Review: CHICKA CHICKA BOOM BOOM: THE MUSICAL at Imagination Stage

Imagination Stage lived up to its name by bringing the whimsical, quirky, and wholesome Chicka Chicka Boom Boom: The Musical to open its 2026/2027 season. The programming was admirably intentional and centered on a mission to bridge children’s theater and literacy with a childhood favorite book. 

The musical is based on a long-standing champion in the children’s book market of the same name. The plot of the book is playfully simple: The lower-case letters climb a coconut tree in alphabetical order, but they take a tumble when they fail to fit the letter “Z.” Written by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault and illustrated by Lois Ehlert, it’s just the right jumble of bright colors, silly story, and practical application that equally entertains and teaches young readers. 

Musical writer Nina Meehan made sure to extend the fun, value, and substance of the narrative by being self-referential and centering the theme that words are what make up your world. There are frequent jokes to the tune of “How could we possibly make a whole song/story from the book? We get creative and make it up!”. The dialogue invited children to use their brains and voices in chants, improv suggestions, and a song and dance for the finale, which enlivened the theater. 

To build out the musical adaptation, Austin Zumbro created unique numbers for the clusters of letters. Each song explored a different genre and was packed with puns and alliteration. “LMNOP” personified as a pop group was particularly playful. The lyrics revealed the real importance of the letters and the ways you can play around with them. 

Stretching the 32-page picture book to fit a theater required a lot of creative supplementing. The stage started out littered with suitcases of every color that popped open to reveal puppets, props, and posters with pivotal words and letters. The stage magic of the tall coconut tree, the letters sticking to it, and its eventual collapse even surprised some of the adult audience. 

The performances of the actors were easily able to overcome the divide between being talented and professional enough for the adults yet animated and entertaining enough for the kids. Their overacting was necessary for the genre but didn’t get worn out because each scene was acted so distinctly and with range. Alexa Comeau, who portrayed the pivotal little “Z,” was especially zany and excitable, while Delvin James was a hyper yet grounded voice that kept the story moving. Each actor executed the frequent flurry of prop work and costume changes with careful chaos, and even if a set piece went astray, they corrected it discreetly. 

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom: The Musical was a lively, profound, and vibrant show for all the young theater-goers and their guardians. Imagination Stage even has an admirable initiative of giving free or reduced-priced tickets so that the most kids as possible could have access to the theater arts.

Bring your baby letters to Imagination Stage and climb the coconut tree until October 18th! 

Duration: 1 hour

Photo Credit: Truman Buffett

Reader Reviews

To post a comment, you must register and login.