Kids Incorporated (Seasons 1-9)

The series revolves around a group of children and teenagers who performed in their own rock group, Kids Incorporated. They struggled to deal with issues ranging from schoolyard crushes to peer pressure to child abuse, while performing regularly at a local former musical club (now a kids' hangout) called The P*lace (called "The Malt Shop" in the pilot on September 7, 1983). It had originally been named The Palace and had been a theater where, supposedly, the biggest names in entertainment, such as Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra, had once performed. But the first "a" in the neon sign burned out and was never replaced. It was never explained how the group funded or profited from their performances, but the show did not aim for strict realism. The action took place on abstract "stagey" sets and the plots involved many fantasy elements, such as the group meeting a robot (Season 1, Episode 10), a runaway princess (Season 1, Episode 6) and even a wise-cracking bicycle (Season 1, Episode 17). In addition to their performances on stage, the group would break into song when they were off-stage (much like in a stage musical).