Prologue: Into the Woods

Once upon a time, in a far-off Kingdom

There lay a small village at the edge of the woods

I wish

(And in this village)

More than anything

(Lived a young maiden)

More than life, more than jewels

(A carefree young lad)

I wish

More than life

(And a childless baker)

I wish

(With his wife)

More than anything, more than the moon

I wish

The King is giving a Festival (more than life)

(I wish) I wish to go to the Festival

(More than riches) and the ball

I wish my cow would give us some milk

(More than anything) I wish we had a child (please, pal)

I want a child (squeeze, pal)

I wish to go to the Festival (I wish you could give us some milk)

I wish we might have a child, I wish

You wish to go to the Festival?

(The poor girl's parents had died)

You, Cinderella, the Festival?

You wish to go to the Festival?

The Festival? The King's Festival?

(And now she lived with her stepmother)

The Festival? Ha!

(Who had two daughters of her own)

Look at your nails!

Look at your dress!

People would laugh at you

Nevertheless, I still want to go to the Festival

And dance before the prince

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

(All three were beautiful of face, but vile and black of heart)

(The young lad has no father, and his mother)

I wish

(Well, she was at her wit's end)

I wish my son were not a fool

I wish my house was not a mess

I wish the cow was full of milk

I wish the walls were full of gold

I wish a lot of things

What in heaven's name are you doing with the cow inside the house?

I thought if he got nice and warm, he might produce some milk

It's a she, how many times do I have to tell you only shes can give milk?

(And then there's a hungry little girl who always wore a red cape)

I wish

It's not for me, it's for my granny in the woods

A loaf of bread, please

To bring my poor old hungry granny in the woods

Just a loaf of bread, please

Cinderella, if you can pick up these lentils

And finish your chores in time

Then you may go to the ball with us

Come along ladies

Yes, mother

Good luck

Come, little birds

Down from the eaves, and the leaves, over fields, out of castles and ponds

Now, squeeze, pal

Quick, little birds

Flick through the ashes

Pick and peck but swiftly sift through the ashes, into the pot

Now listen to me well, son, Milky-White must be taken to market

Mother, no, he's the best cow in the world

Was, she has been dry for weeks now with no food or money, and no choice but to sell her

But Milky-White's my best friend

Look at her

There are bugs on her dugs

There are flies in her eyes

There's a lump on her rump

Big enough to be a hump (but)

We've no time to sit and dither

While her wither's wither with her

And no one keeps a cow for a friend

Sometimes I wonder what's goin' on in that head of yours

Into the woods, it's time to go, I hate to leave, I have to, though

Into the woods, it's time, and so, I must begin my journey

Into the woods and through the trees to where I am expected, ma'am

Into the woods to grandmother's house

Into the woods to grandmother's house

Are you certain of your way?

The way is clear, the light is good

I have no fear, nor no one should

The woods are just trees, the trees are just wood

I sort of hate to ask it, but do you have a basket?

Yes, we do

I don't suppose you're planning on buying any of these (oh, shh)

Now, don't stray and be late, alright?

You might save some of those sweets for granny?

Oh my (just, leave it)

She's a thief!

Into the woods and down the dell, the path is straight, I know it well

Into the woods, and who can tell what's waiting on the journey?

Into the woods to bring some bread to granny who is sick in bed

Never can tell what lies ahead, for all that I know, she's already dead

But into the woods

Into the woods, into the woods to grandmother's house, and home before dark

Cinderella! Get up here!

Fly, birds, back to the sky

We're waiting!

Back to the eaves, and the leaves, and the fields, and the

Hurry up and do my hair, Cinderella

Are you really wearing that?

Here, I found a little tear, Cinderella

Can't you hide it with a hat?

You look beautiful

I know (she means me), no she didn't

Mother said be good, father said be nice

That was always their advice

So be nice, Cinderella, good, Cinderella

Nice, good, good, nice (tighter!)

What's the good of being good if everyone is blind

Always leaving you behind?

Never mind, Cinderella, kind, Cinderella

Nice, good, nice, kind, good, nice

Ow! Not that tight! God!

Who might that be?

We've sold our last loaf of bread!

It's the witch from next-door

We have no bread

I don't want your bread

Then what is it you wish?

It's not what I wish, it's what you wish

Nothing cooKing in that belly now, is there?

And there will never be

Unless you do exactly as I say

In three days time, a blue-moon will appear

Only then can the curse be undone

What curse?

The one I placed on this house

What are you talKing about?

In the past, when you were no more than a babe

Your father brought his young wife and you to this cottage

They were a lovely couple

But not lovely neighbors

You see, your mother was with child

And she developed an unusual appetite

She admired my beautiful garden

And she told your father

That what she wanted more than anything in the world, was

Greens, greens, nothing but greens

Parsley, peppers, cabbages and celery

Asparagus, and watercress, and fiddleferns, and lettuce

He said, "All right", but it wasn't, quite

'Cause I caught him in the autumn in my garden one night

He was robbing me, raping me

Rooting through my rutabaga

Raiding my arugula and ripping up the rampion

My champion! My favorite!

