yellow as corn" descends, and the Witch climbs up. She is unknowingly observed by a Prince, who determines to ask the beautiful maiden to "let down her hair" to him the very next day. The Baker is in pursuit of Red Ridinghood, who finally arrives at her Grandmother's--where she is promptly swallowed up by the Wolf, who has already devoured the old woman. The Baker rescues them both from the confines of the Wolf's stomach. It's been an eye-opening day for Red Ridinghood, who sums up her new awareness with I Know Things Now and rewards the Baker with her cape. Jack, however, does not make his mother happy when he returns to their cottage with the five beans, which she throws onto the ground in disgust. Back in the forest, the Baker's Wife is making her way home with Milky-White when Cinderella stumbles into view. She is running from a Prince--brother to the first--and hides behind a tree as he and his Steward come searching for her. The Prince asks the Baker's Wife whether she has seen the girl, and when she responds that she has not, he and his Steward continue on their way. Cinderella is about to leave as well, but the Baker's Wife is enthralled by the Prince and bombards her new acquaintance with questions about him. More confused than enchanted by his attention, Cinderella responds that he's A Very Nice Prince. She is ready to start for home when she notices a giant beanstalk growing in the distance; simultaneously, the Baker's Wife notices that the girl is wearing slippers "as pure as gold." She is all set to follow Cinderella when Milky-White takes off in the other direction. The Baker's Wife chases after the cow, as the day draws to a close. All the characters are seen going about their business in the woods, oblivious of each other. They pause just long enough to deliver various morals--First Midnight--all, that is, except Rapunzel, who only sings her wordless song. Jack has returned from his first trip up the beanstalk and, with new insight--not to mention stolen gold, with which he hopes to buy back his cow--explains what he learned upon discovering that there were Giants in the Sky. The Baker and his Wife meet by chance, and she is forced to admit that Milky-White has run away. They go off in separate directions, and the Baker's Wife happens upon the two Princes. Fascinated, she eavesdrops. Both express the Agony they are experiencing in winning the hands of their respective maidens. Rapunzel's Prince tells his brother where his love is locked away, and when he describes her as having "hair as yellow as corn," the Baker's Wife is off in search of the maiden's hair. Things seem to be falling into place for the childless couple. The Mysterious Man has found Milky-White and returned to the Baker, and the Wife succeeds in yanking a long strand of hair from Rapunzel, giving them three of the four objects they need. When the Baker learns that his Wife has managed to obtain the hair, he realizes what she already knew: It Takes Two. Their joy is tempered when Milky-White abruptly dies. The second midnight passes. After burying the animal the couple bickers over how to get another cow, and the Baker gives his Wife their one remaining bean. It is ultimately decided that he will search for a new cow, and she will again attempt to secure Cinderella's shoe. Meanwhile, the Witch has discovered that Rapunzel is being visited by a Prince; she drags the girl from her tower and implores her to Stay With Me. Finally, unwilling to share her with anyone, the Witch chops off Rapunzel's hair and casts her out to a remote desert. Rapunzel's Prince, attempting to escape the sorceress, falls into a thicket and is blinded by thorns. Jack, returning from a second trip up the beanstalk, encounters Red Ridinghood, who is now wearing a cape made of wolfskins. He shows her a golden egg and the hen that produced it and tells her of the Giant's golden harp. The now-skeptical Red Ridinghood calls him a liar and dared him to return to the kingdom in the sky and fetch the harp--which, of course, he proceeds to do. Cinderella hobbles on, clearly wearing only one shoe, and mulls over her indecisiveness regarding the Prince--On the Steps of the Palace. Desperate for the remaining slipper, the Baker's Wife gives her the last magic bean--which she throws away. Only when the Prince's Steward closes in on her does Cinderella hand over the golden slipper, swapping it for the other woman's shoes, easier for running. Suddenly a tremendous thud is heard, which reverberates throughout the forest: there is a dead Giant in Jack's backyard. The ogre was pursuing Jack, but the boy was able to stop him by chopping down the beanstalk. The Baker now returns with another cow, and it appears that the Witch's demands have been met. But she discovers that this cow is not as white as milk; it has been covered with flour. She tells the couple to fetch the dead Milky-White, whom she proceeds to bring back to life. The Witch instructs the Baker and his Wife to feed the other items to the cow and then milk her--the milk will be the potion. Milky-White, though is still dry. The problem is that the Witch could not have handled any of the ingredients needed for the potion, and she has touched Rapunzel's hair. But the Mysterious Man comes to the rescue, telling them to feed corn silks to the cow. The Witch reveals to the Baker that the Mysterious Man is in fact his father, who abandoned his son after his wife died. As the cow gives milk, the Mysterious Man, at last fulfilled by having helped end the curse on his house, keels over and dies before he and the Baker can speak. The Witch drinks the potion and, with the spell broken, is restored to her former state of youth and beauty but loses her powers; the Baker's Wife becomes pregnant, and a wealthy Jack is reunited with Milky-White. As for the others...Cinderella marries the Prince after he discovers that hers is the foot that fits the golden slipper; Rapunzel encounters her Prince wandering aimlessly in the desert and, overcome at being reunited, restores his sight when two of her tears wet his eyes; Florinda and Lucinda are blinded by pigeons as punishment for their wickedness--Ever After. But as the first act reaches its happy conclusion, another giant beanstalk begins to grow. Once upon a time...later. The scene is similar to the opening of the first act, but this time, Cinderella sits on her throne in the palace, surrounded by her eager-to-please stepfamily; Jack and his Mother have been considerably spruced up, as has their cottage, which now houses two friends for Jack--Milky-White and the golden harp--and the Baker's home has become too small for a family of three. As the Narrator explains and the others agree, despite a few complaints all are content with their lot--Prologue: So Happy But not for long. An explosive noise is heard, and the Baker's house crashes down around the family. The now-beautiful, powerless Witch appears and tells them that her garden has been trampled upon and destroyed. The huge footprints seem to indicate one thing: a Giant is on the loose. The Baker relays the news to Jack and his Mother, then heads to the castle to inform the royal family and to seek assistance. Soon after he returns home Little Red Ridinghood stops by and explains that her house has collapsed, her mother is gone and she is once again on her way to Grandmother's. The Baker and his Wife realize it is not safe to stay in their cottage and decide to escort the girl to her destination; Jack leaves home in search of the new Giant, and Cinderella, advised by the birds that there is trouble at her Mother's grave, goes off to investigate. And so we are back in the woods, which show more and more signs of havoc as the action progresses. While the others are in the forest on urgent business, the Princes are preoccupied with different concerns: two more seemingly unobtainable maidens who have them in agony. They head off in different directions. The Baker's family and Red Ridinghood appear, unable to find the path to Grandmother's house. As they search in vain, they encounter the Prince's Steward, Cinderella's family, and the Witch. Suddenly there is a loud noise, the earth shakes, and a giant hovers over them. The Giant is a woman. She has come in search of Jack, to avenge the death of her husband. They explain that Jack is not there, but the near-sighted Giant doesn't believe them. Not knowing