In 2005, the book was turned into a full production of the opera, with libretto by Tony Kushner adapted from Hoffmeister's. Sendak and Kris Stone designed the sets and Robin I. Shane designed the costumes for the new production. The opera premiered at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre where it was performed along with another short Czech opera, "Comedy on the Bridge", with music by Bohuslav Martinů and libretto by Tony Kushner adapted from Václav Kliment Klicpera. The opera then moved to the New Victory Theater for its Off-Broadway New York premiere, and "Comedy on the Bridge" was replaced with a new Kushner play, "But the Giraffe". "But the Giraffe" was about a young girl who was faced with the difficult decision of taking her beloved stuffed giraffe or her uncle's "Brundibár" score. It served as a curtain raiser for "Brundibár". In 2005 and 2011, the children's opera was performed at the Victory Theatre in Evansville, Indiana.