Don't Miss It: 5 Madison Lyric Stage Performances Of 'Pippin' Left

MADISON, CT —Many stories honored by time often tell of a journey, a search, for oneself, one's home, one's purpose. In Stephen Schwartz’s musical comedy Pippin, the search is a young man's "quest for significance."

The Tony award-winning musical, presented by Madison Lyric Stage, is described as a "carnival-themed production." The 1972 musical is based on a book by Roger O. Hirson, with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, and the show's Broadway director Bob Fosse contributing to the libretto.

There's just five more performances inside Madison Lyric Stage's "brand new big-top tent" at the Deacon John Grave House through Sunday. Tickets are $55 and are available at madisonlyricstage.org. Performances are Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m., and 7:30 p.m., and Sunday at 4 p.m.

The award-winning musical uses the premise of a mysterious performance troupe, led by the Leading Player (Jamal Green), to tell the story of Pippin, a young prince on his search for meaning and significance. The protagonist Pippin (Cedric Gegel) and his father Charlemagne (John Johmann) are characters derived from two real-life individuals of the early Middle Ages.

Pippin becomes a soldier for his father’s army, but is upset by the killing – and murders his father to stop the war. Now King himself, he is even more lost and unsure about what he wants in life and turns away from everything, including love, before discovering that what he has been searching for has been there all along.