Reviews

The wonderful 'A Year with Frog and Toad'
tops offerings
By Clif' Warren
Edmond Life & Leisure

Generations of children have grown up reading Arnold Lobel's delightful stories of wonderful days spent with his whimsical characters Frog and Toad. In fact, over 25 years have now passed since Lobel's first book about his loveable characters appeared. All the while Lobel kept crafting more and more children's stories until, by the time he died in 1987, he had published over 70 books.

A children's book author par excellence, Lobel first claimed fame as an illustrator after graduating from Pratt Institute. Maybe that is why his characters drawn from nature have inspired such individual personalities. The twinkle of Lobel's eyes still appears to emanate from behind his round wire glasses that frame his pleasant face below the boyish cut of his salt and pepper hair and above the brush moustache in his Harper-Collins author/portrait. Why he could still be right here with us, telling those fanciful stories which he began creating in his second grade class at the age of seven.

Luckily, the infectious Tony-nominated Broadway musical crafted from
Lobel's work arrived during the spring of 2002. All across the country "A Year
With Frog and Toad" productions have been captivating children and adults alike ever since. Our metroplex holiday production-a great family treat for everyone-stars several of our finest musical theatre talents - Scott Guthrie as Frog, Jon Hague as Toad and those three inveterate chameleons, Beth Adele (as Bird, Turtle, Squirrel, Mother Frog and Mole), Lane Fields (as Bird, Snail, Lizard, Father Frog and Mole) and Lexi Windsor (as Bird, Mouse, Squirrel, Young Frog and Mole). A more brilliant or colorful cast could not have been chosen.

From the moment the musical opens and Fields, Adele and Windsor appear to inaugurate a new season in brown winter coats and hats with feather trim, magic appears to happen on stage, and a children's book comes to life before our eyes - that exciting fascination of meeting new creatures and warming up to them. A cheery opening melody, performed by Brian Hamilton and Scott Bartell on keyboard and Kay Dean Walker on percussion, soon spins into the signature number "A Year With Frog and Toad," which describes the movement of Willie Reale's lyrics and the book adaptation along with his brother Robert Reale's music.

From then on, the seasons' actions are simple, funny, and fresh, and they are told in that warm, innocent way that children's stories have of making life appear so pleasant. Good friends Frog and Toad experience spring ("It's Spring") and Toad plants "Seeds," while Snail attempts to deliver "The Letter," written to Toad by Frog because Toad has never received one. A jazzy dance and superb, tight musical harmony illustrate "Getta Loada Toad," with all five cast members cutting loose. And so Act I goes, providing delight upon delight of dappled sunlight moments - Frog, trying to be "Alone," Snail continuing to try to deliver "The Letter" by snail mail, and Toad opening a supply of cookies, a scene that turns into a furiously funny cookie toss.

By Act II, all the characters are well established by the small, multi-talented cast, with each character memorably etched, going about amusing daily routines, the highlight of which is a segment entitled "Shivers," which is in sync with the song that is delivered. Frog is at his most enigmatic and charming when he scares the bejesus out of Toad.

All in all, the storybook scenery, based on the original sketches for the
Broadway show that author Lobel's daughter Adrianne executed, refreshingly reproduced here by Luke Hadsall, along with marvelous, fantastical character costumes by Michael Jones, perfect direction by Jonathan Beck Reed, and ingenious acting of the five amazing actors, conspire to make "A Year
With Frog and Toad" the holiday hit of the year. City Rep has a real winner with this one!