Get to Know the Cast of The Enormous Crocodile!

Taya Ming

The Enormous Crocodile

CTC: What is your favorite Roald Dahl story?

TM: My favorite story is Matilda!

CTC: Why is The Enormous Crocodile such a perfect choice for a stage musical adaptation?

TM: The Enormous Crocodile is so silly yet has such a great message of allyship, bravery, and resilience throughout.

CTC: What are you excited to experience in Minnesota?

TM: I’m excited to experience how the children here react to the show….and Eat Street!

CTC: Are there any personality traits of your character which resonate with you?’

TM: I resonate with ALL of Crocs personality traits! There are always times to be loud and boisterous, times to be greedy, times to be sneaky!

CTC: What is your favorite moment in the show?

TM: My favorite part of the show is when I first come on stage, it’s fun to get the reactions of the kids when they first see me, whether they laugh or cry!

CTC: What have you enjoyed the most about working on this production?

TM: I’ve enjoyed the journey of me figuring out what I can do the most. I’ve gained so much confidence through being Croc and it’s helped me recognize I can do so much more than I know.

CTC: What are you most excited for CTC audiences to experience with this show?

TM: I’m so excited for the young children to have some of their first experiences of theatre with us.

Nia Stephen

Trunky the Elephant and alternate The Enormous Crocodile

CTC: What is your favorite Roald Dahl story?

NS: Charlie and the great glass elevator

CTC: Why is The Enormous Crocodile such a perfect choice for a stage musical adaptation?

NS: It is SO creative!! bringing animals to life with puppets is so cool

CTC: What is your favorite moment in the show?

NS: The opening

CTC: What have you enjoyed the most about working on this production?

NS: Learning a new craft—puppetry!!

CTC: What are you most excited for CTC audiences to experience with this show?

NS: The music

Ryan Crellin-Simpson

Humpy Rumpy the Hippopotamus

CTC: What is your favorite Roald Dahl story?

RCS: My personal favorite book is The Twits. I like to see such wicked characters get their comeuppance in weird, wacky ways.

CTC: Why is The Enormous Crocodile such a perfect choice for a stage musical adaptation?

RCS: It’s perfect because all the animal characters really feel like real people who must overcome their fears to stand up to cruelty.

CTC: What is your favorite moment in the show?

RCS: My favorite moments are when the croc puts his secret plans into action! The way he’s does them is very clever.

CTC: What have you enjoyed the most about working on this production?

RCS: I think that the music is excellent, and it has been so fun learning it and bringing it to life.

CTC: What are you most excited for CTC audiences to experience with this show?

RCS: There are a lot of unexpected moments of theatre magic that I think will delight audience members of all ages.

CTC: Any other cool facts, tidbits, individualisms, etc. about you that you’d like to share?

RCS: One fun fact is that I based the character of Hamza on my own little cousin, Simon.

Siobhan Athwal

Muggle-Wump the Monkey and Movement Captain

CTC: What is your favorite Roald Dahl story?

SA: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Matilda!

CTC: Why is The Enormous Crocodile such a perfect choice for a stage musical adaptation?

SA: There is so much visual spectacular gratification. A real treat for the sense! It’s got an enormous amount of joy to play with.

CTC: What is your favorite moment in the show?

SA: When muggle rallies her troops and gets everyone to be as cheeky as her and throw nuts at the naughty crocodile!

CTC: What have you enjoyed the most about working on this production?

SA: Being in a team that effortlessly creates moments to grab the joys and sparky mischiefs.

CTC: What are you most excited for CTC audiences to experience with this show?

SA: For everyone to see themselves in at least one of the characters and be proud of that!

CTC: Any other cool facts, tidbits, individualisms, etc. about you that you’d like to share?

SA: I host epic kids parties!

Alison Arnopp

Roly Poly Bird

CTC: What is your favorite Roald Dahl story?

AA: I loved reading Matilda as a child. I used to practise telekinesis in the hopes that I too had some of the powers Matilda had. Once I made a pen disappear and reappear. I don’t know if my parents came in and took it while my back was turned or I just convinced myself it happened, but I like to think that maybe that day my powers worked!

CTC: Why is The Enormous Crocodile such a perfect choice for a stage musical adaptation?

AA: The story has just the right amount of adventure, danger, rebellion and teamwork that makes for a brilliant hour of fun.

CTC: What is your favorite moment in the show?

AA: I love the schoolchildren scenes! My character Mary is quite naughty and adventurous, two things I wasn’t as a young person. Interacting with the other schoolchildren characters in our humanette puppets is silly and lots of fun.

CTC: What have you enjoyed the most about working on this production?

AA: The people have been my favorite part. Everyone in the cast and creative team is so skilled and committed to making a great show and supportive environment. I feel like we are all weird in our own wonderful ways and we respect and appreciate each other’s uniqueness- so I feel very safe to be me!

CTC: What are you most excited for CTC audiences to experience with this show?

AA: The puppets that Toby designed are magical! They’re funny and cute and scary and even characters that appear for one or two lines have fully formed personalities (and names!). I’m excited for us to bring them to life and share all our silly character accents and silly senses of humour with the children of Minneapolis!

CTC: Any other cool facts, tidbits, individualisms, etc. about you that you’d like to share?

AA: I am very grateful that the team at The Enormous Crocodile have allowed me to keep my pink hair. Often as an actor you have to wear wigs or change hair to match whatever the role is but the team felt that my pink hair suited Roly Poly’s character and it makes me happy to feel like myself! I like to write silly songs in my spare time, especially about our cat Mister Broccoli Raspberry, but he is a streetcat we rescued and is deaf so he never gets to hear them!

Eleanor Ambekar

Swing

CTC: What is your favorite Roald Dahl story?

EA: Matilda

CTC: Why is The Enormous Crocodile such a perfect choice for a stage musical adaptation?

EA: The Enormous Crocodile is made special by the wonderful characters who all bring a unique dynamic to the stage. Together, they create a story full of silliness, adventure, and heart, which is made even better by singing, dancing, and puppets!

CTC: What is your favorite moment in the show?

EA: The song ‘Brave’. The song is beautifully written, and it is such a joy to see the characters come together to fight for what they believe in.

CTC: What have you enjoyed the most about working on this production?

EA: I have loved learning how to work with puppets! As a swing, I have the chance to use almost all of the puppets which has been an exciting and challenging experience. It is so fulfilling to embody a character by helping the puppets come to life.

CTC: What are you most excited for CTC audiences to experience with this show?

EA: I am so excited for both children and adults to experience the sheer joy and fun of this show, as it is written for every age group to enjoy. I hope that every member of the audience has as much fun as we are having onstage, and I hope we put a smile on people’s faces!

CTC: Any other cool facts, tidbits, individualisms, etc. about you that you’d like to share?

EA: I love reading about Ancient Greek mythology. My favorite character is Medusa!