what to do, they offer her the Narrator instead--they don't like the way he has been telling the story. He convinces them to let him go when he makes them realize that, if he is killed, they'll have to work out their stories on their own. But as he backs away from the group, the Witch throws him to the Giant. Jack's Mother appears and begins arguing with the Giant. The Steward, afraid the old woman will get them all killed, hits her over the head with his staff, mortally wounding her. A hysterical Rapunzel runs on, cannot be restrained by the Witch and runs off in the direction of the Giant, who, in her relentless pursuit of Jack, tramples the girl. Jack's Mother dies, but not before she gets the Baker to promise that he will not let her son be harmed. The Witch mourns the death of Rapunzel--Lament--and vows to find Jack and hand him over to the Giant. The members of the royal family go into hiding. But the Baker, his Wife and Red Ridinghood are determined to protect Jack. Leaving their baby with Red Ridinghood, the Baker and his Wife go off in opposite directions in search of the boy. As the Baker's Wife makes her way through the forest, she runs into Cinderella's Prince, who seduces the wary, if willing, woman--Any Moment. At the same time, in another part of the woods, the Baker comes upon Cinderella at her Mother's now-destroyed grave and persuades her to return with him for safety. Meanwhile, the romantic interlude between their spouses comes to an end. The Prince hurries off, and the Baker's Wife reflects on their encounter--Moments in the Woods. Realizing that her place is with her husband, she begins to make her way back. But it quickly becomes apparent that she is lost, and as she tries to find the right direction, the shadow of the giant appears. The Baker's Wife panics, tumbles backward and is crushed to death by falling trees. The Baker, joined by Cinderella, has returned to his child and Red Ridinghood. They await the return of his Wife. Instead, the Witch comes along, with Jack tightly in tow, and informs the Baker that his Wife is dead. Soon everyone is blaming everyone else for the presence of the Giant--Your Fault. The Witch silences the group and offers her perspective--Last Midnight--then disappears in a cloud of smoke. The distraught Baker abandons his son and the others, heaving his child in the care of Cinderella. As he runs away, just like his father before him, he meets up with the Mysterious Man. There follows a passionate exchange between the Baker and the apparition of his father, which helps him to understand it is time to assume responsibility--No More. The Baker returns to the group and, together, they devise a stratagem to slay the Giant, with the help of Cinderella's faithful birds. While the others go off to put their plan into motion, Cinderella stays behind with the baby. Her Prince wanders through. She is upset that he has betrayed her and tells him she cannot return to him. Regretfully, he leaves. Red Ridinghood returns with news that her Grandmother is gone. As Jack and the Baker sit in a tree, ready to strike the unsuspecting Giant, the Baker informs the lad that his Mother has been killed. The older pair comforts the younger one with the thought that No One is Alone. United, they kill the Giant. One by one the other characters--dead and alive--return and present their morals to the story. With the words "Once upon a time," the Baker begins to tell his son the tale we have just heard. The Witch appears and shares her new-found wisdom--Finale: Children Will Listen. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PROLOGUE: INTO THE WOODS NARRATOR Once upon a time, CINDERELLA I wish... NARRATOR In a far-off kingdom, CINDERELLA More than anything... NARRATOR Lived a fair young maiden, CINDERELLA More than life... NARRATOR A sad young lad, CINDERELLA More than jewels... JACK I wish... NARRATOR And a childless baker, JACK More than life... BAKER&WIFE I wish... NARRATOR With his wife. JACK More than anything... ALL THREE More than the moon... CINDERELLA The King is giving a Festival. BAKER&WIFE More than life... JACK I wish... CINDERELLA I wish to go to the Festival. BAKER More than riches... CINDERELLA And the ball... JACK I wish my cow would give us some milk... CINDERELLA&JACK More than anything... BAKER I wish we had a child... JACK Please, pal; squeeze pal... BAKER'S WIFE I want a child... CINDERELLA I wish to go to the Festival... JACK I wish you'd give us some milk, or even cheese... BAKER&WIFE I wish we might have a child. I wish... (Cinderella's Stepmother and stepsisters, Florinda and Lucinda, enter.) STEPMOTHER (to Cinderella) You wish to go to the festival? NARRATOR The poor girl's mother had died, STEPMOTHER You, Cinderella, the Festival? You wish to go to the Festival? FLORINDA What, you, Cinderella, the Festival? The Festival?! LUCINDA What, you wish to go to the Festival? ALL THREE The Festival? The King's Festival!? NARRATOR and her father had taken for his new wife STEPMOTHER The Festival... NARRATOR a woman with two daughters of her own. FLORINDA (to Cinderella) Look at your nails! LUCINDA Look at your dress! STEPMOTHER People would laugh at you-- CINDERELLA Nevertheless, I still want to go to the Festival and dance before the Prince. STEPMOTHER&STEPSISTERS She still wants to go to the Festival and dance before the Prince?! NARRATOR All three were beautiful of face, but vile and black of heart. Jack, on the other hand, had no father, and his mother-- JACK'S MOTHER I wish... NARRATOR Well, she was not quite beautiful-- JACK'S MOTHER I wish my son were not a fool. I wish my house was not a mess. I wish the cow was full of milk. I wish the walls were full of gold-- I wish a lot of things... (There are two knocks on the Baker's door; it is Little Red Ridinghood.) BAKER'S WIFE Why, come in, little girl. LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD I wish... It's not for me, it's for my Granny in the woods. A loaf of bread, please-- To bring my poor old hungry Granny in the woods... Just a loaf of bread, please... (The Baker gives her the bread.) NARRATOR Cinderella's Stepmother had a surprise for her. (Stepmother throws a pot of lentils into the fireplace.) STEPMOTHER I have emptied a pot of lentils into the ashes for you. If you have picked them out again in two hours' time, you shall go to the ball with us. (Stepmother and stepsisters leave.) LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD And perhaps a sticky bun?...Or four?... CINDERELLA Birds in the sky, birds in the eaves, in the leaves, in the fields, in the castles and ponds... LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD And a few of those pies...please... CINDERELLA Come, little birds, down from the eaves, and the leaves, over fields, out of castles and ponds... JACK No, squeeze, pal... CINDERELLA Ahhh... (Birds descend.) Quick, little birds, flick through the ashes. Pick and peck, but swiftly, sift through the ashes, into the pot... (Birds start picking at the lentils and dropping them into the pot.) JACK'S MOTHER Listen well, son. Milky-White must be taken to market. JACK But, mother, no--he's the best cow-- JACK'S MOTHER Look at her. There are bugs on her dugs. There are flies in her eyes. There's a lump on her rump big enough to be a hump-- JACK But-- JACK'S MOTHER Son, we've had no time to sit and dither, while her withers wither with her-- And no one keeps a cow for a friend! Sometimes I fear you're touched. LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD (to the Baker and his Wife) Into the woods, it's time to go. I hate to leave; I have to, though. Into the woods--It's time, and so I must begin my journey. Into the woods and through the trees to where I am expected, ma'am, Into the woods to Grandmother's house-- Into the woods to Grandmother's house-- BAKER'S WIFE You're certain of your way? LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD The way is clear, the light is good. I have no fear, nor no one should. The woods are just trees. The trees are just wood. I sort of hate to ask it, but do you have a basket? Into the woods and down the dell; the path is straight, I know it well. Into the woods, and who can tell what's waiting on the journey? Into the woods to bring some bread to Granny who is sick in bed. Never can tell what lies ahead. For all that I know, she's already dead. But into the woods, into the woods, into