First Stage makes animated kids come alive in world premiere 'Arthur and Friends Make a Musical!'

Depending on who's doing the counting, anywhere from 15% to 75% of Americans are said to have a fear of public speaking.

Arthur Read knows their pain.

The title character of "Arthur and Friends Make a Musical!" faces a challenge that seems more daunting than all the labors of Hercules combined: Write his own story or song …and perform it in a third-grade class production … alongside his friends, who all seem more creative … in front of the entire Elwood City community.

First Stage opened its world premiere production of this lively pop-rock musical Friday evening. Written and composed by John Maclay and Brett Ryback, this show was developed with "Arthur" creator Marc Brown's permission and active support, drawing on Brown's books and characters, familiar to waves of children through the long-running PBS Kids animated series. The genial Brown, 75, attended Friday's premiere.

MORE: First Stage adapts animated TV star 'Arthur' into a world premiere musical

Khalia Davis directed and choreographed the production — and the dance element of this show was substantial enough that I checked my playbill for the credit.

First Stage uses two casts of children in this production. I saw the Elwood cast, which features Vivian Madson as Arthur, Gia Love Deacon as little sister D.W., Silver Anderson as Muffy, Alice Rivera as Francine, Ryon Davis as Buster and Charlie Cornell as Brain.

In the grown-up cast, the ebullient James Carrington plays Mr. Ratburn, a teacher who's both high-spirited and demanding; and Brandite Reed and Zach Thomas Woods portray Arthur's sensible mom and goofy dad (true to the series, Dad is shown in passing as the parent who cooks).

Undernearth Arthur's performance anxiety (and writer's block) is a fear that his life is too boring to be worth a song, a fear reinforced by bratty sister D.W. He'd rather hand out programs. In a preshow interview, composer Ryback called Arthur "a supporting character thrust in a leading character position."

Occasionally, Madson's Arthur resembles the long-suffering Job as well-meaning friends roll up with advice, such as Brain's "Find a Better Word" and Muffy's "Dress for Success." They'll play a role in Arthur's finding his voice, though maybe not in the way they intended.

In a secondary plot, Mr. Ratburn wants the show to be celebratory, but activist Francine pushes to include talk about real problems in Elwood City. Ultimately, this leads to "Agent 355," her praise song for a female spy during the American Revolution. It's both a "Hamilton" tribute and a bit of a diss track!

First Stage recommends this show for people 5 and older. An enrichment guide and social story can be downloaded from the First Stage website.

Contact Jim Higgins at jim.higgins@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @jhiggy.

If you go

First Stage performs "Arthur and Friends Make a Musical!" through Nov. 6 at the Marcus Performing Arts Center, 929 N. Water St. Visit firststage.org or call (414) 267-2961.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

DOWNLOAD THE APP: Get the latest news, sports and more

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: First Stage brings animated kids to life in new 'Arthur' musical