“A Year With Frog and Toad”

***** What to do on a Saturday morning! One of my favorite things is to see a play. There are lots of them available, but as you might suspect, these are children’s plays and what is called “young People’s Theater”. As you know, I have young people who love to attend a play with me so they can add their input into the review. After all, if you are planning to take your 8 years old, you want to know what an 8 years old thinks, not an octogenarian. Today, Chicago Children’s Theatre and so it was The Casati family that joined me. Tommaso has done several plays for me and is very into the entire production. It all begins when he gets his Sunkist candy.

The show ( approx. 1 hour and 10 minutes) is an adorable tale about the relationship between Frog((Eduardo Curley-Carrillo) and Toad ( Nick Druzbanski). The play , written by Arnold Lobel is an all out riot that show the audience “A Year With Frog and Toad” who are neighbors and friends but have some ups and downs in their lives. We begin with the Spring as they come out of winter hibernation. While these two characters and their relationship is the key to the story, there are three other performers, taking on a myriad of roles that truly make the story come alive.

The three ensemble members are Leslie Ann Sheppard, Laura Murilla Hart and Diego Vasquez Gomez. They play several characters and keep the flow of action moving at a wonderful clip. Gomez plays a snail that delivers the mail and unlike the email carrier on Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, he is anything but “speedy delivery”. I will tell you that these three truly ake this play work.

Smoothly directed by Michelle Lopez-Rios, with three playing areas. One area for each of the main characters and then a center area for the rest of the action. The seats are low and very close to the action. This play was first done in 2006, then re-visited in 2014 and again with the opening of their own center at 100 South Racine, where CCT calls home. Today’s audience was as usual filled with lots of under 5 year old’s and believe it or not, they were into the play and its music (Robert Reale) and lyrics/book by Willie Reale. These brothers took Lobel’s work to a new level and has become a mainstay for Chicago Children’s Theatre. The musical version had its debut in 2002 and continues to grab the hearts and souls of little theater audiences.

What a show! Great for kids and adults if you want to laugh and learn some thing to!

The actors did a great job making me imagine and feel like I was in the play too. – Tommaso

“A Year With Frog & Toad” will continue thru  June 9th, with performances as follows: