THEATER | ALBUQUERQUE
Cardboard Playhouse returns to Berk with ‘How to Train Your Dragon Musical Jr.’
New adaptation features dragon performers and original music
A brand new musical adaptation, “How to Train Your Dragon Musical Jr.,” is coming to the Cardboard Playhouse Theatre Company.
Kristin Berg, co-director, said the beloved “How to Train Your Dragon” recently got an updated script, and the children’s theater company had to do the show, shifting its season to accommodate the musical.
While the audience will be familiar with the story of Hiccup who goes against his Viking upbringing and befriends a dragon named Toothless, Berg said she is looking forward to the musical being new to everyone.
“It’s really fun because there’s no expectations,” Berg said.
“So it kind of opens things up.”
The stage adaptation differs from the film, but Berg said the company made sure to keep iconic moments. The first time Hiccup touches Toothless’ head is not explicitly mentioned in the script, Berg said, but she wanted to make sure to include it.
“It’s such a beloved story to a lot of people, so I think we’re trying to take good care of it,” Berg said.
She said the new source material lets them play around with how the story is brought to life. One decision was to go with people playing the dragons rather than puppetry. The actors playing dragons will perform cheer stunts to give them the illusion of flying.
“It’s really fun ... towards the end of the show when they go to fight the Red Death. The dragons pair up with their Viking counterparts,” Berg said, “and it’s an easier connection because they’re right next to each other and they can hold hands with each other.”
In earlier productions of the show, Berg said, she saw some use of puppetry. But she felt it took some humanity away from the dragons. In the musical adaptation, she said the music gives the dragons more depth.
“So that’s a really like interesting thing to see, how the dragons are feeling about stuff in the context of the storyline,” Berg said.
While the audience will hear the dragons talk and sing throughout the show, including singing about not fighting humans anymore, the humans in the story can not understand them, Berg said.
She said adding this voice shows, despite the conflict from both sides, everyone wants the same things.
“It’s a good way to see that they’re really feeling the same things as the humans. Just because they can’t express themselves to each other is what makes that hard. And it just took this one friendship between Hiccup and Toothless to change the whole story of this whole community.”
Elizabeth Secor is an arts fellow for the ϼ. You can reach her at esecor@abqjournal.com.