Director Rob Marshall has brought Stephen Sondheim‘s much beloved and iconic “Into The Woods” to the screen in Disney’s lastest effort that is coming out Christmas day. Into the Woods has a stellar cast headed by Academy Award winner Meryl Streep.
To say that I was thrilled to be invited to a press event attended by the cast, producer and famed director Rob Marshall is an understatement, I was ecstatic.
In attendance were Meryl Streep (“The Witch”); Christine Baranski (“Cinderella’s Stepmother”); Tracey Ullman (“Jack’s Mother”);
James Corden (“The Baker”); Emily Blunt (“The Baker’s Wife”); Anna Kendrick (“Cinderella”); Chris Pine (“Cinderella’s Prince”); Producer Marc Platt, Director Rob Marshall and Screenwriter James Lapine. It was truly a pleasure to be in the presence of that much talent at one event. And throughout both sessions, the actors were gracious, funny, witty and just plain a lot of fun. And the camaraderie and mutual admiration was quite evident. You would expect a little divaish behaviour and stand off, boring responses but no. This was one of the best press events I have ever attended and certainly one I will be talking about for a long time to come.
Christine Baranski (Evil Stepmother); Tracey Ullman (Jack’s Mother); Meryl Streep (The Witch) and Producers Marc Platt and John DeLuca
Part 1 – Interview with Meryl Streep (“The Witch”); Christine Baranski (“Cinderella’s Stepmother”); Tracey Ullman (“Jack’s Mother”); Producer Marc Platt and Producer John Deluca.
Meryl Streep probably is the actress every actor and actress on the planet strives to be half as good as and when she decides she is going to sing well imagine the pressure. She was the first to come on board after years of turning down similar roles to take on the role of “The Witch” who longs for beauty and companionship. The one thing I was surprised by this New Jersey native at the press conference was her self-deprecating humor. I loved that she joked about rapping in the movie, “I haven’t really done my real rap scene yet”, wondering if Stephen Sondheim was aware it was even rap when he wrote that scene.
She admitted “I used to have a good voice” telling us that she had to really work hard to bring her voice back, doing exercises she learned at Yale. “It’s a great piece of American theater history ” is how she described why she decided to play the Witch. At that point, Tracey Ullman, piped up “that’s what the sound was down the hall” while Christine Baranski chimed in “we thought it was the cow.”
Christine Baranski didn’t have to think twice about taking on the role of Cinderella’s evil step mother. She compared the evil stepsisters getting ready for the ball to “getting ready for the Oscars.” She also noted how opportunistic and narcissistic they were, and that we know these women, “they are part of our culture.”
Surprisingly, Into The Woods may not be a comedy per say but it is definitely funny and will make you laugh. Marc Platt, one of the producers noted that “the humor was paramount” in the film.
One thing that comes across with Christine Baranski, Meryl Streep and Tracey Ullman is that they are long -time friends and have a sisterly affection for each other. The easiness and banter amongst them during the interview was what made the event a joy. They were obviously having a good time joking with each other.
Fun Factoid: Tracey Ullman was a eighties pop singer as big as Boy George and Duran Duran. Stay tuned for my movie review coming out tommorrow, sneak peak it’s a must see.
that is the coolest interview. I love all the women interviewed and Meryl its nice to see she is so funny.