If you want to explore a dialogue “on topics like privilege, race, influence, power, perceptions, where we choose to live, and how we define and claim space”—as director Catalina Maynard writes in her director’s note—then this production is for you.
If you haven’t seen the movie or the live show, PCPA’s current production is a must-see. Even if you’ve seen it many times over, experiencing “The Sound of Music” through the fresh eyes of the PCPA family is guaranteed to warm your heart. Bring your family and yes, your eyes and ears—after all, what’s really so bad going about your daily routine humming “Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens . . .”?
So . . . if you take your fairy tales with a dash of bitters, then “Into the Woods” by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine is the stage show for you. Be forewarned: the PCPA production of this magical musical is a tangy mix of sweetness and woe that in the end will satisfy both children and adults.
So . . . Memories. They fade. They soften around the edges. They shift as time reveals new information. They also, in the re-telling, can take on a focus and clarity of detail that probably wasn’t there to begin with.
PCPA promises a spectacular adventure, and thanks to imaginative direction, choreography, lighting and scene design, “The Little Mermaid” delivers.