The Art of Captivating Kids: Local Actor Finds His Purpose

Meet Frog and Toad, 'best friends who embark upon a year’s worth of adventures with great merriment, comedic agility, and joyful song-singing.' Children's Theatre Company 's production of A Year With Frog and Toad is the only show from Minnesota ever to be nominated for three Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and now one of the biggest Broadway hits to come out of these Twin Cities is making its return to the local stage.

Actor Reed Sigmund, best known for his evil-turned-loveable Grinch in The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, reprises his role as Toad, a character he says is on the anxious side, but always means well.

A native of Fargo, Sigmund dabbled in high school drama, but never considered taking it further than that.

"I was... I was terrible. I was not good," Sigmund explained to WCCO's Laura Oakes. "There was absolutely no promise or expectation that I could make a living out of this, or have a career."

Little did he know that after what he called a very lonely first year at the University of Minnesota, theater would come calling again. He went to an audition, and the rest is history.

"The show was called "The Bacchae," and it was a very different experience," Sigmund says. "I had done mainly shows like 'Oklahoma', and 'Guys and Dolls,' and this was a very University of Minnesota production. It was the violence. There was was nudity. It was like, this is a complete departure for me. I stayed fully clothed, obviously," he laughs.

Sigmund followed his heart and started making connections, including with Penumbra Theater founder Lou Bellamy.

"Working with him was life changing," says Sigmund. "He's such a good director and helped me see things both as an artist and as a human being in a fresh and new way that I hadn't been able to see before."

As doors continued to open, Sigmund eventually found himself at the Children's Theater Company, the place he's called home for roughly 24 years.

He says he can't imagine a more rewarding career than performing for kids.

"I love just the absolute freedom of creativity that kids have," he explains. "The 'anything is possible' mentality. So, I love watching their minds grow and explore and discover. I love the way that they see the world and they do see it in such extremes. It's just a really fun environment to constantly be exploring in."

In rehearsal for "A Year with Frog and Toad", Sigmund is a kaleidoscope of emotion, singing with verve and artistry, telling the story not just with words but with the outsized enthusiasm the character requires.

He says crafting his characters and giving them depth is all about allowing yourself to be vulnerable, which comes with confidence.

"When somebody feels confident, when they feel safe, when they feel free to fail, they start taking more artistic risks. And the more artistic risks they take, the more they discover and the more vulnerable they become," Sigmund says. "And I think when you're creating a play, when it's created by a team of people who are being vulnerable with each other and taking risks, I think that's when they truly start to unlock things that are exciting. And refreshing. And rewarding both to themselves and to an audience."

And yes, Sigmund's Grinch in "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas" is his signature, and his favorite character to play. He painted his face green and zipped himself into that furry costume for 67 shows last holiday season alone.

Sigmund says he loves the Grinch not only for his overblown antics, but also for his depth and complexity.

"I love it because it's the full emotional spectrum," he says. "I mean, it's just the show going from somebody who's isolated and depressed, to finding what he believes is his purpose in life, which is to destroy Christmas. And then finding the energy and the joy and the surprise and just the sheer delight of it."

After days of matinees and multiple shows on weekends, behind the green face and behind the fur and silly shoes, Sigmund is spent. But he's never without gratitude.

"If you take a moment to just think about the families who are parking out there and walking in, and the fact that they bought their tickets, you know, a month ago, two months ago and the financial commitment they've made to come see a show that day," he explained. "And the time commitment that they've made. Time is hard and finding time for your entire family to get together and do something is hard. It takes planning. So if they've shown that commitment in you and your performance that day, you have to give them that same commitment. You have to reciprocate and give them everything you got."

"A Year with Frog and Toad" is also the final Children's Theatre Company production to be directed by Artistic Director Peter Brosius. He's leaving the theater after 27 years at the end of June.

The show also stars Jay Goede as Frog, who played the role on Broadway, Becca Claire Hart, Ryan London Levin, and Janely Rodriguez. It's based on the books by Arnold Lobel with music from Robert Reale.

Previews begin Tuesday, April 23. The show runs through June 16th. Click here for more information and tickets.