the woods to Grandmother's house and home before dark! CINDERELLA Fly, birds: back to the sky, back to the eaves and the leaves and the fields and the-- (The stepsisters enter, dressed for the ball.) FLORINDA Hurry up and do my hair, Cinderella! (to Lucinda, as Cinderella fusses with her hair) Are you really wearing that? LUCINDA (pointing to her sleeves) Here, I found a little tear, Cinderella. (to Florinda, eyeing her hair) Can't you hide it with a hat? CINDERELLA You look beautiful. FLORINDA I know. LUCINDA She means me. FLORINDA (to Cinderella) Put it in a twist. LUCINDA Who will be there?... (She and Florinda continue babbling underneath.) CINDERELLA Mother said to be good; Father said to be nice; that was their advice. So be nice, Cinderella. Good, Cinderella. Nice good good nice-- FLORINDA Tighter! CINDERELLA What's the good of being good if everyone is blind and you're always left behind? Nevermind, Cinderella. Kind Cinderella-- (accenting each word with a twist of a strand of hair) Nice good nice kind good nice-- FLORINDA (screaming, slapping Cinderella) Not that tight! CINDERELLA Sorry. FLORINDA Clod. (There is a knock on the Baker's door.) BAKER'S WIFE Who might that be? BAKER It's the Witch from next door. (He opens the door; the Witch enters.) NARRATOR The old enchantress told the couple she had placed a spell on their house. BAKER What spell? WITCH In the past, when your mother was with child, she developed an unusual appetite. She took one look at my beautiful garden and told your father that what she wanted more then anything was Greens, greens and nothing but greens: parsley, peppers, cabbages and celery, Asparagus and watercress and fiddleferns and lettuce--! He said, "all right," but it wasn't quite, 'cause I caught him in the autumn in my garden one night! He was robbing me, raping me, rooting through my rutabaga, raiding my arugula and Ripping up the rampion (My champion! My favorite!)--I should have laid a spell on him right there. Could have turned him into stone or a dog or a chair... But I let him have the rampion--I'd lots to spare. In return, however, I said, "Fair is fair: You can let me have the baby that your wife will bear. And we'll call it square." BAKER I had a brother? WITCH No. But you had a sister. NARRATOR But the Witch refused to tell him any more of his sister. Not even that her name was Rapunzel. WITCH I thought I had been more than reasonable. But how was I to know what your father had also hidden in his pocket?! BAKER What? WITCH Beans. BAKER&WIFE Beans? WITCH The special beans! I let him go, I didn't know he'd stolen my beans! I was watching him crawl back over the wall--! And then bang! Crash! And the lightning flash! And--well, that's another story, never mind-- Anyway, at last the big day came, and I made my claim. "Oh, don't take away the baby," they shrieked and screeched. But I did, and I hid her where she'll never be reached. And your father cried, and your mother died, when for extra measure--I admit it was a pleasure-- I said, "Sorry, I'm still not mollified." And I laid a little spell on them--you, too, son--that your family tree will always be a barren one... (She rises in her chair, laughing as she goes.) So there's no more fuss and there's no more scenes and my garden thrives-- You should see my nectarines! But I'm telling you the same I tell kings and queens: Don't ever never ever mess around with my greens! Especially the beans. (Jack puts his cap and coat on.) JACK'S MOTHER Now listen to me, Jack. Lead Milky-White to market and fetch the best price you can. Are you listening to me? Jack Jack Jack, head in a sack, the house is getting colder, this is not a time for dreaming. Chimney stack starting to crack, the mice are getting bolder, the floor's gone slack, Your mother's getting older, your father's not back, And you can't just sit here dreaming pretty dreams. To wish and wait from day to day will never keep the wolves away. So into the woods, the time is now. We have to live, I don't care how. Into the woods to sell the cow, you must begin the journey. Straight into the woods and don't delay--we have to face the marketplace. Into the woods to journey's end-- JACK (leading Milky-White out) Into the woods to sell a friend-- NARRATOR Meanwhile, the Witch, for purposes of her own, explained how the Baker might lift the spell: WITCH You wish to have the curse reversed I'll need a certain potion first. Go to the wood and bring me back One: the cow as white as milk, Two: the cape as red as blood, Three: the hair as yellow as corn, Four: the slipper as pure as gold. Bring me these before the chime of midnight in three days' time, And you shall have, I guarantee, a child as perfect as child can be. Go to the wood! (She disappears.) STEPMOTHER (to stepsisters) Ladies. Our carriage awaits. (Cinderella hands her the plate of lentils.) CINDERELLA Now may I go to the festival? STEPMOTHER The Festival--! Darling, those nails! Darling, those clothes! Lentils are one thing but Darling, with those, you'd make us the fools of the Festival and mortify the Prince! (Cinderella's Father sticks his head through the door.) CINDERELLA'S FATHER The carriage is waiting. STEPMOTHER We must be gone. (They go out with a flourish.) CINDERELLA Good night, Father. I wish.. (She sits dejected, crying.) BAKER Look what I found in father's hunting jacket. BAKER'S WIFE Six beans. We'll take them with us. BAKER No! The spell is on my house. Only I can lift the spell, The spell is on my house BAKER'S WIFE No, no, the spell is on our house. We must lift the spell. BAKER No. You are not to come and that is final. Now what am I to return with? BAKER'S WIFE You don't remember? The cow as white as milk, the cape as red as blood, The hair as yellow as corn, the slipper as pure as gold-- BAKER (memorizing) The cow as white as milk, the cape as red as blood, The hair as yellow as corn, the slipper as pure as gold... NARRATOR And so the Baker, reluctantly, set off to meet the enchantress' demands. As for Cinderella: CINDERELLA I still wish to go to the Festival, But how am I ever to get to the Festival? BAKER The cow as white as milk, the cape as red as blood, the hair as yellow as corn-- CINDERELLA I know! I'll visit my Mother's grave, The grave at the hazel tree, and tell her I just want to go to the King's Festival... BAKER'S WIFE The slipper-- BAKER The slipper as pure as gold...The cow, the cape, the slipper as pure as gold-- BAKER'S WIFE The hair--! CINDERELLA&BAKER Into the woods, it's time to go; it may be all in vain, you/I know. Into the woods--but even so, I have to take the journey. (add Wife) Into the woods, the path is straight, you know it well, but who can tell-- BAKER&WIFE Into the woods to lift the spell-- CINDERELLA Into the woods to visit Mother-- BAKER'S WIFE Into the woods to fetch the things-- BAKER To make the potion-- CINDERELLA To go to the festival-- CINDERELLA, JACK, JACK'S MOTHER, BAKER, WIFE Into the woods without regret; the choice is made, the task is set. Into the woods, but not forgetting why I'm on the journey. (add Little Red Ridinghood) Into the woods to get my wish, I don't care how, the time is now. JACK'S MOTHER Into the woods to sell the cow-- JACK Into the woods to get the money-- BAKER'S WIFE Into the woods to lift the spell-- BAKER To make the potion-- CINDERELLA To go to the Festival-- LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD Into the woods to Grandmother's house...Into the woods to Grandmother's house... ALL The way is clear, the light is good; I have no fear, nor no one should. The woods are just trees, the trees are just wood. No need to be afraid there-- CINDERELLA&BAKER There's something in the glade there... (Cinderella's Father, Stepmother, and stepsisters are seen riding in their carriage.) ALL Into the woods without delay, but careful not to lose the way. Into the woods, who knows what may be lurking on the journey? Into the woods to get the thing that makes it worth the journeying. Into the woods-- STEPMOTHER&STEPSISTERS To see the King-- JACK&MOTHER To sell the cow-- BAKER&WIFE To make the potion-- ALL (variously) To see-- To sell-- To get-- To bring-- To make-- To lift-- To go to the Festival--! Into the woods! Into the woods! Into the woods, Then out of the woods And home before dark! CINDERELLA AT THE GRAVE NARRATOR Cinderella had planted a branch at the grave of her Mother, And her tears watered