Everyone in the Sterling College Music Theatre production of the Stephen Sondheim classic musical Into the Woods is doing “double duty” – being in the cast and helping in some other capacity with the production. But Sterling sophomore Noah Svaty is pulling “triple duty” as he is set designer, lighting designer, and playing the leading role of the Baker for the show which will be presented this Friday and Saturday, April 12 and 13 at 7:30 p.m. and on Sunday, April 14 at 2 p.m. in Culbertson Auditorium on the college campus. 

Into the Woods centers on the familiar storybook characters of Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, Cinderella, and Rapunzel. Playwright James Lapine and composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim added the new characters of the Baker (played by Svaty) and his Wife who get mixed up with the other characters as they seek to end a spell put on them by the Witch next door. While Act One ends with the requisite “happily ever after,” Act Two shows what takes place after.

For Svaty, theatre has been a family affair. He first became involved in theatre when he was in fourth grade playing the key role of Patrick Dennis in the musical Mame for the Sterling Community Theatre Troupe where his dad, Seth Svaty, was a mainstay onstage. 

He continued his interest and involvement in theatre through his years at Sterling High School when he started helping with lighting and set construction. Svaty has enjoyed being in leading and supporting roles in 16 musicals and 8 plays but said it wasn’t until this year that he said he truly found his passion for designing set and lighting for shows.

Svaty said, “for this show I hope to create an atmosphere that the audience won’t forget. I want the audience to truly feel like they are going ‘into the woods.’”

“My entire vision for this design was to be larger than life. I wanted to create this mysterious forest that seemed to tower above the characters. Lighting wise I wanted Act One to be very vibrant and colorful but as we get into Act Two all of that is stripped away as the characters become much more real and have to deal with honest emotion,” Svaty said.

Svaty went through several designs for the center rock structure of his design trying to get something that would look like it fit but also add to the scale he wanted. He said, “Eventually I landed on this massive rock we have at our family campsite in Colorado where we would always take a family photo.”

“Family” is a theme that is core to Into the Woods and to Svaty. “Theatre means everything to me. Theater has become my way of honoring my father and his memory.” After a bout with cancer, Svaty’s father passed away last fall on the final dress rehearsal night of the Sterling College production of the musical Guys & Dolls in which Noah Svaty was playing the leading role of Sky Masterson. 

Svaty said, “So much of my design and my portrayal of the Baker comes from experiences with him that, at times, it has felt that he’s right there designing with me.” 

The feeling “that he’s right there” is central to one of Sondheim’s most memorable songs in the show, “No One Is Alone,” which is the emotional climax of the show Into the Woods. 

“I have a deep emotional connection to the Baker which comes from his loss of his father. A year ago, I wouldn’t have been able to truly understand some of these emotions the Baker is feeling throughout the show - especially during his Act II song ‘No More,’” he said.

“I have struggled with finding a balance between letting these emotions show while still keeping things true to the Baker. The Baker strives to keep everything right and wishes to protect the ones he loves by doing everything himself. I, too, tend to take on that role of trying to do too much on my own,” Svaty said.

“I’m excited to share the story of Into the Woods with audiences, getting to see this design come to life and this story unfold is an incredible feeling,” Svaty said. “But I think what excites me the most is how student driven this production has been. Every student in this cast oversaw something or had their own project to work on. It has been an absolute blessing to work with this group of people and I believe audiences will see that in the production.”

Tickets for the Sterling College Music Theatre production of Into the Woods are $15 for adults and $5 for students and are available online at www.sterling.edu/arts or at the door before each performance.

Sterling College is a Christ-centered, four-year college located in Sterling, Kansas, with a mission to develop creative and thoughtful leaders who understand a maturing Christian faith. For more information, visit www.sterling.edu.