Many of humanity's most enduring stories have been told in the simplest ways. Folk tales tell the truths of societies in ways that are outside of time, outside of specific culture, even outside of "reality" itself.

But they can be true in ways that more sophisticated, contemporary stories can't hope to be.

Thus, the power of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's musical, "Into the Woods," which opened at the Music Circus Tuesday night and runs through Sunday. First performed on Broadway in 1987 with Bernadette Peters, and revived many times since, most famously with Vanessa Williams in the role of the Witch in 2002, "Into the Woods" has aged beautifully. Under Glenn Casale's able direction, and with a talented, energetic cast, the musical worked well in the round at the Wells Fargo Pavilion at 15th and H streets downtown.

Inspired by child psychologist Bruno Bettelheim's classic 1976 book "The Uses of Enchantment," a Jungian study of fairy tales and their function in society, "Into the Woods" uses familiar Grimm Brothers' tales, of Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Cinderella, and Jack and the Beanstalk, among others to tell larger stories about wishes and responsibilities, the individual and society, and the endless, often-fraught but always-essential dynamic between parent and child.

There is no warm moralizing involved, though the moral tenor of the tales, as well as their ribald undercurrents and abrupt violence, comes through clearly. At times it is mocked, as when the characters feed one-liners into brief interludes (Jack's mother spouts the quasi-wise "the slotted spoon holds no soup"); at other times, the one-liners are spot-on, as in the concluding one, this time sung by the Witch: "Dreams come true, not free."

Those dreams are the core of the show, built around the simple but deeply evocative phrase, "I wish." The Baker and his wife wish for a child; Cinderella wishes to attend the Prince's festival; Jack wishes he could keep his "friend," his dry cow Milky-White. All of their dreams will come true; most of the dreamers will not survive the show.

Their interlocking wishes and competing attempts to fulfill them form the backbone of the first act; the second addresses "ever after," when dreams come true only to be replaced either by new dreams or dimmed by the realities of the responsibilities that wishes fulfilled bring.

What makes Lapine's brilliant, funny and wise book come alive, however, is Sondheim's resourceful, virtuoso music and lyrics, which dance through the piece in small bits, each character's musical themes replayed and reiterated with variations that show how much they are growing through their trials, or are not. Musical lines sung by one character later reappear sung by another, with different, sometimes opposing, lyrics.

Though the songs have a sing-song quality one would expect of fairy tale music, the inversions and harmonic constructions, as well as Sondheim's painstakingly-arranged lyrical meter and complex rhymes, are as ear-catching as any in Sondheim's peerless half-century catalog. And being the puzzle master that he is, the pieces fit together in an ever-shifting kaleidoscope of sound and meaning that never loses the attentive listener. Inside jokes abound, as do aural and lyrical puns too numerous to mention.

The overall effect to anyone attuned to the mechanics of songwriting is positively dazzling. Those who expect self-contained songs of more traditional Broadway fare or the rock-anchored pop music structures of recent musicals may find that Sondheim is overly clever. Certainly, the charge can be and has been leveled, but given the emotional and intellectual impact of the combination of music, lyrics and story, such criticism seems superficial itself.

"Into the Woods" is a great work of art, and Music Circus' production and performance largely matches it. Especially good in the major parts are Vicki Lewis as the Baker's Wife, whose pitch is nearly perfect in a role that ranges from modest to operatic. Michael G. Hawkins brings great voice and wry presence to the role of The Narrator, as well as the Mysterious Man. (Several actors play double roles, roles which echo each other in interesting ways.) Jeffrey Denman turns his doltish Everyman tones into encroaching bitterness in the second act, as his Baker seems to gain the world and then loses nearly everything.

Less appealing is Yvette Cason as The Witch, the diva role. Her comic delivery is good, and she inhabits the role of the only character in the play who is not deluded in some way ("I'm not good, I'm not nice, I'm just right" she sings in her climactic number). But in a vocal role that requires some heartily-sustained notes, she seemed to go more than once off-pitch, and when you're that far up and out, you must be right on. Aiming high has its dangers, perhaps another moral worth repeating.

In the minor roles, Jason Fornbach as one of the two Princes Charming (Rapunzel's) had a natural, quick comic energy and manner that gave nearly every one of his few lines a comic punch that brought guffaws from the audience. He wasn't quite as convincing in his role of the Wolf, but sang it beautifully.

Technically, director Glenn Casale's blocking keeps the characters straight, no mean feat in a show with a dozen actors playing three or four different scenes simultaneously, and more or less visible from all angles. Still, as with last week's lovely revival of "Guys and Dolls," the many microphones, and Sondheim's quick cuts back and forth, seemed to fluster whoever was manning the volume faders, resulting in a number of first words being cut from lines.

Music Circus is a treasure we Sacramentans take for granted. Younger, hipper enthusiasts of the arts seem to eschew it altogether. But that is a mistake, and doubly so when the theatre tackles a work of art as brilliant as "Into the Woods." I would encourage those who think of Music Circus as something for traditionalists to give this particular work an evening of their time. I doubt they will be disappointed.

For as the old saying goes, "Nothing ventured, nothing gained."

David Watts Barton is the Managing Editor of The Sacramento Press.