‘A Year with Frog and Toad’ comes to TPAC
A hit on Broadway, ‘A Year With Frog and Toad’ was nominated for three Tony Awards, including best musical. Now, for the first time, an all-new production is touring North America, including Nashville. Arnold Lobel’s beloved characters hop from the page to the stage in this delightful musical that follows two great friends, the cheerful and popular Frog and the rather grumpy Toad, through four fun-filled seasons. Waking from hibernation in the spring, they proceed to plant gardens, swim, rake leaves and go sledding, learning life lessons along the way, including a most important one about friendship and rejoicing in the attributes that make each of us different and special.
“With the TPAC Presents series we can provide audiences with a wide variety of performances, and we’re always looking for ways to introduce live performance to young people. I can’t think of a better show than ‘A Year with Frog and Toad’ for just that,” said Kathleen O’Brien, TPAC’s president and CEO. “These delightful characters have been warming hearts for more than 30 years, so multiple generations will discover, or rediscover, the true meaning of friendship as Frog and Toad spring to life on stage. We’re proud to offer a Broadway-caliber production at a family-friendly time and a budget-friendly price range.”
The musical was developed by renowned scenic designer Adrianne Lobel, the author’s daughter, with music by Robert Reale and book and lyrics by Willie Reale. It originated in 2002 at the Children’s Theater Company of Minneapolis, where the Star Tribune called it “a spiffy, snazzy, clever little musical” and “a welcome success in the world of Musical Theater.” A successful New York run at the New Victory Theater followed, where the New York Times urged “anyone who cherishes musical theater and can beg or borrow a child from age 4 up might be well advised to make a beeline for Times Square in search of tickets for ‘A Year With Frog and Toad.'” The path continued to Broadway’s Cort Theater, where the show opened in April, 2003 and earned three Tony Award nominations for best musical, best book of a musical, and EST original score.
The jazzy score has a country-western thread and clever lyrics that keep fingers snapping and feet tapping. Frog and Toad soft-shoe their way across the stage with their friends Snail, Mouse and Turtle, sharing simple pleasures, like eating cookies galore in a show-stopping number that will tweak the sweet tooth of everyone in the theater. The lovable Snail, who spends the entire show trying to deliver a letter at his own very, very slow pace, brings the house down with his solo “I’m Coming Out of My Shell.”
Children are likely to have encountered the Frog and Toad books in school or the library, where they are a favorite of parents and teachers who embrace the simple and lovely stories and beautiful illustrations. In addition to over 60 public performances, the tour will offer 80 daytime school shows, where children are bussed into the venues to experience the joy of live musical theater. Teachers are sent a study guide in advance, giving children the opportunity to discuss the themes of the show and relate them to classroom curriculum prior to seeing the performance.
It is no small feat to find high quality family entertainment that appeals to the younger set as well as their parents and grandparents. ‘A Year With Frog and Toad’ is that rare show that does it all. Of the premiere performance, Variety wrote, “When contrasted with the bright, clamorous and empty standards of children’s entertainment, this production’s endearing charm seems no small achievement.”
Tickets for ‘A Year with Frog and Toad’ range from $17.50 – 27.50, depending on seat location. For tickets, visit www.tpac.org/frogandtoad, the TPAC Box Office (Downtown or at Davis-Kidd Booksellers in The Mall at Green Hills), or any Ticketmaster outlet. Tickets may also be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at 615/255-ARTS (2787). Group discounts for 20 or more are available by calling 615/782-4060.