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Newspaper Articles 
Theater review: 'Frog and Toad' jazzy, perky delight 
Star Tribune
Published: August 25, 2002
By Rohan Preston
Creating a new American musical is tricky, treacherous business with ample chances to fail, as evidenced by the remains of many musical proj ects that get swept from American theater stages annually.
So when something succeeds like, well, a song, you want to phone friends and neighbors about it. You want to tell people at the supermarket. You want to buy a ticket to expose a youngster to the theater.
So call up family members and colleagues and tell them to see "A Year with Frog and Toad." The spiffy, snazzy, clever little musical, which premiered Friday at the Children's Theatre, is delightful. It communicates wit and verve across generations, so grandparents can treat grandchildren. It even makes you hungry -- for cookies. And, of course, you want to see it again and again.
Culled from the whimsical children's books of Arnold Lobel, the show features a jazzy score by Robert Reale and clever lyrics by his brother, Willie Reale. It gets a perky staging from director David Petrarca, giving this musical springy frog's legs.
In musicals, the music is often preeminent -- as it should be. But sometimes creators lavish all their time on the music, giving the narrative, or book, short shrift. The "Frog and Toad" adaptors, including Lobel's daughter, Adrianne, weave Lobel's stories into a seasonlong adventure between the two amphibian friends. It hangs together well.
Frog, who has got his stuff together, and Toad, a scared wreck who has smashed his clock and cannot place himself in time, go swimming, kite-flying and sledding. They take tea together and think of fun things to do for each other.
Through their activities -- which become ordeals -- they work on becoming better friends.
The CTC show captures the whimsy of Lobel's books -- their caprice and inventiveness. Admittedly, "Frog and Toad" is very familiar. The score consists of a country-western thread and a finger-snappy, jazzy style that is a throwback to the satin-smooth era of Bing Crosby. In other words, it is not pushing theater into the future.
But it tells a story wonderfully. It is even visceral, making you hungry for cookies in a scene that leads up to intermission.
"Frog and Toad" is brightly and thematically designed by Adrianne Lobel (airy, open set pieces), Martin Pakledinaz (spotted costumes) and James Ingalls (lights).
None of that would matter if the performers did not come through as splendidly as they do. In his jowl, in his slightly put-upon mien and in his somewhat needy tenor, Mark Linn-Baker gives Toad a world of woe. He embodies the journey of Toad, showing how the clouds in the spotted amphibian's life gradually lift as the show goes on. Watching him in the role is akin to watching someone emerge from night into day.
Linn-Baker has an excellent complement in Jay Goede, who plays the dapper Frog. He has less of a journey -- he does not change as much -- but Goede reveals his character as a winning Frog.
Together, they suggest shades of other classic performing duos, including Abbott and Costello, even Bert and Ernie.
Danielle Ferland, Kate Reinders and Frank Vlastnik are the three performers who form the show's malleable chorus. They are versatile and excellent, playing creatures such as a turtle, a lizard, a mouse and, of course, three tweety, tightly harmonizing songbirds.
Vlastnik is especially fetching in the role of a snail that has to deliver a piece of mail from Frog to Toad -- that's his load. He does a terrific, bring-the-house-down number called "I'm Coming Out of My Shell": "I was nothing but goo/ Under the surface/ Then everything began to gel/ Holy cow/ Look at me now/ I'm coming out of my. . . shell."
"Frog and Toad" is a small show that seems bigger than just five cast members. This musical is a welcome success in the world of musical theater.
More about A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD»
Copyright 2002 Star Tribune. Republished here with the permission of the Star Tribune. No further republication or redistribution is permitted without the express approval of the Star Tribune.
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