‘Children of Eden’ musical rooted in faith

WARREN — Greg Trzaskoma, the artistic director of Warren Civic Theatre, believes some audience members who attend the troupe’s 2023 summer show will “have a spiritual experience.”

The talented cast of WCT will perform the musical “Children of Eden” Aug. 4-6 at the Warren Community Center Auditorium, located at 5460 Arden Ave.

“Children Of Eden” is based on the Book of Genesis in the Bible, with Act 1 telling the story of Adam and Eve, and Cain and Abel. Act 2 is based on Noah’s Ark. Stephen Schwartz (“Pippin,” “Godspell”) composed the music and lyrics; John Caird is the playwright.

WCT performs several plays throughout the year. According to Trzaskoma, cast members from past shows suggested the group consider “Children of Eden.”

“It’s a relatively unknown play but it’s one of the most produced musicals in North America in the last 25 years, according to the company that licenses these things to us,” said Trzaskoma, 57, of Warren. “With the summer musical, we have an open casting policy. Anybody that tries out is in the show.”

Because of the large cast, some roles were double cast meaning two different performers are in the same role in either the “opening cast” or the “closing cast.”  The opening cast performs at 7 p.m. Aug. 4 and 2 p.m. Aug. 5. The closing cast performs at 7 p.m. Aug. 5 and 2 p.m. Aug. 6.

Some players are in all the shows, including Clawson resident Michelle Colosi, cast in the role of “Father,” who is the representation of God in the story.

“We are treating it more as an androgynous spiritual being as opposed to a gendered human being as often portrayed,” said Colosi, 41. “People know the story obviously from the biblical stories.”

Colosi believes parents will be able to relate to “Children of Eden.”

“It’s the story of God as this overall parent to all humankind going through different stages of being so excited about creating the world and then realizing, as parents, your kids aren’t always going to do what you tell them to do,” Colosi said. “You have to let them be and have their free will and choice. You have to be there for them and hope they make the right choices.”

Colosi has performed in several WCT productions. Her husband Joe Colosi is the theater’s associate artistic director, and their sons Ben and Henry have performed in shows as well. In “Children of Eden,” Ben performs in the closing cast as young Abel.

“What drew me to this show is that I love Warren Civic Theatre and I wanted to do the summer show,” Colosi said. “I don’t know the show, so it was an opportunity to learn about it. There are a lot of people who really, really love it and talk about the music, so it was like, ‘I’m going to check this out.’”

Trzaskoma and company had concerns that a faith-based play might deter people.

“We’ve had people contact us that expressed disappointment that a community group is doing a play that has a religious basis. They feel left out, excluded,” Trzaskoma said. “We’ve had other people contact us and say the play is not religious enough. We’ve had a very large group in the middle.

“This isn’t so much a play about thou shalt and indoctrination as it is about asking questions and some surprising things going on within the play,” Trzaskoma said. “These are familiar stories of Adam and Eve, of Cain and Abel, and Noah and the ark across a lot of different faiths. The way these stories are told within this play, some of our cast members and some of our audience members are going to have some sort of religious experience. Also, there are a lot of folks that are going to get an artistic experience in this play.”

There are several people behind the scenes working on the show, including Kat Schneider, the assistant director and stage manager.

“I think the music is really, really wonderful,” the 28-year-old Rochester resident said. “It’s a family show. People are going to enjoy it. I think they’re really going to feel something with this.”

Along with the story, audience members will be treated to song-and-dance numbers that include “Let There Be” and “Generations.” “Lost in the Wilderness” is Schneider’s favorite number in the show.

“That one is always in my head,” she said.

“For my character, I love ‘The Hardest Part of Love,’” Colosi said. “It’s a duet Father sings with Noah and it’s all about that journey as a parent.”

Tickets for “Children of Eden” are available at warrencivic.org. General admission seating is $6-$18. Doors open 30 minutes prior to curtain.