Auditions for A Year with Frog and Toad!

Making Light Productions is delighted to announce auditions for its premiere production of The Tallahassee Children’s Theatre at MLP, A Year with Frog and Toad. Auditions will be held at the MLP Theatre (2720 S Blair Stone Road Ste G), Sunday, May 21, from 4:00 – 6:00 PM, and Monday, May 22, from 6:00 – 7:30 PM.

Based on Arnold Lobel’s well-loved books, and featuring a hummable score by Robert and Willie Reale, this whimsical show follows two great friends – the cheerful, popular Frog and the rather irascible Toad – through four fun-filled seasons. The show will be staged over four weekends (Saturday/Sunday) this summer: July 14 – August 6.
A Year with Frog and Toad will be directed by Christine Hansen (christinehansendirector.com) who, in addition to directing locally for both Florida State University and Tallahassee Community College, has directed children’s theatre for the Pittsburgh Playhouse and done a stint on tour (as an actress) as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz! “I’ve loved A Year with Frog and Toad since reading it to my son as a child,” says Hansen, “and then while teaching at Pinellas County Center for the Arts in St. Petersburg, FL, one of my wonderful students gave me the original cast album and I fell in love with it too! It’s the perfect combination of joy and poignancy! The music fun, the lyrics clever, and the message of friendship timeless!”

ABOUT AUDITIONS
WHEN: Sunday, May 21, 4 PM – 6 PM OR Monday, May 22, 6 PM – 7:30 PM (If needed, callbacks will be arranged at a later date.) If you absolutely cannot make either live audition, video auditions can be arranged. Please email info@makinglightproductions.org for information on submitting a virtual audition.
WHERE: Making Light Productions – 2720 S Blair Stone Road Ste G in Tallahassee
WHAT TO BRING: Potential cast members will have approximately three minutes to perform either two songs of their choice, or a song and monologue of their choice. For music, please bring an accompaniment track of your choice; a Bluetooth speaker will be provided.
PERFORMANCE DATES: Saturdays and Sundays, July 14 – August 6
QUESTIONS: 850-329-8635 / info@makinglightproductions.org

ABOUT TALLAHASSEE CHILDREN’S THEATRE AT MLP
The Tallahassee Children’s Theatre at Making Light Productions is supported by grants from Arts for Autism and the Florida Autism License Plate and shares MLP’s overall mission: to provide high quality performing arts and jobs for teens and adults with disabilities. Adult and older teen performers will stage productions aimed at child audiences with the 2023-2024 season including A Year with Frog and Toad (Summer 2023), Little Women (Fall 2023), and The Voyage of the Noble Gnarble (Spring 2024). “Tallahassee Children’s Theatre provides not only a platform for young actors to shine, but also a community that fosters growth and exploration,” says Making Light Productions Executive Director Juliet Yaques. “The opportunities it creates for actors in the community and the job training and opportunities it provides for the neurodiverse workforce are a testament to the theater’s commitment to inclusivity and creativity.”

ABOUT A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD
A hit on Broadway, A Year with Frog and Toad was nominated for three Tony Awards – including Best Musical. Based on Arnold Lobel’s well-loved books, with score by Robert and Willie Reale, A Year With Frog and Toad follows two great friends – the cheerful, popular Frog and the rather grumpy Toad – through four fun-filled seasons.
Waking from hibernation in the Spring, Frog and Toad plant gardens, swim, rake leaves, go sledding and learn life lessons along the way. The two best friends celebrate and rejoice in the differences that make them unique and special. Part vaudeville, part make believe… all charm, A Year with Frog and Toad tells the story of a friendship that endures throughout the seasons.
The jazzy, upbeat score of A Year with Frog and Toad bubbles with melody and wit, making it an inventive, exuberant and enchanting musical for the whole family. It is a perfect show to be performed by an ensemble group of actors and can be produced with either simple or extravagant staging and sets.

CHARACTER BREAKDOWN
(Ages and genders merely indicate the age/gender of the character as written.)
FROGCaring and loyal. Always looking out for his friends. The calmer, more zen of both he and Toad. Simultaneously adventurous and assured.Gender: MaleAge: 30 to 50Vocal range top: A6Vocal range bottom: A3
TOADA hard worker, but impatient for results. Self-conscious. Stubborn. A good friend to Frog. Timid.Gender: MaleAge: 30 to 50Vocal range top: A5Vocal range bottom: A3
MANMust possess the blind determination of a nerdy snail and the “cool kid” attitude of a slick lizard. Appears as MAN BIRD, SNAIL, LIZARD, FATHER FROG, and MOLE.Gender: MaleAge: 20 to 60Vocal range top: B5Vocal range bottom: A3
WOMAN 1Must possess the playful and quirky personality of a lady bird and strong frenetic energy of a squirrel. Appears as LADY BIRD 1, MOUSE, SQUIRREL, YOUNG FROG, and MOLE.Gender: FemaleAge: 20 to 50Vocal range top: A5Vocal range bottom: A3
WOMAN 2Must possess the playful and quirky personality of a lady bird and strong frenetic energy of a squirrel. Appears as LADY BIRD 2, TURTLE, SQUIRREL, MOTHER FROG, and MOLE.Gender: FemaleAge: 20 to 50Vocal range top: A5Vocal range bottom: A3