Jump Street Frogz hops toward Cambridge BY SALLY CRAGIN

BOING. Boing. boing. Here come the frogs, and they’re supersized. Penguins, too — even human slinkies. Imago Theatre of Portland, Oregon, is bringing a pond’s worth of critters to the kinetic Frogz, which delighted New Yorkers of all ages in 2000 and 2002 and now makes its area debut this Tuesday courtesy of the American Repertory Theatre.

Jerry Mouawad and partner Carol Triffle created the show in the late 1970s, having been influenced by the gravity-defying movement work of famed French mime Jacques LeCoq. Triffle was his student assistant and completed his three-year program. "The Lecoq approach to everything is by observation," she says. "Looking at the space around you and what’s in that space. How the rhythm of that space would have a dynamic, and if anything were in that space, how that dynamic would shift or change with color, shapes, or creatures."

And so, when there’s a giant frog on stage, "You’d look at it like the architectural shape and the creature and take into account the dynamic rhythm of that creature." Mouawad adds, "We’re highly influenced by physical arts — we’re directors and designers, so we take into account space and architecture and color and composition. There’s a pretty high artistic æsthetic visually, and that’s what gives different layers to the audience."

If all that sounds rarefied, don’t worry — Imago productions are known for an antic, slapstick humor and an emotional reach that appeal to both children and adults. The founders choose their touring casts with care since neither appears on stage anymore. "The show is for people with younger legs," Mouawad observes, adding that "when we had auditions in New York, we said we need people who have the grace of a dancer, the depth of an actor, and the timing of a comedian. In any one particular piece, the kids could be laughing at the situation and the adults laughing at the same thing but seeing something deeper."

He points out that Lecoq embraced all theatrical traditions. "If you look toward Asian theater, kabuki and Japanese noh drama, most theater in Asia is from a long tradition. The kind of work we’re doing is total theater. But in the West, we separated those into ‘This is modern dance,’ ‘This is Albee, so it’s theater.’ I don’t know . . . what happens when you cross Albee with modern dance? Our show is about seeing the human condition through animals in a highly vaudevillian way. It’s a hard show to describe. Someone said it’s like going to the zoo, the circus, and an undiscovered planet all in one visit."

Frogz is presented by the American Repertory Theatre at Zero Arrow Theatre, corner of Arrow Street and Massachusetts Avenue in Harvard Square, June 21 through July 10. Tickets are $40 to $50, $10 discount for seniors, students, and ART subscribers, half-price for kids if purchased by June 20; all (617) 547-8300, or visit www.amrep.org