it until it had become a handsome tree. CINDERELLA I've been good and I've been kind, Mother. Doing what I learned from you. Why then am I left behind, Mother, is there something more that I should do? What is wrong with me, Mother? Something must be wrong. I wish... (The ghost of Cinderella's Mother appears within the tree.) CINDERELLA'S MOTHER Do you know what you wish? Are you certain what you wish is what you want? If you know what you want, then make a wish. Ask the tree, and you shall have your wish. (The image disappears.) CINDERELLA Shiver and quiver, little tree, silver and gold throw down on me. (A white and silver dress and gold slippers drop down from the tree.) I'm off to get my wish... HELLO, LITTLE GIRL WOLF Good day, young lady. LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD Good day, Mr. Wolf. WOLF (grunts lasciviously as he watches Little Red Ridinghood skip about) Mmm...Unhh... Look at that flesh, pink and plump. Hello, little girl... Tender and fresh, not one lump. Hello, little girl... This one's especially lush, delicious...mmm... (smacks his lips, then runs over and pops up in front of Little Red Ridinghood) Hello, little girl, what's your rush? You're missing all the flowers. The sun won't set for hours, take your time. LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD Mother said, "Straight ahead," not to delay or be misled. WOLF But slow, little girl, hark! and hush--The birds are singing sweetly. You'll miss the birds completely, you're traveling so fleetly. (devours her with his eyes, mutters to himself) Grandmother first, then Miss Plump...What a delectable couple: Utter perfection--one brittle, one supple-- (sees Little Red Ridinghood start to move off) One moment, my dear--! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD (stopping) Mother said, "Come what may, follow the path and never stray." WOLF Just so, little girl--any path. So many worth exploring; just one would be so boring. And look what you're ignoring... (gestures to the trees and flowers; to himself as Little Red Ridinghood looks around) Think of those crisp, aging bones, then something fresh on the palate, Think of that scrumptious carnality twice in one day--! There's no possible way to describe what you feel when you're talking to your meal! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD Mother said not to stray. Still, I suppose, a small delay...Granny might like a fresh bouquet... Goodbye, Mr. Wolf. (wanders deeper into the woods) WOLF Goodbye, little girl. And hello... (runs off, howling) I GUESS THIS IS GOODBYE NARRATOR And the Baker gave Jack five beans in exchange for his cow, keeping one for himself. JACK (to Milky-White) I guess this is goodbye, old pal, you've been a perfect friend. I hate to see us part, old pal, Some day I'll buy you back. I'll see you soon again. I hope that when I do, it won't be on a plate. MAYBE THEY'RE MAGIC BAKER Magic beans! BAKER'S WIFE No one would have given him more for this creature. BAKER Are we to dispel this curse through deceit? BAKER'S WIFE If you know what you want, then you go and you find it and you get it-- BAKER (pointing off) Home. BAKER'S WIFE Do we want a child or not? And you give and you take and you bid and you bargain, or you live to regret it. BAKER Will you please go home? BAKER'S WIFE There are rights and wrongs and in-betweens--no one waits when fortune intervenes. And maybe they're really magic, who knows? Why you do what you do, that's the point: all the rest of it is chatter. BAKER (gesturing toward Milky-White) Look at her. She's crying. BAKER'S WIFE If the thing you do is pure of intent, if it's meant, and it's just a little bent, does it matter? BAKER Yes. BAKER'S WIFE No, what matters is that everyone tells lies. What's important, really, is the size. Only three more tries and we'll have our prize. When the end's in sight, you'll realize: if the end is right, it justifies the beans! I KNOW THINGS NOW LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD Mother said, "Straight ahead," not to delay or be misled. I should've heeded her advice... But he seemed so nice. And he showed me things, many beautiful things, that I hadn't thought to explore. They were off my path, so I never had dared. I had been so careful, I never had cared. And he made me feel excited--well, excited and scared. When he said, "Come in!" with that sickening grin, how could I know what was in store? Once his teeth were bared, though, I really got scared--well, excited and scared-- But he drew me close, and he swallowed me down, Down a slimy path where secrets lie that I never want to know, And when everything familiar seemed to disappear forever, At the end of the path was Granny once again. So we wait in the dark until someone sets us free, And we're brought into the light, and we're back at the start. And I know things now, many valuable things, that I hadn't known before: Do not put your faith in a cape and a hood, They will not protect you the way that they should. And take extra care with strangers, even flowers have their dangers. And though scary is exciting, nice is different than good. Now I know: don't be scared. Granny is right, just be prepared. Isn't it nice to know a lot! And a little bit not... A VERY NICE PRINCE CINDERELLA He's a very nice prince. BAKER'S WIFE And--? CINDERELLA And--It's a very nice ball. BAKER'S WIFE And--? CINDERELLA And--When I entered, they trumpeted. BAKER'S WIFE And--? The Prince--? CINDERELLA Oh, the Prince... BAKER'S WIFE Yes, the Prince! CINDERELLA Well, he's tall. BAKER'S WIFE Is that all? Did you dance? Is he charming? They say that he's charming. CINDERELLA We did nothing but dance. BAKER'S WIFE Yes--? And--? CINDERELLA And it made a nice change. BAKER'S WIFE No, the Prince! CINDERELLA Oh, the Prince... BAKER'S WIFE Yes, the Prince. CINDERELLA He has charm for a Prince, I guess... BAKER'S WIFE Guess? CINDERELLA I don't meet a wide range. BAKER'S WIFE Did he bow? Was he cold and polite? CINDERELLA And it's all very strange. BAKER'S WIFE Did he speak? Did he flirt? Could you tell right away he was royalty? Is he sensitive, clever, well-mannered, considerate, passionate, charming, As kind as he's handsome, as wise as he's rich, Is he everything you've ever wanted? CINDERELLA Would I know? BAKER'S WIFE Well, I know. CINDERELLA But how can you know what you want Till you get what you want And you see if you like it? BAKER'S WIFE Would I know? CINDERELLA All I know is-- BAKER'S WIFE I never wish-- CINDERELLA What I want most of all-- BAKER'S WIFE Just within reason. CINDERELLA Is to know what I want. BAKER'S WIFE When you can't have what you want, Where's the profit in wishing? BOTH He's a very nice Prince... (as the first chime of midnight sounds) BAKER'S WIFE What I wouldn't give to be in your shoes. CINDERELLA Will you look over there, an enormous beanstalk growing next to that little cottage! BAKER'S WIFE (looking down at Cinderella's feet) I mean slippers as pure as gold. CINDERELLA I must get home. BAKER'S WIFE I need your shoes. (A moo is heard as Milky-White runs off) Wait! FIRST MIDNIGHT BAKER One midnight gone... MYSTERIOUS MAN No knot unties itself... WITCH Sometimes the things you wish for are not to be touched... PRINCES The harder to get, the better to have... FLORINDA Never wear mauve to a ball... LUCINDA Or pink... STEPMOTHER (to her daughters) Or open your mouth... JACK The difference between a cow and a bean is a bean can begin an adventure... JACK'S MOTHER Slotted spoons don't hold much soup... LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD The prettier the flower, the farther from the path... CINDERELLA'S FATHER The closer to the family, the closer to the wine... RAPUNZEL Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah... WITCH One midnight gone!... GRANNY The mouth of a Wolf's not the end of the world... STEWARD A servant is not just a dog, to a Prince... CINDERELLA Opportunity is not a lengthy visitor... BAKER'S WIFE You may know what you need, but to get what you want, better see that you keep what you have. BAKER One midnight gone... WITCH Sometimes the things you most wish for are not to be touched... PRINCES The harder to get, the better to have...Agreed. BAKER One midnight gone...one midnight gone... FLORINDA Never wear mauve at a ball... LUCINDA Or pink... JACK'S MOTHER Slotted spoons don't hold much soup... BAKER'S WIFE To get what