Fables, by Bill Willingham

"Once upon a time, all of your storybooks turned out to be true. Fables is a unique series imagining that all of your favorite nursery rhyme, storybook, and fable characters are real and living in New York City."

This is the description for the popular "Fables," a series of graphic novels containing some of the fairy tale characters in "Into the Woods."


Above is the spin-off of the series, "Jack of Fables," which tells the story of Jack from "Jack and the Beanstalk" except this story begins with Jack making money in Hollywood off a successful string of movies detailing his adventures. And when his money is stripped from him from a fictionalized government of Fabletown authorities, he goes on the run.


Bill Willingham's creation explores some of the same ideas that "Into the Woods" delves into (the first issue can be read here) by looking at a post-happily ever after view of fairy tales and their inhabitants.

Photos courtesy of DC Comics.

The Little Mermaid

Far out in the ocean, where the water is as blue as the prettiest cornflower, and as clear as crystal, it is very, very deep; so deep, indeed, that no cable could fathom it: many church steeples, piled one upon another, would not reach from the ground beneath to the surface of the water above. There dwell the Sea King and his subjects. We must not imagine that there is nothing at the bottom of the sea but bare yellow sand. No, indeed; the most singular flowers and plants grow there; the leaves and stems of which are so pliant, that the slightest agitation of the water causes them to stir as if they had life. Fishes, both large and small, glide between the branches, as birds fly among the trees here upon land. In the deepest spot of all, stands the castle of the Sea King. Its walls are built of coral, and the long, gothic windows are of the clearest amber. The roof is formed of shells, that open and close as the water flows over them. Their appearance is very beautiful, for in each lies a glittering pearl, which would be fit for the diadem of a queen...

Click here to read the rest of Hans Christian Anderson's version of The Little Mermaid, quite different than the Disney-fication of it released in 1989. The story provides a much less idealized version of what fairy tales are typically known as, setting up a different context to view fairy tales in, which is how Into the Woods is best served.

James Lapine

After knocking out the opener of Act I, only consisting of 20+ pages of music and 50+ years of context, in one night, our rehearsal process has moved into creating the world that librettist James Lapine envisioned writing the show's book, with the director's concept adding our own unique vision, as well. But that's for another blog post.

For now, let's take a look at Lapine, literally:









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If you read the most recent post on Sondheim, it should be easy to identify who is who in the picture on the left.

While Lapine's official website contains a wealth of information on the playwright and director (Lapine directed the original versions of ITW at San Diego's Old Globe Theatre in '86 and on Broadway in '87), it's worth pointing out here some of his notable accomplishments.

Lapine has ventured into directing film on three occasions, but his most notable work has come in the theatre, writing and directing Sunday in the Park with George and Passions while also directing the recent Broadway hit, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. A recipient of multiple Tony and Drama Desk Awards, Lapine also won the Pulitzer Prize for his creation of Sunday in the Park... .

1 Photos courtesy of pbs.org

Stephen Sondheim

We journeyed into the forest of Into the Woods with five straight rehearsals devoted to the beast that is the show's score (that's to say, all music). Stephen Sondheim really didn't hold anything back composing the music for the show's intertwine string of fairy tales.

Oh, who is Stephen Sondheim? So glad you asked.













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Sondheim was born in 1930 and is "widely acknowledged as the most innovative, most influential and most important composer and lyricist in modern Broadway history."2

Growing up, Sondheim was friends with Jimmy, son of famous librettist Oscar Hammerstein, and would use this friendship and his relationship with Jimmy's father to develop a love of theater, going on to write the music and lyrics for the following productions:

West Side Story (lyrics only). Gypsy. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. Company. Follies. Sweeney Todd.

These are only some of the shows he's responsible for, along with Into the Woods. Staying prolific into his 70's (his age, not saying he "owned" the decade), Sondheim has also written the scores for Bounce and The Frogs since 2000.

Later this week, a look at the book's librettist, James Lapine, as well as a look into the staging part of our rehearsal process and the world that's being created with the show's mash-up of fairy tales.

1 Photos courtesy of theatermania.com and broadwayworld.com
2 Bio at sondheim.org - The Stephen Sondheim Society