Seussical - The Musical

Seussical is a musical comedy by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty based on many of the children’s stories by
Dr.Seuss, with most of the plot taken from “Horton hears a Who”, “Gertrude McFuzz” and “Horton hatches the
Egg”. Its Broadway premier in 2000 did not go down well and closed in 2001 with huge losses. After two US
tours and a West End production it has become a frequent choice for schools and regional theatres.
I was excited to attend the show in this new venue – originally a church and now being changed bit by bit into a
theatre for the resident Youth Academy with students from age 5 to late teens. This production was their junior
section, and the cast was age 5 to 15. We were still sitting in church pews, but plans are in hand for retractable
seating installation. Already lighting bars and excellent lamps have been installed, effectively used throughout,
while sound was mostly well balanced. The Set by ‘Theatrical Sets, Ireland’ was suitably Seuss with bright
paintings of his books down each side of the stage and well-made steps at each end of a bridge across the back.
Props were suitable – I loved the “tree” where Maysie and then Horton sat on the egg. Costumes by MJA’s
Costume Shed and Jess Teague & Sarah Littler were bright and colourful. Principal characters had appropriate
‘specials’; some

Mary-Kate McSorley took the role of The Cat in the Hat – full of mischief and fun and an excellent singer. The
character liked to stir things up and cause trouble but always set things right again. Chrissy Hundley was
dungaree clad Horton the elephant, who was a gentle giant always looking for the good in everyone. Rarely off
stage, Chrissy was very empathetic in this leading role with excellent rapport with her fellow cast members and
she sang well. At only 9 years of age, Clara Devine was delightful in her role as Jo-jo - confident and word
perfect. Her ‘Who’ parents – Mr and Mrs Mayor – were played by Logan Doyle and Zara Thompson. Trying to
be good parents to Jo-jo, whose imagination (‘thinks’) sometimes got him into trouble – they were earnest in
their loving commitment.

Holly McDonnell took the role of Gertrude McFuzz – anxious and self- conscious about her one feather tail!
Holly portrayed Gertrude (who was in love with Horton) gaining confidence very well as she realised that looks
are not the most important aspect of life. Mayzie La Bird, played by Chloe Dowey was however, the epitome of
vain, self-centred importance. Chloe delighted in the comedic role and put her comic songs over well. Her
‘back-up birds’ – Lily Staple and Sophie Mallard – as the Bird Girls who often acted as storytellers, followed
Mayzie in all she did and were a constant presence on stage with lots of soulful singing. The Wickersham
Brothers (Amy Boyle, Olivia Sinclair, Heidi Keil, Luke Doyle, Roman Maurice Savage & Milo Greer) were
mischievous monkeys who liked to play jokes on others and cause trouble for poor Horton. Although not “bad
boys”, they were rather a nuisance to others, and I could see that these cast members were thoroughly enjoying
their roles!

The Ensemble/Chorus members took lots of small roles and always joined in the action with enthusiasm.
Sometimes they were jungle animals and sometimes citizens of “Whoville” – so small that they lived on a
speck of dust and were invisible to the naked eye!

The characters in Seussical are all imaginary creations based on characters in the Dr Seuss stories. Most of the
show is accompanied by music and involves many characters. Director Jess and Choreographer Sarah worked
well together to tell the story. At its core is the heartfelt message – “A person is a person no matter how small”-
illustrating the power of imagination and importance of friendship and kindness. The music was tracked but
MD Keith had taught the songs well (some with quite difficult harmonies) to the large cast of under 16s.
It was a pleasure to visit the Avenue Arts Academy for the first time and I thank everyone involved in my
entertaining evening. I look forward to visiting again – for the senior group’s production of “Titanic”.

Sheelagh Hobart
NODA Regional Representative for Ireland

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