User:Bialytock&Bloom/Frog expand

Yale University
The Frogs was first performed by the Yale Repertory Theatre in the Yale swimming pool, opening on May 20, 1974 for 8 performances. Shevelove directed, with choreography by Carmen de Lavallade and Larry Blyden as Dionysos. The piece exercised the use of a Greek chorus: "Sondheim's works frequently focus on an ensemble of characters, a practice which has led on critic to compare his use of the chorus to Greek drama. In 1974, Sondheim was becoming intersted in contrapuntal writing, and most of the songs in the 1974 version correspond to choral numbers in the Greek." Among those who reviewed it, the musical was a critical success, though it was rarely produced after it's premiere.

Subsequent productions
An unsuccessful attempt at a revival production opened on July 24, 1990 at the Old Brentford Baths in London. The cast featured Richard Zajdlic as Dionysus and Bob Husson as Xanthias, with choreography by Ron Howell and direction by John Gardyne. In 1979, Nathan Lane had become interested in the piece, and on May 22, 2000, Lane, with Davis Gaines and Brian Stokes Mitchell, performed a concert version at the Library of Congress' Coolidge Auditorium in Washington, D.C.

2004 Broadway revival
Shortly after performing in the concert adaptation, Lane began revising and expanding the show's book into a two-act structure typical of American musicals; the first act was expanded, the second condensed. Lane explained what drew him to expand The Frogs: "after September 11 . . . I started to think, There's something in this piece right now . . . There's something idealistic about the notion of someone believing that the arts can make a difference . . . I found it moving, in light of what is going on in the world." The new book included references to George W. Bush and the Iraq War.

For the new production, Sondheim wrote seven new songs, including ones that focused on individual characters rather than an ensemble. The Lincoln Center Theater produced the piece, now titled The Frogs: A New Broadway Musical, at their Vivian Beaumont Theater on Broadway. The revival, labeled as "even more freely adapted" by Lane, opened on July 22, with Lane as Dionysus and Roger Bart as Xanthias. Originally, Chris Kattan had co-starred in previews, but was replaced by Bart a week before the show opened. John Byner, Daniel Davis, Peter Bartlett, Burke Moses, and Michael Siberry appeared in supporting roles. Orchestrations were by Jonathan Tunick, a longtime collaborator with Sondheim, and Susan Stroman both directed and choreographed; costumes were designed by William Ivey Long.

It opened to disastrous critical reception. Most complained that Lane's new plot was "loose", while others noted that the story was dated: "The idea that a playwright could make a difference made sense in 405 [BC, in 1941, and in 1974] . . . In 2004, when The Frogs played only to audiences who could afford $95 tickets, it made almost no sense". The production closed on October 10, 2004, after a limited run of 92 performances.