Hansel and Gretel is community musical theatre at its finest

Once upon a time in the intriguing land of Grimm, there was a young boy named Hansel and his sister Gretel who were always hungry.

The cupboard was bare and the selfish stepmother persuaded the children’s meek father to abandon them in an enchanted forest.

After the siblings vanished, their playmates bravely marched into the forest to search for them. But these brave fellows let their guard down. Before the playmates could find Hansel and Gretel, the wicked witch transformed them into a gingerbread fence.

During the dark night, Mr. Sandman, a mysterious white cat and a bevy of angels appeared from the firmament to protect the lost and frightened Hansel and Gretel.

But at the dawn of a new day, the siblings also were snatched into the wicked witch’s trap. Only quick thinking and nimble actions saved them from being baked in the magic oven.

This slightly different adaptation of the Hansel and Gretel fairytale, with all the bells and whistles, runs during the Family Day Weekend until Monday, Feb. 17 at Festival Place in Sherwood Park.

A production of Festival Players, it features the community theatre directorial debut for St. Albert Children Theatre (SACT) alumni Josh Languedoc.

A fearless character actor, Languedoc has nabbed major roles in the last three Festival Player Christmas shows – Cats, Oliver and Wizard of Oz.

“This particular version of Hansel and Gretel is our concept and as far as I know, it’s brand new,” says Languedoc.

The easy-going director gives a quick interview in between classes at the University of Alberta where he is working toward an after-degree in education.

“My biggest passion is working with kids and I’m at university right now because I want to be a drama teacher.”

Just as Languedoc’s youthful theatre passion was nourished at SACT, he too tries to maximize each child’s creative potential. To that end, he’s expanded the script of 13 actors to 20.

“My vision was to add extra characters. We didn’t write extra text. We just extended the moments and filled in parts of the script with more people.”

He notes that the Lillian and Robert Masters script has several inherent weaknesses. However, the score of seven songs with operatic leanings lend a high tenor to the production.

Musical director Meghan Koshman has basically taken song bits from an operatic score and created manageable versions for the cast ranging in ages six to 18.

Languedoc’s musical favourite leans toward Children’s Prayer, a song Hansel and Gretel sing the first night they are stranded in the forest. They sing a duet and gradually fall asleep as Mr. Sandman arrives and a cluster of angels materialize in a lyrical dance to shield them from the forest’s evil.

Hansel and Gretel is community musical theatre at its finest, and Languedoc invites families to stop in for two hours of magical entertainment.

“It’s a cute story that’s family friendly. It’s a classic fairy tale and a great way for everyone in the family to spend time together.”