The Gingerbread Kid

The Gingerbread Kid at Coterie Theatre

Every parent knows the panic when the kitchen goes quiet and the cookie jar sits empty. The Gingerbread Kid at the Coterie Theatre turns that moment of sugary guilt into a wild chase through storybook territory, where a magical child named Allspice discovers that running from trouble only leads to bigger adventures.

Allspice isn't your typical fairy-tale hero. Born to a baking couple, this enchanted kid can't resist their parents' sweets—and when the inevitable happens, bolting seems like the best plan. The escape route winds through encounters with Henny Penny and her anxious gang, Little Boy Blue, a character called Foofinella who shares a certain bunny's famous reputation, and one very hungry fox. Each meeting raises the stakes for a child who thought disappearing would solve everything.

Jodi Marr's original score sets this journey to music, with a book and lyrics by Abe Reybold that remix familiar nursery-rhyme faces into something fresh. The roughly 60-minute runtime suits restless young theater-goers without rushing the story, giving Kansas City families a complete musical arc that respects everyone's attention span.

This all-ages pop musical at the Coterie Theatre offers a protagonist whose mistakes feel real, whose flight makes sense, and whose path back home earns its resolution. Grab tickets and meet the kid who ran.