A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD Plays The Rose Theater, Now thru 5/12
By: BWW News Desk Apr. 26, 2013
Experience a friendship that weathers all seasons in the Tony-nominated musical A Year with Frog and Toad, today, April 26-May 12 at The Rose Theater. This whimsical show follows the cheerful Frog and the grumpy Toad through four seasons of swimming, baking cookies, raking leaves and sledding, as they learn life lessons on the way.
"My thoughts on the friendship are at the core of this entire story," said director Kevin Ehrhart, who said he's been pondering the importance of friendship since acting in George & Martha: Tons of Fun. "My conclusion is that our friendships are what keep us alive!"
Based on the books by Arnold Lobel, A Year with Frog and Toad ran off-Broadway and briefly on Broadway in 2003, where it was nominated for Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score at the 2003 Tony Awards. Rose Artistic Director Matt Gutschick says, "This musical was a turning point with regard to the respect for plays made for young people."
Originally commissioned by Lobel's daughter Adrianne, A Year with Frog and Toad was first produced at The Children's Theatre Company in Minneapolis. Adrianne was deeply involved in the creative process and designed the sets for the production. Her husband, Mark-Linn Baker, an actor best known for his role opposite Peter O'Toole in the film, My Favorite Year, and as the star of television's Perfect Strangers, starred as "Toad" in the Broadway production. The characters endure as The Jim Henson Company announced plans in 2012 for an animated feature film based on Lobel's Frog and Toad books.
"The set, costumes, lighting, props all appear as if they were created out of the existing ecosystem in which Frog and Toad live, and the houses reflect their personalities," said Ehrhart. "Toad has a drier, more ordered, angular dwelling and Frog's is more aquatic and colorful."
In the production at The Rose, the set, lighting design and costumes will have an organic, natural sense to them, with an orchestra pit covered with platforms to facilitate trap doors from which moles pop up to sing, and another trap door for a swimming hole. When you add a whimsical score, the show perfectly evokes Lobel's books, dear to parents who want to share a less hectic pace with their children.
"A recent study showed that life expectancy may be enhanced by strong social networks," said Ehrhart. "The reality is that true friendships are the solution, and Frog and Toad show us how to manage that road. As I work on this show, I'm paying great attention to how this example is communicated to our young audience members."
In the show, Frog and Toad are coming out of their winter hibernation to greet spring. The characters deal with the challenge of waiting for seeds to grow, Toad is embarrassed to be seen in a swimming suit, and Frog writes a letter to Toad to be delivered by Snail, the mail carrier. As the year progresses, the duo fly kites, rake leaves, and Frog tries to scare Toad during a thunderstorm with a scary story and the song "Shivers". Finally, it is winter and Snail delivers the letter to Toad proclaiming Frog's satisfaction with their friendship just before they hibernate again.
"I love the serene, yet fun-loving, mood the story invokes," said Ehrhart.
Several of the actors will be familiar to Rose audiences. Stephanie Jacobson, who was last seen onstage as Arietty in The Borrowers, will portray the enthusiastic Frog. Jacobson is also the Director of Youth Productions at The Rose. The reticent Toad will be played by Brian Guehring, Rose Education Director and Playwright-in-Residence. Rounding out the cast are Lauren Krupski, who played Butterfly in Diary of A Worm,
A Spider and A Fly and Pig in George and Martha: Tons of Fun; Kelsey Celek, a Teaching Artist Fellow at The Rose; and Dan Chevalier, who made his first appeared at The Rose as Dog in George and Martha: Tons of Fun.
A Year with Frog and Toad will run today, April 26 - May 12 with 60-minutes shows on Fridays at 7 pm, Saturdays at 2 and 7 pm, and Sundays at 2 pm. Interpretation for the hearing impaired will be offered on Saturday, May 4 at 2 pm. The show is recommended for ages 4 and older.
Tickets are $18 each or free with Rose membership. Coupons for a $6 per ticket discount are available at all area Runza Restaurants with the purchase of a Combo Meal. Discount ticket vouchers are also available at Hy-Vee.
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