Theatre Central will be premiering their fall musical, “Into the Woods” on Oct. 24 in Naperville Central’s auditorium.
“Into the Woods” is a retelling of several fairy tales, including Jack and the Beanstalk and Rapunzel. The musical consists of two acts, with the first having a more traditional “fairy tale feel,” and the second taking a much darker turn, exploring the consequences of the characters’ actions in the previous act, according to Theatre Central Director Susie Johnson.
“We don’t usually do a fall musical, it’s usually a play,” Johnson said. “The fact that we’re doing two musicals this year is kinda crazy and exciting.”
Senior Jamie Kwon plays the Witch, one of the musical’s lead roles.
“[Playing the Witch] is my favorite part [of] the show,” Kwon said. “She has a lot of complexities to her personality that I really look into and explore. Every rehearsal, I get to learn something new and figure out something new that I [want] to do with [her character]. It’s a lot of fun and a lot of learning.”
Kwon and Johnson see the musical’s soundtrack as a potential production challenge.
“This show is challenging because it’s [a] very difficult show to do,” Johnson said. “The music is hard and it’s really intense [to perform]. It’s Stephen Sondheim [though], who’s known as one of the greatest directors, [which] makes it really exciting and fun to [perform]”
Kwon thinks the process of rehearsing with her castmates will continue to be something to look forward to.
“It’s just so fun. We have a great time rehearsing, and the whole cast is a group of [such] great people,” Kwon said.
“Into the Woods” features showtimes on Oct. 24, 25 and 26 at 7 p.m. in Central’s auditorium.