A Kid's Life (lost footage of children’s musical; 2004-2007)

Poster promoting the show.

Status: Lost

A Kid's Life was a touring children's musical that premiered sometime in 2004 and toured throughout the United States. Despite the show being performed for a handful of years, the show never saw a home video release and very little footage of the show is still available today.

Plot, Cast and Crew

According to Playbill^[1], the show's plot "follows Zack, an adorable five-year old boy and his golden retriever and best friend, Starsky. Together, they embark on a fun-filled adventure through their hometown where they befriend Zoe, a spunky five-year old girl who is new to town and rather shy. Over the course of the day, Zack and Zoe encounter many new friends: from a talking clock who teaches them the importance of time, to a beautiful owl who reminds them that animals have feelings too, to an orange tree that gives them a deeper appreciation of nature. Mr. Sullivan, the corner store clerk, joins the fun by showing them just how wonderful A Kid’s Life! can be!" The article also lists the adult cast and their respective characters. Notably listed is Kaitlyn Becker^[2] as Bells, who is known for being the host of the Sprout show, Sunny Side Up. Based on New York Theatre Guide^[3], the show was directed by Keith Markinson with the book being written by Cynthia Riddle and Peter Hunziker. Playbill says Riddle and Hunziker were known for their work on the Nickelodeon shows Rugrats, The Wild Thornberrys, and All Grown Up. NYTimes^[4] states that the show was "more like a participatory concert" and that the score and lyrics were provided by children’s songwriter Corey Leland, whose website from November 26, 2004^[5], is the oldest source of the show available and states Keith Markinson was also the owner of the company that owned the show.

Availability and Promotions

The show’s soundtrack has been released on Spotify ^[6] and a Facebook page ^[7] promoting the show also exists and contains clips and photos from the show. The account also promotes a Club Penguin like game based on the show^[8]. The Facebook account has been inactive since June 2010.

Locations of performances

The NYTimes article states the show was performed at the St. Peter's Church in New York City and a video on the show's Facebook page has the cast doing meet and greets outside of the Wadsworth Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Another location where the show was performed was the YMCA Boulton Center in Bay Shore, New York in March of 2007^[9].

Possible rights holder

The artwork for the soundtrack as well as the Spotify page mentions a company called Echo Productions LLC. On the company directory website BizStanding^[10], Keith Markinson is listed as the president of a company referred to as Echo Post Inc, which is likely an alternate name for the previous company. The website also lists the company's former addresses and a registration date of May 2, 2002.

Corey Leland's response

Article creator Layer Cake made contact with Corey Leland after the article was created. Leland stated that he was the first person hired for the show and wrote half of the show's soundtrack before being hired to write the remaining songs after impressing Markinson. He also said, "As for "A Kids Life" being "lost media" it never was...I was hired to write a new batch of songs to infuse into the show and a third U.S. tour was in the making but the economic downturn of 2008 had investors pull out and the tour, as so many were, was cancelled. My rising career as a songwriter/lyrics for the kids/family market sent me back into obscurity. It's great to hear that you remember the show for the wonderful piece of art it was. But it never was available in any kind of video format."

Scrapped remake/sequel

A blogpost^[11] (possibly by Leland) states that a follow-up or remake to the show titled A Kid's Life Goes to School was planned and was meant to be performed at an undisclosed theater in New York for one week in November 2008, before going on tour across the United States in 2009. The plot synopsis on the post reads "Zack, Zoe and all of your favorite characters from A Kid’s Life are back in A Kid’s Life Goes To School!. This exciting new musical takes our favorite characters to class. With upbeat music, dazzling dance, and engaging new characters. The loveable cast of characters include Bella the Kind Owl, Old Ben the wise clock, and Bart the talking orange tree, Mr. Sullivan the local store clerk, and Starsky, Zack’s lovable golden retriever all return to teach the value of friendship, teamwork, exercise, creative thinking, and the importance of taking care of the environment!" This version of the show was never completed due to the 2008 Recession.