With their magic spells, mythical beasts, and ever-perfect happy endings, the fairy tales that inspired Into the Woods seem completely grounded in fiction. However, the opposite is true, and some of our favorite fairy tale heroes and villains have ties to historical reality. Here are just a few that you’ll encounter tonight:
Cinderella- this story of a commoner-turned princess was inspired by the life of the ancient Greek slave Rhodopis. This Grecian servant found favor with Charaxus (brother to the poet Sappho), who bought her freedom. Afterwards, Rhodopis became a wealthy woman, eventually gaining enough fame to earn a monument to herself in the city of Delphi. While not immediately recognizable as a Cinderella story, some more fanciful accounts of Rhodopis’s life have her wearing ornate shoes that eventually attract the attention of Pharaoh Ahmose II, who then takes Rhodopis as one of his wives.
Rapunzel- though the connection is more tenuous than Cinderella and Rhodopis, this long-haired princess may have ties to Saint Barbara. Barbara was the daughter of a pagan merchant in Asia Minor (now Turkey), who forbid her to marry, and thus locked her in a tower. During her time imprisoned, Barbara converted to Christianity, which outraged her father, who had her tried and executed. Barbara’s martyrdom earned her canonization and deep respect in the Eastern Orthodox Church. While nothing was said to be remarkable about Barbara’s hair, her incarceration in the tower does adumbrate the story of Rapunzel.
The Wolf- this real-life fairy tale is considerably darker than the others. In 16th Century Germany, many people lived in constant fear of the woods, dreading everything from predators to supernatural entities. In the middle ground between the two was Peter Stumpp- a farmer who killed and ate at least sixteen people (most of them children) while supposedly under the influence of a magic belt given to him by the devil that could transform him into a wolf. Luckily for the German people, Stumpp was caught and executed, although his crimes certainly inspired the bloodthirsty wolves of fairy tale fame.
Jack- alright, “the lad Jack” isn’t based on anyone historical, but I wanted to talk about him anyway (maybe I’m biased). The story of Jack and the beanstalk was derived from a much gorier piece of literature: the eighteenth century play Jack the Giant Killer. The Jack of this epic is more grown up than his beanstalk-climbing descendant, but his moniker and his enemies are certainly similar. The creation of the play stemmed out of the demands of the British people, who were tired of stories centered around King Arthur, and wanted a new hero. Some elements of this play appear to have influenced Lapine and Sondheim, who portray Jack as much older than a boy, and who have imbued him with a willingness to murder.
The Baker- baking is a common profession. Rather surprisingly, the original character from the musical has no ties to history of fairy tales. What more did you expect? If this isn’t satisfying enough, you could convince yourself that maybe he baked the gingerbread man.
Now that you’ve read about the history behind your favorite fairy tales, enjoy yourself watching a confluence of those stories unfold on the stage before you.
