Children's Theatre Company Announces 2024-2025 Season

Children’s Theatre Company (CTC) recently announced their 2024-2025 Season of six productions featuring a world premiere play, Drawing Lessons; a rolling world premiere musical, Milo Imagines the World; the thrilling spectacle, MOYA by Zip Zap Circus from Cape Town, South Africa; the return of the smash hit holiday favorite Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas!; the Minnesota premiere of Manual Cinema’s Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About a Terrible Monster based on the beloved books by Mo Willems; and a CTC original production of Disney’s 3-time Tony Award®-nominated musical phenomenon Frozen.

The season begins with MOYA by Zip Zap Circus, featuring an original soundtrack composed by Josh Hawks. Audiences will soar into the visual spectacle of this pulsating acrobatic performance set against the Cape Town skyline! Comic jugglers, unicycle dancers, and an authentic gumboot dance will take you on a freewheeling journey that explores the spirit and vitality of township life. Watch as a simple city bench becomes a sidesplitting spark for a newfound friendship, and feel the energetic beat of South African pop music. You’ll relish this thrilling feat of acrobatics and rhythmic movement that celebrates the joy of sharing community with one another. Best for all ages, MOYA by Zip Zap Circus runs September 12-October 20, 2024, on the UnitedHealth Group Stage.

Next, experience the energy of a graphic novelist’s imagination at work in the world premiere of Drawing Lessons by Michi Barall! Dynamic, jump-off-the-page animation shows Kate’s manhwa storyboards coming together, even as she deals with school, friends, and how her Korean heritage fits into her American lifestyle. Will her contentious friendship with Paul help or hinder her progress? Will either of them ever find their true artistic voices? Get drawn into this innovative story that magically takes place both on stage and on screen! Drawing Lessons is a co-commission with Ma-Yi Theater Company in New York, and marks the first full production of a show developed through the landmark Generation Now partnership between five theatres (Latino Theater Company, Ma-Yi Theater Company, Native Voices, Penumbra, and Children’s Theatre Company). Directed by Jack Tamburri, Drawing Lessons runs from October 8-November 10, 2024 on the Cargill Stage. This production is recommended for middle grade school students and up.

CTC’s beloved holiday smash-hit Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas! returns this holiday season after last year’s sold out run. A miserly and miserable, ever-so-cantankerous Grinch has observed the despicable Christmas joy of the Whos with disdain, from a distance, for decades. Enough! In this holiday favorite filled with music and Seussian rhymes, he plots the greatest heist imaginable—stealing the very thing they love the most! Until, that is, the smallest of the Whos, tiny Cindy Lou, extends a hand. Through the combination of kindness and community, we witness not only a change in the course of Who-History, but the size and capacity of the old green guy’s heart. Directed by Dean Holt, this musical favorite runs November 5, 2024-January 5, 2025, on the UnitedHealth Group Stage.

In the new year, nationally acclaimed theatre company Manual Cinema comes to CTC with the Minnesota premiere of Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About a Terrible Monster based on the books by Mo Willems. Monsters have one job and it's to be SCARY! "Booga booga booga!" But as hard as he tries, Leonardo can't scare even a mouse. When the other monsters laugh and make fun of him, Leonardo goes in search of the most scaredy-cat kid in the whole world to try and scare the tuna salad out of him! Manual Cinema breathes innovative life into this beloved story (and its doubly charming sequel), using hundreds of puppets to magically create a movie before your very eyes. Will Leonardo finally become the scary monster he dreams of being? Or will he discover something even better to be? Inspired by the Books Leonardo, The Terrible Monster and Sam, The Most Scaredy-Cat Kid in the Whole World by Mo Willems, Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About a Terrible Monster was commissioned by The Kennedy Center for Performing Arts with additional commissioning support from Utah Presents. Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About a Terrible Monster is best for younger audiences and runs from January 8-March 9, 2025, on the Cargill Stage.

Up next is the CTC-commissioned, rolling world premiere of the new musical Milo Imagines the World, based on the book by Matt de la Peña and Christian Robinson and brought to life by book writer Terry Guest and composers and lyricists Christian Albright and Christian Magby. On a crowded subway, Milo passes the time imagining the lives of the other passengers. See his illustrations brought to spirited life, featuring dynamic new songs ranging from hip hop and pop to country. Ride along with Milo from stop to stop as he begins to understand that first impressions aren’t always accurate, that his bossy older sister ReRe isn’t always an annoying diva, and that real life can sometimes be even more incredible than an imaginary one. Milo Imagines the World is a joint commission by The Rose Theater (Omaha, Nebraska), Chicago Children’s Theatre (Chicago, Illinois), and Children’s Theatre Company (Minneapolis, Minnesota). Directed by Mikael Burke, Milo Imagines the World runs from February 4-March 9, 2025, on the United Health Group Stage and is best for all ages.

For the season finale, Disney’s hit Broadway musical Frozen sweeps into Minnesota as Children’s Theatre Company premieres its original production of the hit Broadway musical. Sing along with Elsa, Anna, and the whole cast as they encounter magic that’s out of control, weather that’s fearsome, and Olaf, a snowman who melts your heart. Will Elsa be able to restore the balance between summer and winter? Will she and Anna ever be close again? Settle in for some hygge, a little bit of joiking, and a whole lot of letting go! Nominated for three Tony Awards® including “Best Musical,” Disney’s Frozen is directed by Tiffany Nichole Greene and runs April 15-June 15, 2025, on the UnitedHealth Group Stage. Best for all ages!

Full season subscriptions and renewals for the 2024-2025 Season are now on sale and can be purchased online or by calling the ticket office at 612.874.0400.   

5-Play Full Season Subscriptions range from $185 - $244 for adults and $145 - $206 for kids and seniors. 5- Play Preview Subscriptions are $125 for adults and $75 for kids. Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas! can be added on to any 5-Play subscription for $37-$59 ($15-$25 for Preview.) These prices reflect a 25% discount off of the regular ticket price—one of the benefits of subscription at CTC.

CTC’s 2025-2025 Season of artistic and educational programming is supported by The Shubert Foundation, Inc. and the Minnesota State Arts Board.