Disney's My Son Pinocchio: Geppetto's Musical Tale

and My Son Pinocchio Jr. - stage musicals with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz

(formerly titled Geppetto and Son).

ON THIS PAGE: Show info, licensing, songs, CD, cast, history, photos

This retelling of the classic tale of Pinocchio, told from the perspective of his maker and father Geppetto, realizes timely issues in Disney's My Son Pinocchio. Grammy Award-winner and master song writer Stephen Schwartz adds a charming and compelling score of original songs to the beloved classics "When You Wish Upon a Star" and "I've Got No Strings," that appeared in the original Walt Disney film Pinocchio from 1940.

You will encounter the Blue Fairy, Stromboli and a lively cast of characters as Geppetto journeys beyond his village Toy Shop to discover what makes an ideal child, and the deepening of parent-child relationships.

The show features songs by Academy and Grammy Award-winning songwriter Stephen Schwartz, and book by David Stern. It premiered under its former name Disney's Geppetto & Son at The Coterie Theatre, Kansas City, MO June 27 to August 6, 2006.

PHOTO from the Coterie production: Pinocchio (Alex Peterson) turns into a real boy in Disney's GEPPETTO & SON. Also pictured: Geppetto (Charles Fugate). (Photo: Marianne Kilroy)

This family musical is appropriate for all audiences of all ages and is an enchanting blend of heartfelt fairytale and adventure. Following Pinocchio's journey from an ungainly wooden puppet to a real, live boy is a story audiences will adore and all will be captivated by Geppetto's transformation from demanding craftsman taskmaster to a live and compassionate father.

Photo: Jessalyn Kincaid as the Blue Fairy in the world premiere of Disney's Geppetto & Son by Stephen Schwartz and David Stern, directed by Jeff Church; at the Coterie Theatre in Kansas City, Mo. Performing now through August 6. Photo by Mark Coffey/Coterie Theatre

Disney's My Son Pinocchio Licensing, Cast, Costumes

My Son Pinocchio Licensing (Formerly Disney's Geppetto and Son)

Music Theatre International: Disney's My Son Pinocchio provides My Son Pinocchio Licensing for theatre groups to license, and further information about the show, including links to sources for costumes and set materials. Note: The "Bravo Stromboli" song is the most difficult song, and you will need a strong singer for the part of Stromboli.

Disney's My Son Pinocchio Jr. Licensing etc

My Son Pinocchio Jr My Son Pinocchio Jr at Disney Theatrical

Licensing for this shorted version of My Son Pinocchio, known as the Jr. Version, offers plenty of support for your productions, with 2 rehearsal CDs, a choreography DVD, and a parent guide. It is designed for a cast of 12 or more with 5 Male / 1 Female / Ensemble roles.

Geppetto DVD

Geppetto - at Amazon.com DVD Disney TV version. Watch the stars perform the roles in this charming tale: Drew Carey (Geppetto), Julia Louis-Dreyfus (the blue fairy), Brent Spiner (Stromboli), and more. Brent Spiner's rendition of "Bravo Stramboli" is not to be missed. Known for his role as the beloved android Data on the television series "Star Trek: The Next Generation," here he displays a tremedous operatic baritone voice.

My Son Pinocchio Songs by Stephen Schwartz - Song list

Geppetto (2000 TV Soundtrack) - Hear many of the songs on this sountrack. The new musical has a few different songs.

The songs on the original soundtrack: Once Upon A Time / When You Wish Upon A Star, Toys, Empty Heart, And Son, Just Because It's Magic, I've Got No Strings, Bravo, Stromboli, Toys (Reprise), Satisfaction Guaranteed, Just Because It's Magic (Reprise), Pleasure Island, And Son (Reprise), Since I Gave My Heart Away, Since I Gave My Heart Away - Sonya Isaacs (single version)

MY SON PINOCCHIO THE MUSICAL - SONGS

ACT ONE

"When You Wish Upon a Star" - This is from the original motion picture - Disney's Pinocchio, with rights arranged for My Son Pinocchio

"Toys" [for lyrics Toys page]

"Empty Heart"

"Rise and Shine"

"Geppetto and Son"

"Rise and Shine #2 and #3"

"When You Wish Upon a Star - Reprise"

"I've Got No Strings" This is from the original motion picture - Disney's Pinocchio, with rights arranged for My Son Pinocchio

"Bravo Stromboli"

"Just Because It's Magic"

ACT TWO

"Satisfaction Guaranteed"

"Bravo Stromboli - Reprise"

"Pleasure Island"

"Geppetto and Son - Whale Reprise"

"Since I Gave My Heart Away"

Lyrics for the song Since I Gave My Heart Away give some idea of the emotional impact of the story.

