Courtesy of Denise Gallagher
It’s not often that someone finds their niche in fairy tales, but that’s exactly what artist, author, and, most recently, producer Denise Gallagher has done. Gallagher’s fanciful illustrations evoke the enchantment and mystery of Grimm’s fairy tales and fables from days of yore. It’s no wonder she long dreamed of bringing her stories beyond the page. As she puts it, “I wanted to create something that accompanied the music in my head.” And that’s precisely what she’s achieved with her children’s book, A Tip Tap Tale, which has now blossomed into a musical.
In A Tip Tap Tale, readers follow the adventures of Bouzou, a mud-brown hound dog from Louisiana, as he journeys from the swamp to the glittering stages of New Orleans—accompanied by Gallagher’s use of alliteration and jazzy rhythms.
“There has always been a tiny part of me deep down inside that wondered what it would be like to see one of my stories grow beyond the page and become something even grander,” said Gallagher. This dream began to take shape when she met Allison Brandon, the owner of Wonderland Performing Arts, in the fall of 2023. Their meeting sparked the idea of transforming A Tip Tap Tale into a musical, a concept that was soon backed by an ArtSpark Grant from the Acadiana Center for the Arts.
The grant, funded by the Lafayette Economic Development Authority and the National Endowment for the Arts, aims to support individual artists by pushing them to explore new creative avenues. For Gallagher, this grant was the key to turning her dream into reality. “The application process made me think about every detail of the project,” Gallagher said. “Once I received the grant, I hit the ground running, knowing I had a lot to do before the musical’s debut.”
Gallagher, who was new to writing for the stage, immersed herself in the world of children’s theater, studying various productions and reimagining her story as a series of scenes, each with its own musical number. To bring her vision to life, she collaborated with Colin Smith, a talented musician who infused the show with a lively Louisiana spirit. “He took my lyrics and my tone-deaf tunes and worked magic,” said Gallagher, highlighting the collaborative nature of the project.
The stage adaptation of A Tip Tap Tale also saw some significant changes from the original book. In the musical, the character of the Flea takes on a much larger role, serving as both a narrator and a central character with his own song number.
The performance, produced with Wonderland Performing Arts and premiered on August 31, was not just a culmination of Gallagher’s creative journey, but also a testament to the power of collaboration and community support. The production has brought together a talented cast of fourteen young actors, as well as a dedicated crew of designers and directors, all working together to bring this enchanting story to life.
Looking ahead, Gallagher is excited about the possibilities that this project has opened up for her. With a picture book and a middle-grade novel currently under submission, and a top-secret book project in the works, she’s not ruling out the potential for more theatrical endeavors. She admitted, “I think I may have caught the theater bug!”
Learn more about Gallagher and A Tip Tap Tale: The Musical at denisegallagher.com.
