This is the story of a family of four who are frozen in time.”Walt Spangler’s China nylon wheels Manufacturers  evocative sets are anchored by a massive tree, whose bark looks like huge wood shavings. Another musical, “Finding Neverland,” tells the origin story of Peter Pan, the boy who wouldn’t grow up. Here’s a section of “The Wheel,” sung by one of the eternals: “You can’t have living without dying/So you can’t call this living what we got/We just are, we just be/No before, no beyond/A rowboat anchored in the middle of a pond. Nicholaw, who also did the choreography, adds the ensemble gentle dancing in the background to scenes. Humor wonderfully leavens the weighty issues.

Everyone gets a song and some of the standouts are “Good Girl Winnie Foster,” ‘’Everlasting” and “The Wheel.The “Tuck Everlasting” adapters — Tony Award nominee Claudia Shear and author Tim Federle — have smartly made some changes that open the short novel up.Nicholaw has three hit shows running concurrently — “The Book of Mormon,” ‘’Aladdin” and “Something Rotten!” — and his fourth is this adaptation of the 1975 young adult book by Natalie Babbitt.Babbitt’s book is about a young girl in the 1880s who befriends a unique family that has gained immortality.

Tuck Everlasting,” the new musical that deals with eternal life, has wisely been put in the hands of someone whose work on Broadway never seems to die — director Casey Nicholaw.”)The music by Chris Miller is magical, grounded in folk, foot-pounding earthy beats and soaring melodies. (One of its branches reaches across the stage, sturdy enough to hold two performers. “I just cleaned. Long may it live.) Twinkling fireflies and a croaking rubber frog make the outdoors even more magical.”Nathan Tysen’s lyrics are even better — delving into complex themes with elegance. Poignancy mixes well with humor, the songs are fresh and sweet, the set is blissful and the performances honest. Like the others, it’s in great hands.

Theatre is wonderfully crafted, a Nicholaw hallmark.An overly hectic first song laying out the narrative stumbles, but the show soon rights itself, continues strongly and ending with a blissful, wordless ballet that caused many sniffles at a recent preview. They’ve killed off the girl’s dad to let her experience loss, added a circus-like fair and created comedy by producing or enhancing minor characters.It’s a quirky story, but the musical’s cast and creative team have done it justice, particularly Nicholaw, who has masterfully shaped a lovely night of theater. Terrence Mann Tuck Everlasting,” the new musical that deals with eternal life, has wisely been put in the hands of someone whose work on Broadway never seems to die — director Casey Nicholaw