Hull Musical Theatre Company
Will be performing at Middleton Hall, University of Hull
10th -13th July 2024
By Dawn Bennett
Last night I had the pleasure of watching Hull Musical Theatre Company perform a run through of their forthcoming production of the musical Into the Woods. This wasn’t a musical that I was familiar with and didn’t know what to expect but I really enjoyed it.
Based on the book by James Lapine with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim these are the fairy tales of your childhood but not as you know it! You will recognise some of the characters, Cinderella and her father, step sisters, step mother. Little Red Riding Hood and the big bad wolf, Rapunzel, Jack and his mother and many more. The story has the baker and his wife cursed by a witch to remain childless. To get the child they long for they have to go into the woods and find things that will reverse the witches curse, these are hair as yellow as corn, a red cape, a slipper made of gold and a milky white cow. We then follow the story and see what happens when they try and break the curse and how they achieve it. The consequences of them doing this soon become apparent.
At the beginning of the second half, I was sat wondering how it could carry on as the first half finished on such a high, with the characters all seemingly to live happily ever after. As the story continued it definitely got darker and more sinister and it was fabulous and very funny!
The songs are woven seamlessly into the story and are Stephen Sondheim at his best, the singing was outstanding and I could hear every word the cast sang.
The company did the run through with hardly any costumes and very few props but the energy they brought to the rehearsal room made this a very watchable show and it was easy to follow the story. The cast put so much effort into this show. The singing and acting were first class. If the finished one is even half as good as the run through people are in for an absolute treat, and it really deserves full houses at every performance.
Hull Musical Theatre Company are very talented group of people, an amateur company with professional level performers, please go and see this brilliant show and give them the support they deserve!