Trixie True, Teen Detective is an Off-Broadway musical with book, music and lyrics by American playwright and composer Kelly Hamilton. It was the first musical to employ the post-modern comedic style[citation needed] then being explored on television by such shows as Saturday Night Live and SCTV. Set in New York City in 1944, the musical centers on hack writer Joe Sneed, who is employed to write a series of books similar to the Nancy Drew mysteries. Under the watchful eye of his iron willed boss Miss Snood, Joe cranks out "The Secret of the Tapping Shoes," which comes to life on stage. The show within the show features teenage sleuth Trixie True and her chums, who sing and dance their way through soda shops, tap studios, a Big Broadcast, and a mystery involving German spies, World War II and a submerged submarine.
The musical opened on December 4, 1980 at The Lucille Lortel Theater, then known as The Theater De Lys, in New York City. Producers of the show were Doug Cole, Joe Novak, Joseph Butt and Spencer Tandy. It was directed by Bill Gile, musical staging and choreography by Arthur Faria, and designed by Michael J. Hotopp and Paul De Passe. Costumes were by David Toser and orchestrations by Eddie Sauter.