you want, better keep what you... LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD The prettier the flower... ALL One midnight one midnight gone... Into the woods, Into the woods, Into the woods, then out of the woods And home before-- GIANTS IN THE SKY JACK There are Giants in the sky! There are big tall terrible Giants in the sky! When you're way up high and you look below at the world you left and the things you know, Little more than a glance is enough to show you just how small you are. When you're way up high and you're on your own in a world like none that you've ever known, Where the sky is lead and the earth is stone, you're free to do whatever pleases you, Exploring things you'd never dare 'cause you don't care, when suddenly there's A big tall terrible Giant at the door, a big tall terrible lady Giant sweeping the floor. And she gives you food and she gives you rest and she draws you close to her giant breast, And you know things now that you never knew before, not till the sky. Only just when you've made a friend and all, and you know but she's big but you don't feel small, Someone bigger than her comes along the hall to swallow you for lunch. And your heart is lead and your stomach stone, and your really scared being all alone... And it's then that you miss all the things that you've known And the world you've left and the little you own-- The fun is done. You steal what you can and run. And you scramble down and you look below, and the world you know begins to grow: The roof, the house and your Mother at the door. The roof, the house and the world you never thought to explore. And you think of all of the things you've seen, and you wish that you could live in between, And you're back again, only different than before, after the sky. There are Giants in the sky! There are big tall terrible awesome scary wonderful Giants in the sky! AGONY CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Did I abuse her or show her disdain? Why does she run from me? If I should lose her, how shall I regain the heart she has won from me? Agony! Beyond power of speech, When the one thing you want is the only thing out of your reach. RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE High in her tower, she sits by the hour, maintaining her hair. Blithe and becoming, and frequently humming a lighthearted air: Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-- Agony! Far more painful than yours, When you know she would go with you if there only were doors. BOTH Agony! Oh, the torture they teach! RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE What's as intriguing-- CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Or half so fatiguing-- BOTH As what's out of reach? CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Am I not sensitive, clever, well-mannered, considerate, passionate, charming, As kind as I'm handsome and heir to a throne? RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE You are everything maidens could wish for! CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Then why no--? RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE Do I know? CINDERELLA'S PRINCE The girl must be mad! RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE You know nothing of madness till you're climbing her hair And you see her up there as you're nearing her, All the while hearing her: Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-- BOTH Agony! CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Misery! RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE Woe! BOTH Though it's different for each. CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Always ten steps behind-- RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE Always ten feet below-- BOTH And she's just out of reach. Agony that can cut like a knife! I must have her to wife. IT TAKES TWO BAKER'S WIFE You've changed. You're daring. You're different in the woods. More sure. More sharing. You're getting us through the woods. If you could see--you're not the man who started, And much more openhearted than I knew you to be. BAKER It takes two. I thought one was enough, it's not true: it takes two of us. You came through when the journey was rough. It took you. It took two of us. It takes care, it takes patience and fear and despair to change. Though you swear to change, who can tell if you do? It takes two. BAKER'S WIFE You've changed. You're thriving. There's something about the woods. Not just surviving. You're blossoming in the woods. At home I'd fear we'd stay the same forever. And then out here--you're passionate, charming, considerate, clever-- BAKER It takes one to begin, but then once you've begun, it takes two of you. It's no fun, but what needs to be done you can do when there's two of you. If I dare it's because I'm becoming aware of us as a pair of us, Each accepting a share of what's there. BOTH We've changed. We're strangers. I'm meeting you in the woods. Who minds what dangers? I know we'll get past the woods. And once we're past, let's hope the changes last Beyond woods, beyond witches and slippers and hoods, just the two of us-- Beyond lies, safe at home with our beautiful prize, just the few of us. It takes trust. It takes just a bit more and we're done. We want four, we had none. We've got three. We need one. It takes two. STAY WITH ME WITCH (throwing Rapunzel to the ground) What did I clearly say? Children should listen. (grabs Rapunzel's hair, takes out scissors) RAPUNZEL No, no, please! WITCH What were you not to do? Children must see-- RAPUNZEL No! WITCH And learn. Why could you not obey? Children should listen. What have I been to you? What would you have me be? Handsome like a prince? Ah, but I am old. I am ugly. I embarrass you. RAPUNZEL No! WITCH You're ashamed of me. RAPUNZEL No! WITCH You are ashamed. You don't understand. RAPUNZEL It was lonely atop that tower. WITCH I was not company enough? RAPUNZEL I am no longer a child. I wish to see the world. WITCH Don't you know what's out there in the world? Someone has to shield you from the world. Stay with me. Princes wait there in the world, it's true. Princes, yes, but wolves and humans, too. Stay at home. I am home. Who out there could love you more than I? What out there that I cannot supply? Stay with me. Stay with me, the world is dark and wild. Stay a child while you can be a child. With me. ON THE STEPS OF THE PALACE CINDERELLA (enters, limping) He's a very smart Prince, he's a Prince who prepares. Knowing this time I'd run from him, he spread pitch on the stairs. I was caught unawares. And I thought: well, he cares--this is more than just malice. Better stop and take stock while you're standing here stuck on the steps of the palace. You think, what do you want? You think, you make a decision. Why not stay and be caught? You think, well, it's a thought, what would be his response? But then what if he knew who you were When you know that you're now what he thinks that he wants? And then what if you are what a Prince would envision? Although how can you know who you are till you know what you want, which you don't? So then which do you pick: when you're safe, out of sight, And yourself, but where everything's wrong? Or where everything's right and you know that you'll never belong? And whichever you pick, do it quick, 'Cause you're starting to stick to the steps of the palace. It's your first big decision, the choice isn't easy to make. To arrive at a ball is exciting and all-- Once you're there, though, it's scary. And it's fun to deceive When you know you can leave, but you have to be wary. There's a lot that's at stake, but you've stalled long enough, 'Cause you're still standing stuck in the stuff on the steps... Better run along home and avoid the collision. Even though they don't care, you'll be better off there where there's nothing to choose, So there's nothing to lose. So you pry up your shoes. Then from out of the blue, and without any guide, You know what your decision is, which is not to decide. You'll just leave him a clue: for example, a shoe. And then see what he'll do. Now it's he and not you who is stuck with a shoe, In a stew, In the goo, And you've learned something, too, Something you never knew, On the steps of the palace. EVER AFTER NARRATOR And it came to pass, all that seemed wrong was now right, And those who deserved to were certain to live a long and happy life. Ever