A glimpse into behind the scenes of ‘Into the Woods’

A mechanical self-tipping cow and a tower made of wooden slats that emerges from above are two of the many unique elements in LBCC’s production of the musical “Into the Woods,” which will debut Friday at 7:30 p.m.. 

“We created a blueprint for the top half of Rapunzel’s tower. The final product is about 15-feet-tall, and that comes in from the ceiling, and we roll in the bottom half,” production stage manager Jade Abbott said. 

Both halves of the tower are furnished in a way that embraces the wooden slats they are made of.

Wooden slats are, in fact, a recurring visual element of the show, as the two large ramps which stay in place for the entire show are also made out of them. 

^{An upclose look at the large ramps part of LBCC’s production of “Into the Woods” taken on March 9. (Ryan Guerrero)}

With jagged, wooden pieces poking out, the ramp is meant to represent uneven and unsettled terrain. 

Meanwhile, the actual trees of the woods, where the musical takes place, are represented by an abundance of dangling ropes, as well as with ensemble cast members, who are meant to embody the essence of the woods through dance. 

^{Actress Sydney Bautista hides from her prince behind ropes, which represent trees, during a dress rehearsal for LBCC’s production of “Into the Woods” on March 9. (Sam Villa)}

“It’s a little more abstract. You’ll see a lot more symbolism. You won’t see any actual trees or branches or anything. You’ll see a lot more things like the ropes. The ropes and our ensemble cast are symbolic of the trees,” said Andre Brown, the director of LBCC’s rendition of “Into the Woods.”

Brown continued to describe the unique approach to the aesthetic, “We wanted to try something different. I would describe it as rustic and a bit minimalist,” Brown continued.

For this production, a more technologically advanced approach was decided upon when the cow, named Milky White, dies in the musical.

The cow is usually represented by a static prop manipulated by the cast onstage, portrayed by an actor or multiple actors in a costume, or through puppets.

“For Milky White, she’s a rental. Compared to Broadway in 2022, she was a puppet there, but ours is a machine. Inside her, she has a little mechanism that actually tips her over. This is actually how we plan to achieve her death,” prop master Gerald Helcel said. 

^{The mechanized cow used for Milky White stands on a ramp during a dress rehearsal for LBCC’s production of “Into the Woods” on March 9. (Tien Nguyen)}

More props highlighted by Helcel include pastries, which he mentioned were made with a high performance material. 

“The stagecraft class has been working on these for a bit and they’ve been turning out quite well. They’re made from Owens Corning foam,” Helcel said.

Brown also took a few liberties with the show’s narrative such as recontextualizing the character of the Narrator. 

In the original musical, the narrator is an older man, but here, “He’s a young student who’s more interested in social media than a hardcover book, which he’s been assigned to read. And he ends up finding himself wrapped up in it,” Brown explained. 

The musical features a giant in the narrative, which, in past productions, has been achieved visually in a variety of ways, such as a pair of legs and a face made out of metal scrap pieces and hubcaps for eyes. 

For LBCC’s version, Helcel revealed that the giant would not be represented visually, only through sound. 

“For the giant, there’s gonna be the voice, but we have the footsteps played by the orchestra with the drums,” Helcel said. 

After 2 and a half months of rehearsals and numerous creative liberties along the way, the show will premiere this Friday at 7:30 p.m. at LAC’s Bob and Barbara Ellis Auditorium, located in the J Building.  

The show will continue over this weekend, at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday and at 2 p.m. on Sunday. 

Tickets are available online or before each show at the box office, which accepts both cash and card. 

If students bring their ASB sticker in person, they can get in for free to as many shows as they want. 

Tickets online for students cost $10, while tickets for staff, seniors and veterans are $15 and general admission is $20. 

The show will also run for another weekend from March 20 to 22. On March 20 and 21 there will be a 7:30 p.m. show, and on March 22 the show will start at 2 p.m.