Key Change: New Musicals for Young Audiences

Key Change: New Musicals for Young Audiences presents four groundbreaking musicals developed by Children’s Theatre Company, widely regarded as the leading theatre of its kind in North America. These works embody singular styles and sounds, yet all represent the robust spirit of unique people finding their way in the world. They are all sure to entertain, including the Broadway hit A Year with Frog and Toad.

The quirky Tale of a West Texas Marsupial Girl, by Lisa D’Amour, with music by Sxip Shirey, is set in a town unprepared to accept a girl born with a pouch. But eventually, with the help of her friend Sue, everyone comes to understand just how wonderful Marsupial Girl is. Madeline and the Gypsies—adapted by Barry Kornhauser from the popular book by Ludwig Bemelmans, with music by Michael Koerner—gives little Madeline and her friend Pepito a taste of circus life after they get lost at a carnival and Gypsies carry them away. In Buccaneers! (written by Liz Duffy Adams, with music by Ellen Maddow) a girl leads the young pirates who capture her toward a better life through her wits and tenacity. A Year with Frog and Toad chronicles the unlikely friendship of silly Toad and responsible Frog that endures all seasons. Based on the classic books by Arnold Lobel, adapted by Willie Reale, with music by Robert Reale, it made its mark on Broadway and was nominated for three Tony Awards, including Best Musical.

Each of these musicals guarantees a distinctive, delightful theatrical experience. Now teachers and children far and wide can read them in one volume and produce them in their own schools, theatres, and communities.

Children’s Theatre Company (CTC), based in Minneapolis, was rated by TIME magazine as the number one children’s theatre in the United States. Serving 250,000 people annually, it has received numerous honors, including the 2003 Tony® Award for Regional Theatre, the Children’s Theater Foundation of America Medallion, and the National Governor’s Association Award.

Jeanine Tesori is an American composer and musical arranger. She is the most prolific and renowned female theatrical composer in history, with five Broadway musicals and four Tony nominations.

Key Change is the fourth volume from CTC published by the University of Minnesota Press. All were edited by Peter Brosius, CTC’s artistic director since 1997, and Elissa Adams, director of new play development at CTC since 1998.