after... COMPANY Ever after! NARRATOR Journey over, all is mended, and it's not just for today, But tomorrow, and extended ever after! COMPANY Ever after! NARRATOR All the curses have been ended, the reverses wiped away. All is tenderness and laughter for forever after! COMPANY Happy now and happy hence and happy ever after! NARRATOR There were dangers-- COMPANY We were frightened-- NARRATOR And confusions-- COMPANY But we hid it-- NARRATOR And their paths would often swerve. COMPANY We did not. NARRATOR There were constant-- COMPANY It's amazing-- NARRATOR Disillusions-- COMPANY That we did it. NARRATOR But they never lost their nerve. COMPANY Not a lot. NARRATOR&COMPANY And they/we reached the right conclusions, and they/we got what they/we deserve! ALL Not a sigh and not a sorrow, tenderness and laughter. Joy today and bliss tomorrow, and forever after! FLORINDA I was greedy LUCINDA I was vain. FLORINDA I was haughty. LUCINDA I was smug. BOTH We were happy. LUCINDA It was fun. FLORINDA But we were blind. BOTH Then we went into the woods to get our wish, and now we're really blind. WITCH I was perfect. I had everything but beauty. I had power, and a daughter like a flower, in a tower. Then I went into the woods to get my wish, and now I'm ordinary. Lost my power and my flower. FLORINDA&LUCINDA We're unworthy. (add Witch) We're/I'm unhappy now, unhappy hence, as well as ever after. Had we used our common sense, been worthy of our discontents, We'd be happy. ALL To be happy, and forever, you must see your wish come true. Don't be careful, don't be clever. When you see your wish, pursue. It's a dangerous endeavor, but the only thing to do-- (in three groups) Though it's fearful, though it's dark, and though you may lose the path, Though you may encounter wolves, You mustn't stop, you mustn't swerve, you mustn't ponder, you have to act! When you know your wish, if you want your wish, You can have your wish, but you can't just wish--no, to get your wish You go into the woods, where nothing's clear, Where witches, ghosts and wolves appear. Into the woods and through the fear, you have to take the journey. Into the woods and down the dell, in vain, perhaps, but who can tell? Into the woods to lift the spell, into the woods to lose the longing, Into the woods to have the child, To wed the Prince, to get the money, To save the house, to kill the Wolf, to find the father, To conquer the kingdom, to have, to wed, to get, To save, to kill, to keep, to go to the Festival! Into the woods, into the woods, Into the woods, then out of the woods and happy ever after! ACT II PROLOGUE: SO HAPPY NARRATOR Once upon a time...later... CINDERELLA I wish... NARRATOR in that same far-off kingdom CINDERELLA More than anything... NARRATOR lived a young princess, CINDERELLA More than life... NARRATOR the lad Jack, CINDERELLA More than footmen... JACK I wish... NARRATOR And the Baker with his family. (Baby cries) JACK No, I miss... CINDERELLA&BAKER I wish... (Baby cries) JACK More than anything... CINDERELLA, JACK, BAKER More than the moon... BAKER'S WIFE (to the Baby) There, there... CINDERELLA I wish to sponsor a Festival. (Baby cries) BAKER More than life... JACK I miss... CINDERELLA The time has come for a Festival... BABY Waah! BAKER'S WIFE Shhh... BAKER More than riches... CINDERELLA And a ball... JACK I miss my kingdom up in the sky. CINDERELLA&BAKER More than anything... BAKER'S WIFE I wish we had more room... JACK Play, harp... BAKER Another room... (Jack strums the harp.) NARRATOR But despite some minor inconveniences, they were all quite content... (Cinderella's Prince enters the castle.) CINDERELLA I never thought I'd wed a Prince... CINDERELLA'S PRINCE I never thought I'd find perfection... BOTH I never thought I could be so happy! CINDERELLA Not an unhappy moment since... JACK&MOTHER I didn't think we'd be this rich... CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Not a conceivable objection... BAKER&WIFE I never thought we'd have a baby... CINDERELLA, PRINCE, JACK, MOTHER I didn't know I could be so happy! BAKER&WIFE I'm so happy! STEPMOTHER (to Cinderella) Happy now, happy hence, happy ever after-- (stepsisters join in) We're so happy you're so happy! Just as long as you stay happy, we'll stay happy... CINDERELLA&PRINCE Not one row... JACK'S MOTHER Pots of pence... JACK With my cow... BAKER&WIFE Little gurgles... CINDERELLA'S PRINCE (to Cinderella) Darling, I must go now... JACK'S MOTHER (to Jack) We should really sell it. BAKER (to Wife) Where's the cheesecloth? ALL (except Baker) Wishes may bring problems, such that you regret them. (with the Baker) Better that, though, than to never get them... CINDERELLA I'm going to be a perfect wife! JACK I'm going to be a perfect son! BAKER'S WIFE&JACK'S MOTHER I'm going to be a perfect mother! BAKER I'm going to be a perfect father! I'm so happy! ALL (except Baker) I'm going to see that he/she is so happy! (add Baker) I never thought I'd love my life! I would have settled for another! CINDERELLA Then to become a wife... JACK&MOTHER Then to be set for life... BAKER&WIFE Then to beget a child... ALL That fortune smiled...I'm so hap--! (A loud rumbling noise is followed by an enormous crash. The Baker's house caves in. He is caught underneath the rubble as his Wife runs forward with their baby. The Witch enters.) BAKER Have you done this to our house? WITCH Always thinking of yourself! Look at my garden. BAKER Destroyed! BAKER'S WIFE Who could do such a thing? BAKER Do you think it was a bear? WITCH A bear? Bears are sweet. Besides, you ever see a bear with forty-foot feet? BAKER'S WIFE Dragon? WITCH (shaking her head) No scorch marks, usually they're linked. BAKER Manticore? WITCH Imaginary. BAKER&WIFE Griffin? WITCH Extinct. BAKER Giant? WITCH Possible. Very, very possible... (She leaves.) NARRATOR More than possible. Their fears would prove to be well-founded. BAKER Into the woods, it's always when you think at last you're through, and then Into the woods you go again to take another journey. BAKER'S WIFE Into the woods, the weather's clear, we've been before, we've naught to fear... Into the woods, away from here-- JACK Into the woods to find a Giant--! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD Into the woods to Grandmother's house... BAKER Into the woods, the path is straight. No reason then to hesitate-- BAKER'S WIFE Into the woods, it's not too late; it's just another journey... CINDERELLA Into the woods, but not too long: the skies are strange, the winds are strong. Into the woods to see what's wrong... JACK Into the woods to slay the Giant! BAKER'S WIFE Into the woods to shield the child... LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD To flee the winds... BAKER To find a future... BAKER'S WIFE To shield... JACK To slay... LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD To flee... BAKER To find... CINDERELLA To fix... BAKER'S WIFE To hide... LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD To move... JACK To battle... CINDERELLA To see what the trouble is... (Rapunzel screams.) AGONY CINDERELLA'S PRINCE High in a tower--like yours was, but higher--a beauty asleep. All round the tower a thicket of briar a hundred feet deep. Agony! No frustration more keen, When the one thing you want is a thing that you've not even seen. RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE I found a casket entirely of glass-- (as Cinderella's Prince starts to shrug) No, it's unbreakable. Inside--don't ask it--a maiden, alas, just as unwakable-- BOTH What unmistakable agony! Is the way always barred? RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE She has skin white as snow-- CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Did you learn her name? RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE No, there's a dwarf standing guard. BOTH Agony! Such that Princes must weep! Always in thrall most to anything almost, or something asleep. CINDERELLA'S PRINCE If it were not for the thicket-- RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE A thicket's no trick. Is it thick? CINDERELLA'S PRINCE It's the thickest. RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE The quickest is pick it apart with a stick-- CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Yes, but even one prick--it's my thing about blood. RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE Well, it's sick! CINDERELLA'S