ABSTRACT
This chapter explores how Into the Woods (ITW) sets up its narrative, unfolds its plotline and develops its characters in the sequence in which they occur in the show as a helpful way to highlight how the musical introduces its themes and to illustrate how they generate meaning as well as depth throughout the piece. Like every traditional fairy tale, ITW begins with the words 'Once upon a time'. For adults, these words evoke early childhood memories of being read to by parents and other guardians. For younger theatregoers this immediately signals the start of a fantastic tale of magic and adventure. The sequence not only establishes the background of the three young protagonists, but also introduces a fourth story line of the Baker and his wife, a fairy tale invented by the two writers. The fairy tales collected by the Brothers Grimm, Charles Perrault and others circulated at a time when the great forests of Europe were still wild.
