Seussical Jr and Break

Despite performing in my own back yard, for various reasons I have been unable to see a Riverside production for quite a few years, so an interesting evening to see how they have developed as a theatre company, especially as this was their first production under new management which awaited us.  They had chosen to perform two one act musicals.

Firstly, we had the junior section perform Seussical Jr, written by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flatherty, which my research describes as ‘several Dr. Seuss books wrapped into an overall Horton theme with Horton Hears a Who! and Horton Hatches the Egg as the main stories.’

Secondly, the senior section performed Break, an entirely new, homegrown musical written by two very talented local playwrights, Ian Tipping (who was also musical director) and Rowan Alfred, (who also directed both shows), which as it says in the programme, showcases the trials and tribulations of teenage life in a school battling against angst, relationships and … the end of the World.

The stage under the management of RaeAnna Hammerbacker was played to blacks with a camouflage net across the rear wall which was spectacularly well washed with various coloured lights which varied from scene to scene, giving a wonderful imagery of a jungle scene for Seussical. It was cleverly toned down for Break to give a more grey, muted tone for a school yard. Superb piece of imagination, brilliantly executed by Technical Director Matt Oram and Lighting man Dan Cooper, with followspot operators Emma Driscoll and Huw Nadin. .

Sound however, and as a performer on that stage myself for the last twenty years I can confirm is always a struggle with a hall whose acoustics could politely be described as ‘variable.’ So I admit I did struggle with the lyrics of many of the songs. Always a poison chalice to take on but well done to Matt Oram and Sound Assistant Emily Plattern for succeeding better than most ever manage.

Costumes were basically all black outfits with various colourful accoutrements to depict the various characters, mostly in the form of head gear, or feathers for the birds, which certainly gave a very striking array across the stage during the many choral numbers. One thing I did puzzle over is why The Cat was so well face painted whilst none of the other characters were. Because of this striking difference you were always drawn to him every time he appeared. But ignoring that mystery for moment, overall a very good job done by the props and costume department of Penny Lusha, Lucy Napthine, Peta Riley, Kathryn Duncan, and Tom Monkhouse.

The excellent musical direction of this extremely well drilled cast was in the expert hands of Emily Wainwright-Meekin.

Seussical brings together many of Dr Seuss’s characters under one roof, but basically the main characters are: Cat in the Hat, very confidently played by Joseph (surnames were not credited in the programme for any of the actors), Jojo played by William, whose wild imagination we are basically following, Horton The Elephant, played by Rosie, whose gentile nature leads him to protect a microscopic world his elephant ears are able to hear in a spec of dust, Gertrude McFuzz, played by Aoibhe, a bird who is self-conscious about her missing tail feathers and Mayzie La Bird, played very mischievously by Anna, who persuades Horton to babysit her egg for a year. The massive egg, complete with nest that appeared on stage deserves a credit in its own right. Brilliantly made prop!

Other well know Seuss Characters that backed up the main story were Sour Kangaroo (Julia), a very cute Young Kangaroo (Maia), Judge Yertle The Turtle (Charlotte) - complete with wig, Vlad Vladikoff/The Grinch (Sammy), Mr Mayor (Katrina), Mrs Mayor (Evie), Martha May Whovier (Ariarna), Bobby Ray Whovier (Gilson), Cindy Lou Who (Octavia), Lou Who (Leila), Boo Who (Alice), Wickersham 1,2.3 (Harriet, Frank and Ivy) Bird Girl 1,2,3,4, (Phoebe, Ella, Nelly and Taylor)

There were quite a few very promising actors and some potentially brilliant singers in this show who did a great job with Seuss’s very imaginative and very strange characters. A very together troupe who grew in confidence with each scene and particularly in the choreographed numbers by Ellen Tipping. Clearly the hard work has paid off and what a delightful show you put on.

Now to the seniors and Break. This was a poignantly written new play based around Naz (Played by Olivia) and tackles the subject of teenage angst from a the very clever angle of someone who considers herself an outsider, but has connections to all the main groups, or gangs in the school, The Scientists, The Sportists and The Artists, all of whose then use her to matchmake to students that they fancy in the other gangs, they themselves are too self-conscious to approach. She reluctantly agrees In exchange for them attending her end of lessons protest to make the school have an environmental policy. Interestingly, not all the students were in total agreement over her apocalyptic, end of the World climate change views and one even turned her down.

Olivia was absolutely first class as Naz, witty, rebellious, confident and the script she was given to play with was cuttingly sharp and matched her determined personality and rebellious streak perfectly. The other characters from the various gangs, and I have to admit I lost track of who was who at times, but they all certainly put across the authors’ interpretation of teenagers fumbling with relationships. Even though now in my dotage I still remember those early cringe-making days well.

One slight negative, there was a very funny set of playground announcements, I assume by the Headmaster running through the various scenes, Sadly they often started too early and we missed hearing the start of them because of the appreciation shown by the audience for the previous song/scene. But, on a positive the funniest one of all was the last one when the students under Naz’s leadership had a sit down strike in the playground and the announcer abandons all hope of restoring order with the immortal words, Oh give us a break! Brilliant!

So well done to The Scientists: Bio (Beth), Chem (Eleanor), Phys (Isaac), Math (Abbie) and Fail (George). The Sportists: Champ (Kacey), Fight (Sophia B), Flight (Emma), Freeze (Ethan) and Fawn (Nathan), The Artists: Rebel (Lucy), Write (Zach), Muso (Sophia M), Paint (Kyra) and Sculpt (Felicity). I think you can be rather proud of yourselves with all the hard work you have put in which I think you can say has paid off in spades.

Some very heavy weight musical numbers by these two playwrights added considerable gravitas to the plot. But what was really outstanding was the very complex choreography by Ellen Tipping, superbly executed with some quite unusual moves and set piece collages to finish. For a homegrown play this was certainly of commercial standing and I would except Monsieurs Tipping and Alfred to have a very bright future should they chose to pursue scriptwriting further.

On a personal note, I remember casting a young teenage Rowan Alfred in his first musical role many years ago. He has certainly established himself as a force to be reckoned with since then – Brilliant job with this one Sir

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