Toad in the Hole
1989 · Jacksonville Theatre Guild
A whimsical woodland musical billed by its full title as Toad in the Hole (Amphibious Musicalis), the show was an original work written by Ken Bradbury and Robert Crowe — the first of seven shows the two co-wrote together. This 1989 production was its premiere at the Jacksonville Theatre Guild, with Robert L. Crowe directing and Ken Bradbury serving as choreographer. The Guild would revive the show for its tenth anniversary in 1998, when Ken both directed and choreographed it.
When a thunderstorm sends the timid T. Tyler Toad cowering into a hole in the forest, the rest of the animals — pompous businessman Mr. Badger and his ever-obedient wife, snobbish Mrs. Raccoon, the vain Felicia Fox, the eager Bug, the intellectual Fieldmouse, the not-very-wise Owl, and the rest — pile in after him when the next clap of thunder hits. Trapped underground, they meet the cave-dwelling, equally fearful Clyde Monster and a lost human boy named Michael, and over the course of the play each character confronts a private fear and longing. Michael's faith in his protector "Alexander," and the lesson that they can only escape by working together (and by remembering to look up), finally leads them out of the hole and into the sunlight.
The 1989 staging was brought to life by a full pit orchestra under David Shaffer, who also composed the orchestrations, with vocal direction by Julie Walker Hood.
The original cast recorded nine of the show's numbers at Rainey Day Studio that year; the Foundation has restored that recording as the Toad in the Hole cast album, where every song can be played.
Songs
The musical is told across two acts, with a covey of Gnomes physically moving the rocks and walls to reshape the cave's chambers between scenes.
- The Dance of the Gnomes (Prologue) — The Gnomes dance; at the end of the dance, they form a "hole" with their bodies.
- A Toad in the Hole! (the Animals) — "There's nothin' lower than a toad in the hole / There's nothin' dumber than to jump down below! … Don't be a toad in the hole!"
- An Ordinary Toad ("Why?") (Tyler Toad et al.) — "Why? Why is it always me? Everybody seems to have a glimmer of a dream… An ordinary toad, I'm tellin' you."
- Am I the Only One? (Clyde and Michael) — "Am I the only one? Am I always alone? Is there anyone like me? Am I on my own?"
- Just Let Me Glow (Bunny and Felicia Fox) — "Oh, let me glow / just for one moment / let me fly / but not forever."
- Together (Michael and the Ensemble) — "Together we'll make it. We'll make it together. Together we'll go for the top! … Alone we may be lonely but together we're not."
- Fowler's Song (Fowler Owl, Clarence Bug, Reginald Mouse, Felicia Fox) — "I have studied most profoundly in each city, state and county all the 'whys' and 'whats' … Language doesn't matter when you spread it on like batter."
- Business as Usual (Mr. Badger and Ensemble) — "I got my businessman's suit, my businessman's vest… I got the business as usual blues."
- Mrs. Him (Mrs. Badger) — "Where is the heart that loved him so? … Living in his shadow, 'Mrs. Him' misses him."
- I Call on Alexander (Michael and Ensemble) — "Whenever I'm afraid / I call on Alexander / and he'll go with me through the darkest night."
Cast
- Apparitions of Fear — Sandy Crowe, Rachel E. Doney & Robin Williams
- Tyler Toad — Chris Schnake
- C.C. Chipmunk — Jeff Westerfield
- Mr. Badger — Chuck Nash
- Mrs. Badger — Stephanie Smith-Jarratt
- Reginald P. Meriwether Fieldmouse — Kathryn Burke
- Bunny — Becky Smith Easley
- Clarence Bug — Brad Karr
- Mrs. Raccoon — Judith Beiderbecke
- Felicia Fox — Sylvia Burke
- Fowler Owl — Sean-Edward Hall
- Clyde Monster — Greg Floyd
- Michael — Michael Ten Eyck
Production Staff
- Written by — Ken Bradbury & Robert Crowe
- Director — Robert L. Crowe
- Choreographer — Ken Bradbury
- Orchestration & Orchestra Conductor — David Shaffer
- Vocal Director — Julie Walker Hood
- Orchestra — Shelley Cochran (flute, piccolo, alto saxophone), Andrea Hart (clarinet), Mike Downing (tenor saxophone & bass clarinet), Phil Gregory (French horn & guitar), Rob Welander (trumpet), David Zink (trombone, tuba & accordion), Steve Schnake (bass guitar), Jill Briggs (piano & synthesizer), Christy Goodin (synthesizer & percussion) & Kurt Heller (drums)
- Set Design — Chuck West
- Light Design — Greg Floyd
- Sound — Helen Ronat
- Costume Design — Patty Clinton & Janet Long
- Makeup — Sylvia Burke & David Mounce
- Props — Deb Middleton
Production Notes
Toad in the Hole was the first of seven shows Ken Bradbury and Robert Crowe co-wrote together. The musical drew on Crowe's children's books — T. Tyler Toad and the Thunder and Clyde Monster — together with his then-unpublished story about a giant named Alexander.
Ken described the cast structure as "one boy, eleven animals and a small covey of gnomes." The animals are T. Tyler Toad, C. C. Chipmunk, Mr. Badger (George) and Mrs. Badger (Bertha), Mrs. Raccoon, Felicia Fox, Bunny, the Bug (Clarence), Reginald P. Merriweather Fieldmouse, J. Fowler Owl, and Clyde Monster, alongside the boy Michael and a group of three to five Gnomes. Staged in two acts, the show uses the Gnomes to move the rocks and walls that create the cave's different chambers between scenes.
1998 Tenth-Anniversary Revival
The Guild revived Toad in the Hole at the Jacksonville Theatre Guild in October 1998, with Ken Bradbury directing and choreographing; the run played back-to-back with Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, opening October 9–10, 1998. Ken kept a production diary of the revival titled "The Tale of a Toad (Tyler II)," running from October 1997 to October 1998. The .doc script copy from this revival carries the line "By Ken Bradbury & Robert Crowe / 1989 / Revised, 1998."
1998 revival cast:
- T. Tyler Toad — Greg Floyd
- C. C. Chipmunk — Jeff Bossert
- Mr. Badger — Chuck Nash
- Mrs. Badger — Stephanie Smith-Jarratt
- Mrs. Raccoon — Judith Beiderbecke
- Clarence Bug — Carly Joehl
- Felicia Fox — Janet Auld
- Bunny — Teresa Goetten
- Reginald P. Fieldmouse — Terri Kimler
- J. Fowler Owl — Sean Edward Hall
- Clyde Monster — Brad Barnes
- Michael — Lucas McQuillan
- Petite (Gnome) — Colleen Doyle
- Soupson (Gnome) — Kelly Campbell
- Babe (Gnome) — Jackie Clinton
- Maestro (Gnome) — Matt Snodgrass
1998 revival production staff:
- Director & Choreographer — Ken Bradbury
- Vocal Direction — Julie Walker Hood
- Orchestra Director / Orchestral Arrangements — David Shaffer
- Tech Director, Set Design & Lighting Design — Chuck West
- Costumes — Janet Long, Geri Ryan & Patty Clinton
- Production Coordinator — Linda Van Aken
- Stage Manager — Grant Estes
- Makeup Design — Sylvia Burke
- Special Consultant — Steve Varble
- Publicity — Jodi Heitbrink
- Rehearsal Pianists — David Zink, Jill Briggs & Ken Bradbury
Special thanks in the 1998 program went to The Irish Toad, Triopia High School, Chuck West Sound Stage, WLDS, WJIL, and the Jacksonville Journal Courier.
See the full production record at JTG Memories.