A Year with Frog and Toad - Children's Theatre Company

Photo by Glen Stubbe Photography

A Year with Frog and Toad opened at the Children's Theatre Company this past week. The show was created and workshopped in New York, then had a world premiere here at the Children's Theatre Company. From there it went to Off-Broadway, then to Broadway, and returned to the Children's Theatre in 2004. The show also went on a tour. I first heard of this show when it was nominated for three Tony awards, and because a friend of mine was an understudy. I was so happy to be able to see this charming and delightful show!

The musical, based on the books by Arnold Lobel, with music by Robert Reale, and the book/lyrics by Willie Reale is directed by Peter C. Brosius. It has music direction by Denise Prosek and Victor Zupanc, along with choreography by Daniel Pelzig. The show is a collection of short scenes that go through...well... a year with Frog and Toad. The Birds (Becca Claire Hart, Ryan London Levin, and Janely Rodriguez) start the show be letting us know that they are back from the south and ready for spring and summer. The lights come up behind the scrim that covers the stage and we see Frog (John-Michael Zuerlein) slowly wake up from hibernation. He is happy that spring is here and he gets to see his friend Toad (Reed Sigmund). After some difficulty, Toad finally gets out of bed. Frog starts to tend his garden, and Toad decides to grow a garden but has little patience. He yells at the seeds to grow faster, then gets worried that he might have scared them. Toad then sings them a song, dances, plays them the tuba, and eventually (through some clever but practical stage magic) we see buds grown from the stage. The next scene, Frog gets a letter and finds out that Toad has never received any mail from anyone. So Frog decides to write him a letter...and gives it to Snail to deliver. Clearly this is the start of a joke that will continue through out the show. 

Photo by Glen Stubbe Photography

This is the type of show A Year with Frog and Toad is, a series of short vignettes that any person can easily follow. Each vignette takes place, usually with a bright bouncy song in it, and then the show moves to the next one. As an adult, I found it thoroughly charming, delightful, and so much fun. The kids (and the adults in the audience) seemed to love it as well - clapping along with some songs, and having a great time. The performers are fantastic. Reed Sigmund as Toad has a somewhat serious outlook on life, and is worried about a lot. While the character may be worried, Sigmund looked like he was loving every minute on stage. The same could be said about John-Michael Zuerlein playing Frog. Frog, as a character, is upbeat, fun, seeming to have not a care in the world. Zuerlein also looks like he is having a great time on stage. The two of them are backed by Hart, Levin, and Rodriguez who play all the other characters. There are so many clever costumes these three change into, and such fun characters they get to play! Birds, lizards, moles, turtles, mice, squirrels...what fun! The energy from everyone on stage was so bright and happy.

One thing I have said, and probably will continue to say, about the Children's Theatre Company is that their production values are so top-notch. The staging and direction is great. The costumes are spot-on and simple. The photo of Levin as Snail proves my point - simple costume with a backpack and a hat and there you go...everyone would recognize the character as a snail. The scenery is the same way - simple but so effective. The work at Children's Theatre Company may be aimed at children, but the productions are so wonderful to watch regardless of your age. So, take a chance and go see this lovely work.