Theatrical Services Inc. of Wichita, Kansas

01/03/2022

If you like to keep up with us on this page, we wanted to let you know that this page will soon be inactive. As of the first of January, we took on our parent company's name and we are now going forward as A to Z Theatrical Supply and Service, Inc. Wichita. We are the same people and products in the office that you have come to love and trust. We are just under a new name.
Please find our new page so you can stay on top of everything we are doing at our office!

https://m.facebook.com/AtoZTheatricalWichita

12/31/2021

We will be closing at 1pm today. We apologize for any inconvenience.
From all of us at TSi, a division of A to Z Theatrical, we wish you all the best in the coming new year!

12/27/2021

Frozen is a musical with music and lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, and book by Jennifer Lee, based on the 2013 film of the same name.
Produced by Disney Theatrical Productions, the musical had a tryout at the Buell Theatre in Denver, Colorado in August 2017 and premiered on Broadway in March 2018 at the St. James Theatre to mixed reviews. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Broadway production closed on March 11, 2020, after 26 previews and 825 regular performances. A U.S. tour began in November 2019 but was also suspended in March 2020. International productions followed, including a West End production, which opened in September 2021.
In January 2014, Bob Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company, stated that Disney Theatrical Productions was in early development of a stage adaptation of Frozen that it planned to bring to Broadway. No date was set for the adaptation.
The first priority [for Disney Theatrical] ... is when you have a property that is as beloved and music-based as Frozen, that has to get an enormous amount of my attention. To say, "How do we take this and make a sophisticated, adult evening of theater out of it?" — Tom Schumacher, interview with Southern California Public Radio in November 2014
The musical "cost a reported $30 million to produce [and] churned through three choreographers, two set designers, two Elsas and two directors." Frozen was nominated for two Drama Desk Awards, winning one, and nominated for three Tony Awards.
The license for the JR Musical production is through MTI. A cast of 17 plus ensemble in 1 Act and is rated G.

12/20/2021

12/20/2021

White Christmas is a musical based on the Paramount Pictures 1954 film of the same name. The book is by David Ives and Paul Blake, with music and lyrics by Irving Berlin. The original St. Louis production starred Lara Teeter, Karen Mason, Lauren Kennedy, and Lee Roy Reams, and the 2004 San Francisco production starred Brian D'Arcy James, Anastasia Barzee, Meredith Patterson, and Jeffry Denman.

Critics of the Broadway production were unimpressed, including Charles Isherwood of The New York Times, who wrote that the show was as "fresh and appealing as a roll of Necco wafers found in a mothballed Christmas stocking." Nevertheless, the show received two 2009 Tony Award nominations for Best Choreography (Randy Skinner) and Best Orchestrations (Larry Blank). It also received 2009 Drama Desk Award nominations for Walter Bobbie, Outstanding Director of a Musical, Outstanding Choreography, Outstanding Orchestrations, Outstanding Set Design of a Musical (Anna Louizos), Outstanding Costume Design (Carrie Robbins), and Outstanding Sound Design (Acme Sound Partners).

UK Tours (2006-2011), Broadway (2008-09) and US Tours (2007-2019), Australia (2009), West End (2014 & 2019)

The license for the musical production is through Concord Theatricals. A cast of 12 plus ensemble in 2 Acts and is rated G.

12/15/2021

It’s always a great day when we get to bring Christmas early to a school! Today we brought two Lycian Midget 1206 Follow Spotlights.

12/13/2021

Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical, or simply How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical, is a seasonal musical adaptation of the 1957 Dr. Seuss book How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

The musical, with book and lyrics by Timothy Mason, original score by Mel Marvin and choreography by John DeLuca, made its debut on the mainstage of Minneapolis's Children's Theatre Company in November 1994, after special arrangements had been made with the Dr. Seuss estate to exclusively adapt and perform the book. The original production was remounted again in 1995 and 1998 playing to sold-out houses every time.

From the Children's Theatre Company, the musical was transferred to Broadway by Running Subway (James Sanna). This version with book and lyrics by Timothy Mason, original score by Mel Marvin, directed by Matt August and created and conceived by Jack O'Brien. The Broadway production debuted on November 8, 2006 at the Foxwoods Theatre (then the Hilton theatre) for the Christmas season and closed on January 7, 2007. This production is notable for being the first Broadway musical to offer 12 performances a week.
The musical began its second limited run at the St. James Theatre on November 9, 2007 with Patrick Page returning to the title role and starring John Cullum as Old Max. It was originally planned that the show would run continuously with up to 15 performances a week until January 6, 2008. The musical staged a total of 11 performances for the Thanksgiving weekend (November 23 to 25), an unusual occurrence for Broadway shows.

