Scene from ‘Twice Upon A Time’. Photo by Thomas Graves 

Scene from ‘Twice Upon A Time’. Photo by Thomas Graves

Review by KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com

Did you know that fairy tales originated as oral stories? This is how these stories were preserved; they were passed down by word of mouth from generation to generation.

Of course, with anything that is heard and then repeated to someone else, stories get changed around, re-interpretated and reformed to suit both the audience and the storyteller.

Los Alamos Little Theater keeps the tradition of collecting stories and orally sharing them with others alive with its newest production, “Twice Upon A Time”.

Here’s the setup: Grandma (Terry Beery) is telling her three grandchildren bedtime stories. But rather than tell faithful adaptations of classic fairy stories, Grandma decides: her stories, her rules! So, what comes out are retellings of Cinderella, the Three Little Pigs, Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Rumpelstiltskin but told with a twist.

The great thing about this play is that it is geared toward children and performed mostly by children. Standouts for me were the “stagehands” who interrupt the on-stage enactments of Grandma’s stories with their own hijinks. I also love the youngster who plays the grandson – he is just adorable. Another highlight was how much fun the adult actors seemed to be having. Steeny Benkoski as the Big Bad Bear and Mitsi Pair Willard as Blink Wonderman almost stole the show.

The humor is primarily molded for children but that doesn’t mean it is “dumbed down” – there are plenty of clever jokes that anyone, regardless of age, will giggle at.

As for sets, the same forest scene is used for every story, which makes sense since fairy tales always seem to feature an enchanted forest. I loved the whimsy of Los Alamos Little Theater’s forest, from the painted wood trees to the cheerful mushrooms that dot the floor.

The costumes are fantastic. The four “average size” dwarves look wonderful in their cone hats and shaggy gnome beards, Little Red Riding Pants looks smart in her crimson ensemble and Pair Willard is stellar in a sequin suit that I swear is the best costume I’ve ever seen on the Little Theater stage.

Watching “Twice Upon A Time” kind of took me back in time. A time when I would babysit my niece and nephews and read them stories to entertain them. My niece and nephews are now way too old for bedtime stories but I still cherish that memory. And that is what “Twice Upon A Time” really succeeds in expressing: that the best stories, no matter how silly, are the ones you share with the people you love.

Showtimes for “Twice Upon A Time” are 7 p.m. March 15 and 16. There will be a matinee at 2 p.m. March 17. To purchase tickets, visit https://lalt.org/.