I should have laid a spell on him right there

I could have turned him into stone

Or a dog

Or a chair

But I let him have the rampion, I'd lots to spare

In return, however, I said, "Fair is fair

You can let me have the baby that your wife will bear

And we'll call it square"

I had a brother?

No, but you had a sister

Where is she?

She's mine now! And you'll never find her

Small price to pay for what else your father stole from me

It cost me my youth, my beauty

My mother warned me

She would punish me with the curse of ugliness if I ever lost any of them

Lost what?

The beans (beans?)

The special beans

I'd let him go, I didn't know he'd stolen my beans

I was watching him crawl back over the wall

When bang! Crash! A lightning flash!

Well, that's another story, never mind, anyway

At last the big day came

I made my claim

"Oh, don't take away the baby"

They shrieked and screeched

But I did

And I hid her where she'll never be reached

Your father cried, and your mother died

When for extra measure, I admit it was a pleasure

I said, "Sorry, I'm still not mollified"

And I laid a little spell on them

You too, son

That your family tree would always be a barren one

How could you do that?

And when your mother died, your father deserted you

Your father was no father, so why should you be?

Now there's no more fuss, and there's no more scenes

And my garden thrives, you should see my nectarines!

But I'm telling you the same I tell Kings and queens

Don't ever never ever mess around with my greens!

Especially the beans

Ugh, yeah, but why do we have to go to the next village?

Because everyone in this village knows the cow hasn't given a drop of milk in weeks

That's cheating!

We're starving, Jack! Can't you understand that?

Now, you're not to accept less than five pounds for her

Are you listening to me? (Yes)

How much are you to ask?

No more than five pounds

Less than five!

Into the woods, the time is now, we have to live, I don't care how

Into the woods to sell the cow, you must begin the journey

Straight to the woods and don't delay, we have to face the marketplace

Into the woods to journey's end

Into the woods to sell a friend

You wish to have the curse reversed?

I'll need a certain potion first

Go to the woods and bring me back

One, the cow as white as milk

Two, the cape as red as blood

Three, the hair as yellow as corn

Four, the slipper as pure as gold

Bring me these before the chime of midnight

In three day's time tis' then the blue moon reappears

Which comes but once each hundred years

Bring 'em, and I guarantee a child as perfect as child can be

Go to the wood!

Ladies, our carriage waits

Now may I go to the Festival?

The Festival?

Darling, those nails, darling, those clothes

Lentils are one thing, but, darling, with those

You'd make us the fools of the Festival and mortify the prince

The Festival lasts three nights

Surely, you could let me be there for one of them

The King is trying to find his son a wife, not a scullery maid

We must be gone, go!

I wish

Beans? These must be the witch's beans, we'll take them with us

We? (Yes!) We?

You're not coming, it's not safe out there

I can help you

No, I can do this on my own

The spell is on my house, only I can lift the spell

No, no, the spell is on our house (the spell is on my house)

We must lift the spell together, the spell is on our house

Now tell me, what am I to return with?

Ugh, God! You don't remember?

The cow as white as milk, the cape as red as blood

The hair as yellow as corn, the slipper as pure as gold

The cow as white as milk, the cape as red as blood

The hair as yellow as corn, the slipper as pure as gold

I still wish to go to the Festival (the cow as white as milk)

But how am I ever to get to the Festival? (The cape as red as blood, the hair as yellow as corn)

I know, I'll visit mother's grave, the grave at the willow tree (the slipper as pure as gold)

And tell her I just want to go to the King's Festival (the cow, the cape, the slipper as pure as gold, the hair!)

Into the woods, it's time to go, it may be all in vain, I know

Into the woods, but even so, I have to take the journey

Into the woods, the path is straight, you know it well, but who can tell?

Into the woods to lift the spell

Into the woods to visit mother

Into the woods to sell the cow

To get the money

To go to the Festival

Into the woods to grandmother's house

Into the woods to grandmother's house

The way is clear, the light is good

I have no fear, nor no one should

The woods are just trees, the trees are just wood

No need to be afraid there, there's something in the glade there

Into the woods without delay, but careful not to lose the way

Into the woods, who knows what may be lurking on the journey?

Into the woods to get the thing that makes it worth the journeying

Into the woods to see the King

To sell the cow, to make the potion

To see, to sell, to get, to bring

To make, to lift, to go to the Festival

Into the woods

Into the woods

Into the woods

Into the woods

Into the woods

Into the woods

Into the woods, then out of the woods

To see, to sell, to get, to bring

To make, to lift, to go to the Festival

Into the woods, then out of the woods, and home before dark