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The Shadow Side of Grimm’s Fairy Tales

WUNC | By Anita Rao,
Frank Stasio
Published December 2, 2014 at 12:16 PM EST

PlayMakers Repertory Company previews it's performance of Stephen Sondheim’s musical “Into the Woods”

The musicalInto the Woodsbegins like many classic fairy tales with the line “Once Upon A Time…” 

But it’s quickly evident that this may not be a happily-ever-after story. StephenSondheim’sfractured fairy tale has familiar characters like Cinderella, Little RedRidinghood, Jack and the Beanstalk andRapunzel, but it explores the darker side of what happens when our wishes do come true and the dangers in believing in a “Happily Ever After…”PlayMakers Repertory Company is presenting the musical in rotating repertory withA Midsummer Night’s Dreamthrough Sunday, December 7. 

Host FrankStasiopreviews the show in studio with director JosephHaj,dramaturgGregKable, musical director Jay Wright and actors JessicaSorgiand JeffMeanza.

Here's a trailer for the upcoming Disney version of Into the Woods in theaters in December:

Lisa Brescia as The Witch and Carey Cox as Rapunzel in the PlayMakers production of Sondheim's Into The Woods.
Jon Gardiner for PlayMakers Repertory Company /
Lisa Brescia as The Witch and Carey Cox as Rapunzel in the PlayMakers production of Sondheim's Into The Woods.

Copyright 2014 North Carolina Public Radio
Anita Rao
Anita Rao is the host and creator of "Embodied," a live, weekly radio show and seasonal podcast about sex, relationships & health. She's also the managing editor of WUNC's on-demand content. She has traveled the country recording interviews for the Peabody Award-winning StoryCorps production department, founded and launched a podcast about millennial feminism in the South, and served as the managing editor and regular host of "The State of Things," North Carolina Public Radio's flagship daily, live talk show. Anita was born in a small coal-mining town in Northeast England but spent most of her life growing up in Iowa and has a fond affection for the Midwest.
See stories by Anita Rao
Frank Stasio
Longtime NPR correspondent Frank Stasio was named permanent host of The State of Things in June 2006. A native of Buffalo, Frank has been in radio since the age of 19. He began his public radio career at WOI in Ames, Iowa, where he was a magazine show anchor and the station's News Director.
See stories by Frank Stasio