Another song list

Songs: When You Wish Upon A Star (Part 1) 
[Rosa, Viola, Arancia, Sue, The Blue Fairy]

When You Wish Upon A Star (Part 2) 
[Rosa, Viola, Arancia, Sue, The Blue Fairy]

Toys 
[Geppetto, Town Children, Town Mothers, Town Fathers]

Empty Heart 
[Geppetto]

Rise and Shine (Part 1) 
[Rosa, Viola, Arancia, Sue]

Geppetto and Son (Part 1) 
[Geppetto, Pinocchio]

Geppetto and Son (Part 2) 
[Geppetto]

Rise and Shine (Part 2) 
[Rosa, Viola, Arancia, Sue]

Geppetto and Son (Part 3) 
[Geppetto, Pinocchio]

Rise and Shine (Part 3) 
[Rosa, Viola, Arancia, Sue]

Geppetto and Son (Part 4) 
[Geppetto]

When You Wish Upon A Star (Reprise) 
[Pinocchio]

Geppetto’s Music Box
[Geppetto]

I’ve Got No Strings 
[Pinocchio, Marionettes]

Bravo Stromboli 
[Stromboli, Marionettes]

Just Because It’s Magic 
[The Blue Fairy, Rosa, Viola, Arancia, Sue]

Satisfaction Guaranteed (Part 1) 
[Talia, Maria, Professore Buonragazzo]

Satisfaction Guaranteed (Part 2) 
[Boy 1]

Satisfaction Guaranteed (Part 3) 
[Boy 2, Junior, Professore Buonragazzo, Company]

Bravo Stromboli (Reprise) 
[Stomboli, Marionettes]

Pleasure Island (Part 1) 
[Ringleader, Roustabouts]

Pleasure Island (Part 2) 
[Ringleader]

Geppetto and Son (Whale Reprise) 
[Geppetto, Pinocchio]

Since I Gave My Heart Away (Part 1) 
[Geppetto,Fairies in Training]

Since I Gave My Heart Away (Part 2) 
[Geppetto,The Blue Fairy, Company]

Bows 
[Company]

Cast for My Son Pinocchio - the full version

Cast size:	Medium (11-20)
Cast Type:	Children in Cast, Ensemble Cast - Many featured roles, Older Role(s), Showcases trained dancers, Strong/Large Chorus
Dance requirement:	Heavy (Extensive Dance Sections/Solos)
Casting notes:	Blue Fairy Geppetto Pinocchio Stromboli Buonragazzo Ringleader Ensemble

Geppetto / Geppetto and Son / My Son Pinocchhio Development - Show history

David Stern and Stephen Schwartz at the Coterie Theatre production.

Notes by Carol de Giere for Schwartz Scene 24 Summer 2006 newsletter

David Stern and Stephen Schwartz had completed Disney's Geppetto, a made-for-TV film, in time for its airing date in 2000. Several years later, the idea for a stage musical adaptation came up of during discussions with Stephen Schwartz and representatives from Music Theatre International (MTI). Schwartz says, "In a meeting with MTI, they said it would be good for us to have something with a minimal number of adults and an infinite number of children." Immediately he thought of adapting Disney's Geppetto to stage.

Book writer David Stern discovered a child-appropriate way to make the show stage worthy. Stern begins with Geppetto's challenge to the Blue Fairy, and allows the rest of the story to be a kind of proof of Pinocchio's value. As with the film, when Pinocchio runs away to become a star in a traveling show, Geppetto must negotiate through maze of adventures and comic encounters to find him.

Schwartz said in production notes for Geppetto and Son: "I believe Disney's Geppetto & Son is a show that is entertaining while at the same time dealing with such important themes as individuality, self-esteem and the relation of parents and children. I am pleased that the Coterie Theatre feels this is an important work. I have written several other shows and films that I believe have had a positive impact on young audiences, such as Disney's Pocahontas, Godspell, Children of Eden, and the current Broadway show Wicked. I believe Disney's Geppetto & Son is a strong addition to this group."

He has also said: "I was working with Stern on another project and David mentioned he had the idea of doing a show based on looking at the Pinocchio story from the father's [Geppetto's] point of view," Schwartz said in notes. "I found the idea compelling, so together we approached Disney. David and I were interested in exploring the idea of fatherhood and what it means to be father."

In Disney's Geppetto & Son, the co-creators have kept the callous puppeteer Stromboli (from the first film), whose song is an operatic tenor recitative, and have also invented Professor Buonragazzo who "designs" perfect, made-to-order offspring, and the Ring Leader who turns children into donkeys. The show now incorporates a new song not included in the original Disney "Geppetto" movie along with "When You Wish Upon a Star" and "I've Got No Strings" from the original Disney "Pinocchio" movie.

To stay informed about Schwartz's work, subscribe to The Schwartz Scene

Stephen Schwartz and the father theme

Stephen Schwartz often writes about father-son relationships. Children of Eden includes father-son issues at its heart. Schwartz wrote a song for Working called "Fathers and Sons." My Son Pinocchio offers another take on the relationship.

In the biography Defying Gravity: The Creative Career of Stephen Schwartz, from Godspell to Wicked, you can read about Schwartz's experiences as a son of Stan Schwartz and father of Scott Schwartz, as well as his creative experiences writing his shows.

Pinocchio origins

The original story was by Carlo Collodi (the pen-name of Carlo Lorenzini (1826-90)). The son of a cook and a servant, Carlo was born and raised in Florence, Italy, and became a writer for newspapers, and later for both fiction and non-fiction books. After translating some French fairytales, he decided to write his own.

In 1881, he sent to a friend a short episode in the life of a wooden puppet. The friend worked for a newspaper, and Carlo asked if his editor would consider publishing this "bit of foolishness" in his children's section. The editor did, and the children loved it. The adventures of Pinocchio were serialized in the paper in 1881-2, and then published in 1883 with huge success. The fist English-language version was just as successful on its publication in 1892.

The 1940 Walt Disney cartoon helped the Pinocchio story bocame a standard tale that most children hear.

Nore for those finding this page by search engine: Geppetto is sometimes mis-typed as Gepetto or Geppeto and Pinocchio may be mis-typed as Pinoccio