PRINCE It's no sicker than your thing with dwarves. RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE Dwarfs. CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Dwarfs... RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE Dwarfs are very upsetting. BOTH Not forgetting the tasks unachievable, mountains unscalable-- If it's conceivable but unavailable, Ahhhhhhhhh--Agony! CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Misery! RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE Woe! BOTH Not to know what you miss. CINDERELLA'S PRINCE While they lie there for years-- RAPUNZEL'S PRINCE And you cry on their biers-- BOTH What unbearable bliss! Agony that can cut like a knife! Ah, well, back to my wife... ANY MOMENT CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Anything can happen in the woods. May I kiss you--? Any moment we could be crushed. BAKER'S WIFE Uh-- CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Don't feel rushed. (He kisses her; she is stunned, turns to the audience.) BAKER'S WIFE This is ridiculous, what am I doing here? I'm in the wrong story. (resumes the kiss, then pulls away) Wait one moment, please! We can't do this! CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Of course, you're right. How foolish. Foolishness can happen in the woods. Once again, please--let your hesitations be hushed. Any moment, big or small, is a moment, after all. Seize the moment, skies may fall any moment. (kisses her again) Days are made of moments, all are worth exploring. Many kinds of moments--none is worth ignoring. All we have are moments, memories for storing. One would be so boring... BAKER'S WIFE But this is not right! CINDERELLA'S PRINCE Right and wring don't matter in the woods, only feelings. Let us meet the moment unblushed. Life is often so unpleasant--you must know that, as a peasant-- Best to take the moment present as a present for the moment. (He carries her deeper into the woods.) (Later) I must leave you. BAKER'S WIFE Why? CINDERELLA'S PRINCE The Giant. BAKER'S WIFE Will we ever find each other in the woods again? CINDERELLA'S PRINCE This was just a moment in the woods. Our moment, shimmering and lovely and sad. Leave the moment, just be glad for the moment that we had. Every moment is of moment when you're in the woods... Goodbye. MOMENTS IN THE WOODS BAKER'S WIFE What was that? Was that me? Was that him? Did a Prince really kiss me? And kiss me? And kiss me? And did I kiss him back? Was it wrong? Am I mad? Is that all? Does he miss me? Was he suddenly getting bored with me? Wake up! Stop dreaming. Stop prancing about the woods. It's not beseeming. What is it about the woods? Back to life, Back to sense, Back to child, Back to husband, You can't live in the woods. There are vows, There are ties, There are needs, There are standards, There are shouldn't and shoulds. Why not both instead? There's the answer if you're clever: Have a child for warmth, And a Baker for bread, And a Prince for whatever-- Never! It's these woods. Face the facts, Find the boy, Join the group, Stop the Giant-- Just get out of these woods. Was that him? Yes, it was. Was that me? No, it wasn't. Just a trick of the woods. Just a moment, One peculiar passing moment... Must it all be either less or more, Either plain or grand? Is it always "or"? Is it never "and"? That's what woods are for: For those moments in the woods... Oh, if life were made of moments, Even now and then a bad one--! But if life were only moments, Then you'd never know you had one. First a Witch, Then a child, Then a Prince, Then a moment-- Who can live in the woods? And to get what you wish, Only just for a moment-- These are dangerous woods... Let the moment go... Don't forget it for a moment, though. Just remembering you've had an "and," When you're back to "or," Makes the "or" mean more than it did before. Now I understand-- And it's time to leave the woods. YOUR FAULT BAKER (to Jack) It's because of you there's a Giant in our midst and my Wife is dead! JACK But it isn't my fault, I was given those beans! You persuaded me to trade away my cow for beans! And without those beans There'd have been no stalk To get up to the Giants in the first place! BAKER Wait a minute, Magic beans for a cow so old That you had to tell a lie to sell it, Which you told! Were they worthless beans? Were they oversold? Oh, and tell us who persuaded you to steal that gold. LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD (to Jack) See, it's your fault. JACK No! BAKER So, it's your fault... JACK No! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD Yes, it is! JACK It's not! BAKER It's true. JACK Wait a minute-- But I only stole the gold to get my cow back from you! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD (to Baker) So it's your fault! JACK Yes! BAKER No, it isn't! I'd have kept those beans, But our house was cursed. (referring to Witch) She made us get a cow to get the curse reversed! WITCH It's your father's fault that the curse got placed And the place got cursed in the first place! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD Oh. Then it's his fault! WITCH So. CINDERELLA It was his fault... JACK No. BAKER Yes, it is. It's his. CINDERELLA I guess... JACK Wait a minute, though-- I chopped down the beanstalk-- Right? That's clear. But without any beanstalk, Then what's queer is How did the second Giant get down here in the first place? (confused) Second place... CINDERELLA Yes! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD How? BAKER Hmm... JACK Well, who had the other bean? BAKER The other bean? CINDERELLA The other bean? JACK (to Baker) You pocketed the other bean. BAKER I didn't! Yes, I did. LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD So it's your--! BAKER No, it isn't, 'cause I gave it to my Wife! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD So it's her--! BAKER No, it isn't! CINDERELLA Then whose is it? BAKER Wait a minute! (to Cinderella) She exchanged that bean To obtain your shoe, So the one who knows what happened to the bean is you! CINDERELLA You mean that old bean-- That your Wife--? Oh, dear-- (as they all look at her) But I never knew, and so I threw-- Well, don't look here! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD So it's your fault! CINDERELLA But-- JACK See, it's her fault-- CINDERELLA But-- JACK And it isn't mine at all! BAKER (to Cinderella) But what? CINDERELLA (to Jack) Well, if you hadn't gone back up again-- JACK We were needy-- CINDERELLA You were greedy! Did you need that hen? JACK But I got it for my Mother--! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD So it's her fault then! CINDERELLA Yes? And what about the harp in the third place? BAKER The harp--yes! JACK (referring to Little Red Ridinghood) She went and dared me to! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD I dared you to? JACK You dared me to! (to the others) She said that I was scared-- LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD Me? JACK To. She dared me! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD No, I didn't! BAKER, CINDERELLA, JACK So it's your fault! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD Wait a minute--! CINDERELLA If you hadn't dared him to-- BAKER (to Jack) And you had left the harp alone, We wouldn't be in this trouble in the first place! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD (to Cinderella) Well, if you hadn't thrown away the bean in the first place--! CINDERELLA (looking at the Witch) Well, if she hadn't raised them in the first place--! