The Gingerbread Kid

The Gingerbread Kid at Coterie Theatre

Running from trouble might seem like the easy choice—until you meet every storybook character who ever made things worse.

The Gingerbread Kid at the Coterie Theatre follows Allspice, the magical child of a baking couple, who decides that fleeing beats facing what happens after eating too many sweets. That single sugary mistake launches an all-ages pop musical packed with nursery-rhyme favorites who turn a simple getaway into something much bigger. Henny Penny and her gang show up. So does Little Boy Blue. Foofinella—better known as Little Bunny Foo Foo—crosses paths with the runaway, and a hungry fox circles the edges of the whole misadventure.

The score by Jodi Marr, paired with Abe Reybold's book and lyrics, brings the chaos to life in Kansas City without overstaying its welcome. At approximately sixty minutes, the show fits neatly into a younger attention span while giving older ticket holders enough wit and melody to stay invested. This isn't a drawn-out morality play; it's a brisk romp through the kind of trouble that piles up when you think running solves everything.

Sweet-toothed mischief rarely leads anywhere good, and Allspice's journey proves it. The Coterie has built a reputation for smart programming that respects its audience, and this pop musical delivers on that promise. Grab your tickets and watch what happens when fairy-tale logic meets real consequences.