As mega-hit Into the Woods wows the West End, what’s the secret weapon of this Sondheim spectacular?

With its shimmering forest and its plunge into darkness and destruction, this fairytale romp bagged an Olivier for its lighting – and, reveals designer Aideen Malone, it wasn’t even finished

For a minute I worry that Aideen Malone might return her Olivier award. “It’s funny that I won an award for it, because I would say Into the Woods is one of the most unfinished pieces I have ever done,” declares the lighting designer. “There was a lot of detail we never got a chance to finish. We ran out of time – big time!”

Luckily, the judges and audiences disagreed. If you want to see enchantment, take yourself to Stephen Sondheim’s musical set in the twisted world of fairytale. Cinderella, Red Riding Hood and others bounce into the forest, which shimmers in a weave of powdery, gleaming branches and light angling through all the trees. Now transferred to the West End from London’s Bridge theatre, it’s a breathtaking piece of design for a seriously playful musical.