Seussical

This was my first visit to the Devonport Playhouse and what a gem of a theatre you have. I would like to say a big thank you to Angela Collins, your President for her time and extensive knowledge of your past and present exploits. It was lovely to have the background of your group explained to us. What a wealth of knowledge and skills she has, you are a very lucky group to have someone with such understanding.

I have never watched this production before although I was aware of many of the Dr Seuss stories because he is a favourite author of my 6-year-old granddaughter, who I hasten to add can read his books very fluently unlike myself. I find some of his rhymes hard to pronounce. I wish I had been able to bring her to see if because when I showed her the programme, she immediately produced the books with all the characters in!

Seussical is a musical written by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty and mostly based on many of the Dr Seuss children’s books and containing many of the well-known characters. The name Seussical is a combination of Seuss and musical.

Firstly, I would like to pass on my sincere congratulations to your Director and Choreographer Katy O’Brien Morse. You are incredibly lucky to have such a talented group of young people to work with and they did you proud. They were all from the youngest to the oldest well drilled and totally enthused to be part of the production. Even when one of the little one’s lost her fish she kept going, what a star! The choreography was creative and fitted well with each number. The smiles on their faces said everything and drew you into the fun of the show.

When we sat down, we were presented with a stage with a stylish proscenium arch emblazoned with DPH. The scenery was set over two layers with stylised staging on legs and a painted floor. It was good to see the rakes both stage left and right and a cut out of the ‘Cat in the Hat’s’ hat which rose when the action started. Andy Martin’s wonderful touches enhanced the whole performance. The revolves worked splendidly and all the additional props which were moved wonderfully by the cast added authenticity to the production.

All the additional personal props used were correct and well handled by the members of your cast.

The lighting was well presented and all those involved in the show could be easily seen. I thought the projected effect and the sparkle curtain added to the show.

What a lot of costumes your team had to create. Having to envisage outfits for well-known characters is sometimes a problem but I thought those worn by the entire company were brilliant. They were well fitting and obviously easy to wear because I didn’t see one member of the cast fiddling with any part of their costume. I thought using the white collars on many of the ensemble was a stroke of genius because they drew the eye away from the different dresses underneath. All the principals’ costumes portrayed their part extremely well from the iconic Cat in the Hat, through Horton’s plainer costume with grey waistcoat and deerstalker hat to depict his ears to the more colourful get-ups of the Mayor, his wife and Jojo. Gertrude’s plainer and Mayzie’s over the top tutu like dresses gave them bird like qualities.   Each named group was noticeable by using set colours and style of dress from the Wickersham Brothers in their cream, brown and yellow to the red Bird Girls and the inventive Kangaroos with the head band ears. The makeup and various hair styles added to the illusion. Congratulations.

Although the music was pre-recorded for the production the quirky tracks brought the show to life. I would like to commend all the children on their singing. How they managed to pick up their musical cues from the music you used I don’t know. They were all exceptional and produced an excellent musical sound throughout.

One little point I would like to mention was that overall, the use of many radio mics; which I realise are very costly; with the majority of the leading cast meant that the words and emotion they children were trying to portray were successfully transported to the members of the audience. But it was a little hard to distinguish what the Judge and Young Kangaroo were saying.

Your seven main characters led an exceptional talented group with panache. The character of Boy/Jojo was played with emotion. He needed to show to the audience the conflicts he felt during his ‘thinks’ and his duet ‘All alone in the Universe’ with the appropriate words ‘Great thinkers all feel the same way’ displayed a maturity far beyond their years.

To be able to portray such a well know book character as the Cat in the Hat took a certain skill which this young actor did with aplomb. You could hear every word; he (she) kept the story going and his (her) ability to encourage others to particate in activities they don’t usually do for their own good was accomplished convincingly.

What an extraordinary talent the young actor that played Horton possessed. His acting was beyond his years and rarely have I heard such a wonderful singing voice (what a range!) delivered with such passion. The duets he sang with other characters were delivered with such compassion. He truly dominated the stage and I expect to hear his name up in lights one day.

Mr and Mrs Mayor spoke and sang beautifully and developed a great working relationship. They played their parts of frustrated parents honestly. They couldn’t understand their son’s inability to conform. It was good to see them reunited at the end.

Gertrude told her tale (tail!) brilliantly. Her accent was on point throughout and her love of Horton was evident from the start. Her compassion for Horton when the jungle creatures turned on him and her plan to free him from beyond the bars of the circus was acted and sung with such emotional power. It was wonderful to see her and Horton ready to be parents together at the end.

The young actor playing Mayzie definitely had the air of a petulant teenager who was more concerned about herself than anyone else. She confidently delivered her lines and sang with attitude.

What a great supporting cast you had with the mischievous Wickersham Brothers; I wouldn’t like to have to deal with the little one; the expression on his face and the determination in his actions were purposeful. The Bird Girls sang, moved and looked beautiful. The Sour Kangaroo and her offspring the Young Kangaroo displayed their displeasure and determination to ensure Horton gets what’s coming to him. The actors depicting Judge Yertle the Turtle, Vlad Vladikoff and The Grinch did so convincingly.

The ensemble is a very important part of any cast and yours all smiled beautifully, sang with purpose and moved well.

I was totally blown away with the enthusiasm, upbeat and happy way all your talented cast performed tonight. You should all be extremely proud of yourselves. I would also like to mention all the other members of your company what a fantastic group to work with. Many congratulations to everyone both on or off stage.

Disclaimer 

Any observation made by the reviewer can only be based on what he sees at the performance in question.  The reviewer may have received information in advance of the performance and it is inevitable that his assessment will be affected by that knowledge. 

The NODA Representative’s intention is to give an objective critique of the overall production and in particular, the performance.  It should be remembered that any review of this nature can only be objective as far as the techniques used during the performance observed.  Any criticisms expressed may not have been valid at other performances and are only made to encourage higher standards in Amateur Theatre. 

 It is hoped that the audience’s appreciation of your efforts will have given everyone a lift and encouraged you to greater achievements in the future and that the observations made by the reviewer will prove helpful in improving future productions.

Sheila Gill

Representative NODA Southwest 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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