12/01/2021

We will be closing early on Friday, December 3 at 12pm. I’d have any rental pickups or need to make any purchases, please plan accordingly.

11/29/2021

Elf is a musical based on the motion picture of the same name, with a score by Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin. The book is adapted by Bob Martin and Thomas Meehan from the 2003 film. The musical ran on Broadway in the Christmas seasons of 2010–11 and 2012–13, in the West End in the 2015–16 season, and also toured annually in the U.S. during the Christmas holiday season from 2012 to at least 2017.

The story is narrated by Santa Claus rather than Papa Elf, the latter character not even appearing in the musical. The story in the musical is said to have begun three years ago, rather than thirty years ago in the movie. Minor changes from the movie to the musical include Santa Claus using an iPhone instead of a list of names while delivering gifts, the department store scenes taking place at Macy's instead of Gimbels, and Buddy being dropped off at the Hobbs house instead of being bailed out of jail by Walter. The musical also adds a subplot about Michael and Emily Hobbs' disbelief in Santa Claus. Several notable scenes from the film are also absent, including Buddy's visit to the mailroom of the Empire State Building and Buddy rescuing Michael from school bullies in a Central Park snowball fight. The entire character of Miles Finch is cut.

The film and musical also strongly deviate in the character of Walter Hobbs. In the musical, he is shown as more bumbling, forgetful, and overworked. It is also explained by Santa Claus in the film that Walter is on the "Naughty List" because of his greed and general meanness, whereas in the musical it is because he doesn't believe in Santa. And in the conference room, Buddy pitches the idea of making the book about how he came to the North Pole (leading to the song, "The Story of Buddy the Elf") and Mr. Greenway loves the story, but Walter quits after Mr. Greenway wants to change the main character in the story from an elf to a horse.

The license for the musical production is through MTI. There is also a Junior Version available. A cast of 11 plus ensemble in 2 Acts and is rated PG.

11/25/2021

11/23/2021

We will be closed this Thursday and Friday for the holidays.
We hope everyone has a safe and delicious holiday weekend!

11/22/2021

You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown is a 1967 musical comedy with music and lyrics by Clark Gesner, based on the characters created by cartoonist Charles M. Schulz in his comic strip Peanuts. The musical has been a popular choice for amateur theatre productions because of its small cast and simple staging.

John Gordon was credited with the book of the show, but according to Gesner's foreword in the published script, "John Gordon" is a collective pseudonym that covers Gesner, the cast members, and the production staff, all of whom worked together to assemble the script. The Guide to Musical Theatre notes that "John Gordon is a pseudonym for the staff and cast of the show. The original cast included Bob Balaban, Gary Burghoff, Bill Hinnant, Skip Hinnant, Karen Johnson and Reva Rose.”

During the early 1960s, Gesner had begun writing songs based on Charles Schulz's Peanuts characters, but was unable to get permission from the United Features Syndicate to use the characters in his songs. Eventually Gesner sent Schulz a demo recording of some of the songs and Gesner soon had permission to properly record them, which he did in 1966. Orson Bean sang the role of Charlie Brown, Clark Gesner sang Linus, Barbara Minkus sang Lucy, and Bill Hinnant sang Snoopy (he reprised his role in the Off-Broadway production).

At the time, Gesner had no plans for a musical based on this pre-production "concept album". However, producer Arthur Whitelaw, who would later go on to write another musical based on Peanuts, encouraged Gesner to turn the album into a musical.

The stage adaptation of the concept album, titled You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, went into rehearsal in New York City on February 10, 1967. Prior to its opening, the musical had no actual libretto; it was several vignettes with a musical number for each one.

Since then, there has been multiple U.S. tours, a 1968 West End premiere, a 1986 television special, a 1998 U.S. tour and 1999 Broadway revival, a 2008 Manhattan benefit concert, and a 2016 Off-Broadway revival.

The license for the musical production is through Concord Theatricals. A cast of 6 in 2 Acts and is rated G