Overview
Synopsis
1963, Lake Charles, Louisiana. While Martin Luther King Jr. is preaching and young demonstrators are marching, Caroline Thibodeaux, an African-American single mother of four, is underground, in the basement of the Gellman’s home, where nothing ever changes. Her company is the hum of the washer, the croon of the radio, the heat of the dryer, and -- occasionally -- 8-year-old Noah Gellman. Noah is a motherless boy who is unable to connect with either his eager-to-please stepmother, Rose, or his distant and grieving father, Stuart, and he idolizes Caroline. Rose decides that any change Noah leaves in his pants pockets can be taken by Caroline when she does the laundry. In response, Noah quietly deposits quarters in the bleach cup, hoping to somehow become a part of Caroline’s life. Caroline, loath to take money from a child, nevertheless needs to provide for her family, including the headstrong, rebellious, and hopeful Emmie.
From the quarters in the bleach cup to the protests in the streets, change is coming for Caroline, whether she wants it or not. Loosley inspired by remembrances of bookwriter and lyricist Tony Kushner’s own childhood as a young Jewish boy in Louisiana, Caroline, or Change is a breathtaking, original, through-sung musical that is both a glimpse at a moment in history and a powerful tour-de-force character study. Featuring music by Jeanine Tesori that runs the gamut from gospel to Motown to classical to Jewish folk and klezmer, Caroline, or Change is a remarkable addition to the contemporary musical theatre canon.
Show Information
- Book
- Tony Kushner
- Music
- Jeanine Tesori
- Lyrics
- Tony Kushner
- Conceived By
- Tony Kushner
- Category
- Musical
- Age Guidance
- Thirteen Plus (PG-13)
- Number of Acts
- 2
- First Produced
- 2003
- Genres
- Drama
- Settings
- Multiple Settings
- Time & Place
- lake charles, louisiana, 1963
- Cast Size
- large
- Orchestra Size
- Large
- Dancing
- Musical Staging
- Licensor
- Music Theatre International
- Ideal For
- Includes Adult, Late Teen, Young Adult, Child, Mature Adult Characters, Large Cast
Context
Caroline, or Change, Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori’s groundbreaking through-sung musical, was inspired by real events in Kushner’s youth. Like Noah Gellman, the play’s young protagonist, Kushner grew up Jewish in Lake Charles, Louisiana with an African-American maid. Kushner is quick to note, however, that Caroline, or Change is not an autobiography, but, instead, that “some of it is memory; some of it is misremembered. [It is] a mis-memory play.”
Caroline, or Change was conceived in
to read the context for Caroline, or Change and to unlock other amazing theatre resources!Plot
Act One
Caroline, an African-American maid in Lake Charles, Louisiana, is spending another long day doing the laundry for the Gellmans, the Jewish family for which she works (“16 Feet Beneath the Sea”). She turns on the Radio and the Laundry Machine (both personified by actors), and -- as they launch into life -- sits on the stairs to wait for the cycle and sings about her solitude and sorrows, (“The Radio”/”Laundry Quintet”). The Gellman’s son, Noah, comes down the stairs. He idolizes
to read the plot for Caroline, or Change and to unlock other amazing theatre resources!Characters
| Name | Part Size | Gender | Vocal Part |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Lead |
Female |
Mezzo-Soprano |
|
|
Supporting |
Female |
Mezzo-Soprano |
|
|
Supporting |
Male |
Baritone |
|
|
Supporting |
Male |
Countertenor |
|
|
Supporting |
Male |
Baritone |
|
|
Supporting |
Female |
Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano |
|
|
Supporting |
Female |
Mezzo-Soprano |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Tenor |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Tenor |
|
|
Featured |
Female |
Mezzo-Soprano |
|
|
Featured |
Female |
Soprano |
|
|
Featured |
Female |
Soprano |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Tenor |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Baritone |
|
|
Featured |
Female |
Mezzo-Soprano |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Baritone |
Songs
Act One
- 16 Feet Beneath The Sea — Caroline, The Washing Machine
- The Radio — The Radio
- Laundry Quintet— The Washing Machine, Caroline, The Radio
- Noah Down The Stairs — Noah
- The Cigarette — Noah and Caroline
- Laundry Finish— The Washing Machine, Caroline, The Radio
- The Dryer— The Dryer and The Radio
- I Got Four Kids— Caroline and The Dryer
- Caroline, There's Extra Food— Rose, Caroline and The Gellmans
- There Is No God, Noah— Stuart
- Rose Stopnick Can Cook— The Gellmans
- Long Distance— Rose
- Dotty and Caroline— Dotty and Caroline
- Moon Change— The Moon
- Moon Trio— Dotty, Caroline, and The Moon
- The Bus— The Bus
- That Can't Be— The Bus, Rose, Dotty and Caroline
- Noah and Rose— Rose and Noah
- Inside / Outside — The Moon, Noah and Rose
- JFK — Rose, Dotty, and Grandma & Grandma Gellman
- No One Waitin' — Emmie, Caroline, and The Radio
- 'Night Mamma — Emmie
- Gonna Pass Me A Law — Noah and Caroline
- Noah, Go To Sleep — Caroline
- Noah Has A Problem — Rose and Caroline
- Stuart and Noah — Stuart, Noah and Rose
- Quarter In The Bleach Cup — Caroline and Noah
- Caroline Takes My Money Home — Noah, Caroline, Emmie, Jackie and Joe
- Roosevelt Petrucius Coleslaw — Emmie, Noah, Jackie, Joe, Caroline and The Moon
Act Two
- Santa Comin' Caroline — The Radio
- Little Reward — The Radio, The Washing Machine, and Caroline
- 1943 — Caroline, The Washing Machine, and The Radio
- Mr. Gellman's Shirt — Rose and Caroline
- Ooh Child — The Washing Machine and The Radio
- Rose Recovers — Rose, The Dryer and Caroline
- I Saw Three Ships — Emmie, Jackie, Joe and Caroline
- The Chanukah Party — The Gellmans, Caroline, and Emmie
- Dotty and Emmie — Dotty and Emmie
- I Don't Want My Child To Hear That — Caroline, Mr. Stopnick
- Mr. Stopnick and Emmie — Mr. Stopnick and Emmie
- Kitchen Fight — Caroline, Emmie, and Dotty
- A Twenty Dollar Bill and Why — Mr. Stopnick
- I Hate The Bus — Emmie
- Moon, Emmie and Stuart Trio — The Moon, Emmie, Stuart
- The Twenty Dollar Bill — Noah, The Gellmans
- Caroline and Noah FIght — Caroline, The Dryer and Noah
- Aftermath — Rose, Stuart, Mr. Stopnick and Noah
- Sunday Morning — Caroline and Dotty
- Lot's Wife — Caroline
- Salty Teardops — The Radio
- Why Does Our House Have A Basement? — Noah, Rose, and Caroline
- Underwater — Caroline
- Epilogue — Emmie
A song with an asterisk (*) before the title indicates a dance number; a character listed in a song with an asterisk (*) by the character's name indicates that the character exclusively serves as a dancer in this song, which is sung by other characters.
Monologues
Scenes
Key Terms
Sorry! We do not currently have terms for this guide.
Videos
Quizzes
Sorry! We do not currently have quizzes for this guide.
Themes, Symbols & Motifs
Sorry! We do not currently have learning modules for this guide.
Quote Analysis
Sorry! We do not currently have learning modules for this guide.
Guide Written By:
