The Canadian folk-rock trio Barenaked Ladies is taking on a whole new audience with a children’s show they’re calling Holiday Whiz.
The show follows an envelope-pushing storyline that’s reminiscent of the Disney film Frozen.
“We did a show called Spinwheel, and we played some of our songs and then we flipped our words and the whole thing came about,” Barenaked Ladies lead singer and songwriter Ed Robertson tells Rolling Stone.
“So we basically kind of turned our guitars on and went back to back in a ridiculous way with extremely complicated, complicated words. And it was so much fun. I think it was so fun we ended up doing it twice more, which was ridiculous,” he adds.
“So there’s a story line and the stories are basically exactly what Frozen is. They’re 70 percent the same. So it’s basically two girls, one girl is a little girl who wants to build a snowman, the other one is kind of a judge who loves being annoyed and frustrated. It’s really just a musical,” Roberston says.
“Our message’s hopefully something they’ll take with them into the world after the show,” Roberston adds. “And then it’s also kind of a little music video for us, so it’s a very fun and funny show.”
The one-hour show, which comes on the heels of the band’s tenth album, is the first production for the Bandana 5th and new Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
“I mean, we got the advice that the prime minister would just be happy for us to be out there doing the one-hour show, so that’s really the most important thing.” Robertson says.
It’s Bieber! Bieber! Bieber! Come in, come in, now! Feel the warm feeling! #SpringBreakStyle | Official #BarenakedLadies Official Tour Costumes are available now on @Bandana5th pic.twitter.com/S1FzjctS9B — Barenaked Ladies (@BarenakedLadies) March 8, 2019
The singer-songwriter adds that playing to kids is another aspect that’s been a little bit of a mystery for the band over the years.
“We’ve played to kids a little bit, but we didn’t do a full-on kids show with the lyrics being flipped around like this, where you’re playing the song backwards, switching all the words around and then switching back so you go back and forth and add a whole different story,” Robertson says.
Aside from the whimsical stories of the holiday-themed show, it also has a Jonas Brothers-esque musical element, with all the Barenaked Ladies playing various instruments and boy band backing tracks.
“There’s a ballad that goes along with everything, which is about kids, which is one of the songs. And then it’s basically like like an all-instrumental piano show where we’re covering everything. It’s really fun,” Robertson says.
Other shows include a selection of songs from its latest album, Ballads, and a timeless Barenaked Ladies classic, John Lennon’s Happiness is a Warm Gun.
“I do a little bit of mine and then we’re all sort of swapping it back and forth. So it’s kind of a couple of jukebox musicals that we’re going to play, which is a good old Canadian tradition. We know a lot of people who are a little bit crazy about our show over here,” Robertson says.
“It’s amazing that people in other countries find us and they will immediately associate us with that. So it’s pretty surreal.”
The Barenaked Ladies are performing holiday Whiz at the CAA Theatre in Toronto on 14 June. Tickets are on sale now.