Performance Now brings the popular musical to the big stage at Lakewood Cultural Center
Seussical is a bright, tune-filled musical being brought to life by Performance Now Theatre Company. The well-loved show is currently dancing its way across the stage at Lakewood Cultural Center. Based on the children’s book “Horton Hears a Who” as well as many other stories by the prolific Dr. Seuss, it skews toward an audience of children and young people but still is fun for adults.
With music/book by Stephen Flaherty and lyrics/book by Lynn Ahrens, Seussical has no fewer than 33 musical numbers performed in the relatively short two-hour presentation. This lively production is co-directed by Victoria Holloway and Kelly Van Oosbree with musical director, Heather Iris Holt and moves swiftly from start to finish with an impressive cast of 19.
The storyline is extremely involved, and at times may be confusing for someone without a serious background in Dr. Seuss. The action opens when a young boy, JoJo (Sarah Atkinson), discovers a bright red and white hat, center stage, belonging to Cat in the Hat (Chris Boeckx) who moves the story along as narrator and tour guide.
Enter Horton (Joshua Harris), who discovers a speck of dust that turns out to be a planet inhabited by Whos, living in Who-ville. Kangaroo (Nancy Evans Begley) and the other animals of the forest taunt Horton for protecting the speck of dust. In the meantime, we are introduced to some of Horton’s bird-friend neighbors Gertrude (Sarah Forman) and Mayzie (Brekken Baker). It is Gertrude who falls in love with Horton, however, she feels inadequate for having only a single feather for a tail. She manages to correct this shortcoming — much to the delight of the audience.
Chris Boeckx plays the Cat in the Hat in ‘Seussical’ | Photo: RDGPhotography
JoJo, reunited with his parents, is sent to military school by Mr. and Mrs. Mayor (Adam Luhrs, Bethany Luhrs) where he meets Horton and they become fast friends. Mayzie talks Horton into sitting on her egg that she is too lazy to hatch herself and leaves on vacation while Horton is captured by hunters as he contemplates his time on the egg.
Horton is sold to a circus and continues to sit on and protect the unborn bird. Gertrude rescues Horton from the circus and proclaims her love for him. They return to the jungle where Horton goes on trial for disturbing the speck of dust earlier and he is initially found guilty, but later acquitted. Happily, the egg finally hatches, and Horton and Gertrude agree to raise the elephant/bird together.
The strength of the production lies within the excellent cast that has been assembled. Standouts include Boeckx as Cat in the Hat, Atkinson as JoJo, Harris as Horton, Forman as Gertrude and Baker doing Mayzie a rib-tickling comedic turn.
As directed by Holloway and Van Oosbree the action is swift and energetic. To their credit, they have managed to squeeze nearly as much as reasonably possible into two hours with a jam-packed storyline and still have it make sense. Van Oosbree’s choreography is also a highlight of the production. Vocally the production is top-notch with Holt as the music director, however, the music and lyrics were not especially memorable, although they served the production adequately.
Produced by Performance Now Theatre Company, Seussical is a great way to honor the life of Dr. Seuss by turning his work into a musical. At times it felt a bit overwhelming and at other times it was totally delightful. As always, with Performance Now, the production is well done and a sure treat for an audience of true Seuss aficionados.
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