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD (to Cinderella) It was your fault! JACK (to Witch) Yes, if you hadn't raised them in the first place--! LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD&BAKER (to Witch) Right! It's you who raised them in the first place--! CINDERELLA You raised the beans in the first place! JACK It's your fault! ALL (except Witch) You're responsible! You're the one to blame! It's your fault! LAST MIDNIGHT WITCH (to the others) Shhhhhhhhh! It's the last midnight. It's the last wish. It's the last midnight, Soon it will be boom--squish! Told a little lie, Stole a little gold, Broke a little vow, Did you? Had to get your Prince, Had to get your cow, Have to get your wish, Doesn't matter how-- Anyway, it doesn't matter now. It's the last midnight, It's the boom--splat! Nothing but a vast midnight, Everybody smashed flat! Nothing we can do. Not exactly true: We can always give her the boy... (They protect Jack as she reaches for him.) No? No, of course what really matters is the blame, Somebody to blame. Fine, if that's the thing you enjoy, Placing the blame, If that's the aim, Give me the blame-- Just give me the boy. OTHERS (backing away from her) No! WITCH No? You're so nice. You're not good, You're not bad, You're just nice. I'm not good, I'm not nice, I'm just right. I'm the Witch. You're the world. I'm the hitch. I'm what no one believes, I'm the Witch. You're all liars and thieves, Like his father; Like his son will be, too-- Oh, why bother? You'll just do what you do. It's the last midnight, So goodbye, all. Coming at you fast, midnight-- Soon you'll see the sky fall. Here, you want a bean? (starts to scatter beans) Have another bean. Beans were made for making you rich! Plant them and they soar-- Here, you want some more? Listen to the roar... Giants by the score--! Oh well, you can blame another witch. It's the last midnight, It's the last verse. Now, before it's past midnight, I'm leaving you my last curse: I'm leaving you alone. You can tend the garden, it's yours. Separate and alone, Everybody down on all fours. All right, Mother, when? Lost the beans again! Punish me the way you did then! Give me claws and a hunch, Just away from this bunch And the gloom and the doom and the boom Cruuunch! (She disappears.) NO MORE BAKER No more questions, please. No more tests. Comes the day you say, "What for?" Please--no more. MYSTERIOUS MAN They disappoint, they disappear, they die but they don't... BAKER What? MYSTERIOUS MAN They disappoint in turn, I fear. Forgive, though, they won't... BAKER No more riddles. No more jests. No more curses you can't undo, Left by fathers you never knew. No more quests. No more feelings. Time to shut the door. Just--no more. MYSTERIOUS MAN Running away--let's do it. Free from the ties that bind. No more despair or burdens to bear out there in the yonder. Running away--go to it. Where did you have in mind? Have to take care: Unless there's a "where," You'll only be wandering blind. Just more questions. Different kind. Where are we to go? Where are we ever to go? Running away--we'll do it. Why sit around, resigned? Trouble is, son, The farther you run, The more you feel undefined For what you have left undone And, more, what you've left behind. We disappoint, We leave a mess, We die but we don't... BAKER We disappoint In turn, I guess. Forget, though, we won't... BOTH Like father, like son. BAKER (as Mysterious Man disappears) No more Giants Waging war. Can't we just pursue our lives With our children and our wives? Till that happy day arrives, How do you ignore All the witches, all the curses, All the wolves, all the lies, The false hopes, the goodbyes, the reverses, All the wondering what even worse is still in store? All the children... All the Giants... No more. NO ONE IS ALONE CINDERELLA (to Little Red Ridinghood) Mother cannot guide you. Now you're on your own. Only me beside you. Still, you're not alone. No one is alone, truly. No one is alone. Sometimes people leave you Halfway through the wood. Others may deceive you. You decide what's good. You decide alone. But no one is alone. LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD I wish... CINDERELLA I know... (to Little Red Ridinghood) Mother isn't here now. BAKER (to Jack) Wrong things, right things... CINDERELLA Who knows what she'd say? BAKER Who can say what's true? CINDERELLA Nothing's quite so clear now-- BAKER Do things, fight things... CINDERELLA Feel you've lost your way? BAKER You decide, but CINDERELLA You are not alone, BAKER You are not alone. CINDERELLA Believe me. No one is alone. BAKER No one is alone. Believe me. CINDERELLA Truly... BOTH You move just a finger, Say the slightest word, Something's bound to linger, Be heard BAKER No one acts alone. Careful, no one is alone. BOTH People make mistakes, BAKER Fathers, CINDERELLA Mothers, BOTH People make mistakes, Holding to their own, Thinking they're alone. CINDERELLA Honor their mistakes... BAKER Fight for their mistakes-- CINDERELLA Everybody makes-- BOTH One another's terrible mistakes. Witches can be right, Giants can be good. You decide what's right, You decide what's good. CINDERELLA Just remember: BAKER Just remember: BOTH Someone is on your side. LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD&JACK Our side. CINDERELLA&BAKER Our side--someone else is not. While we're seeing our side-- LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD&JACK Our side... CINDERELLA&BAKER Our side-- ALL Maybe we forgot: They are not alone. No one is alone. CINDERELLA Hard to see the light now. BAKER Just don't let it go. BOTH Things will come out right now. We can make it so. Someone is on your side; No one is alone. FINALE: CHILDREN WILL LISTEN JACK'S MOTHER The slotted spoon can catch the potato-- MYSTERIOUS MAN Every knot was once straight rope. PRINCES (entering with Snow White and Sleeping Beauty) The harder to wake, the better to have. STEWARD The greater the good, the harder the blow... STEPMOTHER When going to hide, know how to get there. CINDERELLA'S FATHER And how to get back... STEPSISTERS And eat first... GRANNY The knife that is sharp today may be dull by tomorrow... RAPUNZEL Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah... (Baby cries.) BAKER Maybe I just wasn't meant to have children-- BAKER'S WIFE Don't say that, of course you were meant to have children... BAKER But how will I go about being a father with no one to mother my child? (Baby cries.) BAKER'S WIFE Just calm the child. BAKER Yes, calm the child. BAKER'S WIFE Look, tell him the story of how it all happened. Be father and mother, you'll know what to do. BAKER Alone?... BAKER'S WIFE Sometimes people leave you Halfway through the wood. Do not let it grieve you, No one leaves for good. You are not alone. No one is alone. Hold him to the light now, Let him see the glow. Things will be all right now. Tell him what you know... (Baby cries.) BAKER Shhh. Once upon a time...in a far-off kingdom...there lived a young maiden... A sad young lad...and a childless baker...with his wife... WITCH Careful the things you say, Children will listen. Careful the things you do, Children will see, and learn. Children may not obey, But children will listen. Children will look to you For which way to turn, To learn what to be. Careful before you say, "Listen to me." Children will listen. ALL Careful the wish you make, Wishes are children. Careful the path they take, Wishes come true, not free. Careful the spell you cast, Not just on children. Sometimes the spell may last Past what you can see And turn against you... WITCH Careful the tale you tell. That is the spell. Children will listen... ALL (in three groups) Though it's fearful, though it's deep, though it's dark And though you may lose the path, though you may encounter wolves, You can't just act, you have to listen. You can't just act, you have to think. Though it's dark, there are always wolves, there are always spells, There are always beans, or a Giant dwells. So it's into the woods you go again; you have to every now and then. Into the woods, no telling when, be ready for the journey. Into the woods, but not too fast or what you wish you lose at last. Into the woods, but mind the past. Into the woods, but mind the future. Into the woods, but not to stray, or tempt the Wolf, or steal from the Giant-- The way is dark, the light is dim, but now there's you, me, her and him. The chances look small, the choices look grim, But everything you learn there will help you return there. BAKER, CINDERELLA, LITTLE RED RIDINGHOOD, JACK The light is getting dimmer-- BAKER I think I see a glimmer-- ALL Into the woods--you have to grope, but that's the way you learn to cope. Into the woods to find there's hope of getting through the journey. Into the woods--each time you go, there's more to learn of what you know. Into the woods, but not too slow-- Into the woods, it's nearing midnight-- Into the woods to mind the Wolf, To heed the Witch, to honor the Giant, To mind, to heed, to find, to think, to teach, to join, to go to the Festival! Into the woods, Into the woods, Into the woods, Then out of the woods And happy ever after! CINDERELLA ...I wish... |
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