Dame Gothel

Dame Gothel, aka "The Witch" L=Woodcut depiction of Dame Gothel, date unknown; R=Bernadette Peters as The Witch in the 1987 Broadway production of Into the Woods; B=Meryl Streep in the 2014 film of same Characters Adapted from Other Works First Appearance: "Rapunzel" (original story); Into the Woods (relevant stage adaptation) Creator: Friedrich Schulz, 1790 (revised by the Brothers Grimm, 1812), based on oral sources; Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine Nationality: Germany (apparently) in the original; Unspecified fantasy realm in Sondheim's version Cause of Death: Unspecified in the original; A vanishing curse in Sondheim Occupation: Witch Appearing in: "The Great White Way" by Laura Frankos Set in OTL Type of Appearance: Direct Species: VR avatar Cause of Death: Strangulation Military Branch: Sondheads

Dame Gothel is a witch who serves as the antagonist in the traditional German fairy tale "Rapunzel." Gothel raises the protagonist as a prisoner in a tower, due to an unpaid family debt, until the Prince arrives to teach Rapunzel of the freedom of the wider world.

In the Stephen Sondheim play Into the Woods, The Witch (no name given) is the play's primary villain. While the Witch's role closely follows that of Gothel in the old story, a series of heartfelt monologues make the character a more sympathetic figure.

The Witch in "The Great White Way"

The Witch, one of several Into the Woods characters present, was one of the strongest Sondhead champions in the Sondheim-Webber battle. After surviving the fight against the Webberite cats, the Witch scored a victory by discovering Joseph's Dreamcoat hidden under the table in the Last Supper dining hall. In a later round, the Witch teamed with Lee Harvey Oswald to oppose the Phantom of the Opera. This was a mistake, as both were strangled by the Phantom's Punjabi lasso.

Jack and The Wolf from the same play also took part in the battle.