A classic tale reimagined: Playhouse Square debuts ‘Velveteen, A New Musical’

As vice president of community engagement and education for Playhouse Square, Daniel Hahn oversees the many events, workshops, theater programs, and educational performances aimed at young audiences to foster growth, creativity, and, of course, a love for the theater.

His department oversees events like the Dazzle Awards for outstanding theater work in area high schools, or ensuring Playhouse Square hosts plenty of sensory friendly performances each year.

And Hahn spends a lot of time choosing roughly 10 performances for the Children’s Theater Series each year.

“Most of the shows that we do here in my department, come from somewhere else in the country—somebody else builds them, produces them, hires the actors, hires the creative team, and picks the story,” he explains. “Those shows are presented to me at conferences or on video. I look at those videos, I buy shows off a menu, and I present them to Cleveland audiences. Essentially, I'm a professional shopper.”

While Hahn is passionate about his role in theater education, and he enthusiastically will discuss the upcoming 2024-2025 Children’s Theater season that launches later this month, he confesses that an idea for an original production has been brewing in his head for years—turning Margery Williams’ 1922 children’s book “The Velveteen Rabbit” into a children’s musical play.

Now, that idea will become a reality later this month when “Velveteen, A New Musical” debuts in the Mimi Ohio Theatre with three performances—opening the 2024-25 Children’s Theater Series on Saturday, Oct. 26 and Sunday, Oct. 27.

A lifelong obsession

Hahn says “The Velveteen Rabbit” has resounded with him since he was a child. The book follows the journey of Lulu and her beloved stuffed rabbit, Velveteen. The rabbit learns about love and what it means to become “Real.”

Hahn says he thinks the message remains relevant more than a century later.

“I remember when I was a little boy hearing this story and again and it really moved me and impacted me,” he recalls. “It's the story of a child who gets this plushy rabbit, who loves it very much. Over the course of the story, the child gets sick. At the time, in the early 20th Century, they believed that germs would stay on objects, and so you had to just get rid of everything. So they ended up burning the toys.”

Although the toys have been burned, Velveteen becomes Real, and talks to an old, tattered toy horse who explains what it means to be Real—he has been loved.

“The horse tells the rabbit, ‘by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand.”

The advice the horse gives to the rabbit was Hahn’s inspiration to turn the book into a musical. “That is so touching and beautiful to me,” he says, “and that that was the reason I was attracted to the story.”

While staying true to the heart of the original story, Playhouse Square has adapted it for modern young audiences. Hahn notes that some of the more intense elements from the book have been softened, with the rabbit's transformation now depicted “metaphorically with magic and music.”

Velveteen rehearsalVelveteen rehearsalA new endeavor

“Velveteen” is the first show Playhouse Square has created and self-produced for young audiences. Hahn says he has been planning the production since 2013, and never gave up on his dream of a locally-produced show.

“Many years ago, I reached out to a local dance company and asked them if they had an interest in the story and adapting it into a musical piece, and they said they did not, so I just kind of held onto the idea,” he recalls. “A couple of years ago, Playhouse Square really invested in launching a production initiative. [Now] we're the ones in the kitchen making the dinner. We're buying the ingredients; we're putting it together.”

The production features all-original music composed by Playhouse Square education content creation coordinator Molly Andrews-Hinders. The creative team is composed entirely of Cleveland talent, helmed by director Joanna May Cullinan, who is the artistic director for Cain Park in Cleveland Heights.

Hahn raves about the songs. “This could be an album that we could release as a kid’s album and it would do gangbusters,” he says. “The songs are so beautiful.”

A diverse cast of six local actors and two swings (understudies who can perform any role), will bring the story to life on stage. The cast includes Sara Chapman as Lulu; CorLesia Smith as Gran/Clover; Clayten Yoder as Velveteen; Rachel Balko as Sophia/Whisk; Tasha Brandt as Ty/Poppy; Dar’Jon Bentley as Lionel/Greg; and Rosie Bresson and Connor Owen are swings.

“The company really looks like… Cleveland,” Hahn says with a pause. “It's not just people who all look like me on our stage. It's a really beautiful, wonderful, diverse company—backstage, on stage, our stage management team, our designers, our creative team.”

While “Velveteen” is a local labor of love, Hahn says he has hopes that it may have a life beyond Cleveland. A professional touring agent has been invited to view the show, and it will be recorded for potential digital distribution to other performing arts centers. The script and score may also be submitted to publishing houses for other theaters to produce their own versions.

Velveteen rehearsalVelveteen rehearsalA production for all

Playhouse Square's commitment to accessibility is at the forefront of this production. The very first performance will be a sensory-friendly show specifically designed for audiences with sensory sensitivities or developmental differences.

There will be a sensory-friendly school matinee performance on Tuesday, Oct. 22, which is also open to public guests in the sensory-friendly community.

The sensory-friendly performance features adjustments like dimmed house lights, reduced sound levels, and a relaxed atmosphere where audience members can move around or vocalize their feelings, if needed. There are quiet rooms available for those who need a break from the stimulation.

“That sends a message to the community that this is important to us,” Hahn says. “We want to welcome all audiences at Playhouse Square, and, in fact, we're going to do it with the very first show we produce.”

Hahn says he sees a connection between the story's themes and the inclusive nature of these performances.

“When the hero of the story is a character who's different, sharing that message with children, especially in a sensory show, it can lift them up as the heroes of a story,” he explains. “I think all of that comes together in an incredibly powerful way."

Other school matinee performances run from Tuesday, Oct. 22 through Friday, Oct. 25.

Public performances of “Velveteen” will be held on Saturday, Oct. 26, with 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. performances, and Sunday, Oct. 27, with a 2 p.m. show. A sign language interpreter will be at the 2 p.m. Saturday show. Tickets are $15.

Children’s Theater Series Weekend Workshops will explore themes, ideas, and elements introduced within the production of "Velveteen." The 45-minute workshops are created and led by professional community partners and teaching artists with crafts, snacks, and an “on our feet” portion, unique to the production. The workshops are $5 for children, and free for adults.

The remaining performances in the 2024-25 Children’s Theater Series are “Goodnight Moon & The Runaway Bunny,” Jan. 25-26; “The Gruffalo’s Child,” March 8-9; and “Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! The Musical!” April 12-13.

Karin Connelly Rice
Karin Connelly Rice

About the Author: Karin Connelly Rice

Karin Connelly Rice enjoys telling people's stories, whether it's a promising startup or a life's passion. Over the past 20 years she has reported on the local business community for publications such as Inside Business and Cleveland Magazine. She was editor of the Rocky River/Lakewood edition of In the Neighborhood and was a reporter and photographer for the Amherst News-Times. At Fresh Water she enjoys telling the stories of Clevelanders who are shaping and embracing the business and research climate in Cleveland.