Thoughts from Ashleigh King, Director of FROG & TOAD

A Year with Frog and Toad is a loving retelling of the classic books by Arnold Lobel. For many of us, these beloved stories were among our first introductions to the beauty of friendships and the love, responsibility, and kindness that goes into them.

We follow our heroes from hibernation to hibernation. Throughout the year, we see the friends navigate milestones familiar to most of our audience: the vaguely terrifying thrill of a first sled ride or the hard-earned triumph of seeing your kite take flight. We also see Toad explore emotions our young-at-heart friends may find themselves experiencing: the uncertainty of not knowing where the time has gone, the fear of loneliness and disappointment. What I love about this story–as told in the books and our musical production–is that the antidote to all of these gnawing concerns and struggles is friendship.

In this production, you may notice the journey our little tree makes. A seed planted at the beginning of the year, slowly being fed by the big memories and the little moments. Time together, gifts shared, confidences made, and love given all reveal themselves to be parts of what creates growth.

I love that our team has also crafted ways to show that healing does not only come from the love of those you count close but also from the empathy, compassion, and joint elation of your community. We believe that strong communities are worthy of celebration and contribute to a collective health that can be appreciated by everyone within them. It may be just a tree and just a show and just some books, but they represent so much more. 

Thank you, community and friends. We’re glad you’re you.

--Ashleigh King