The SpongeBob Musical

I didn’t think I would ever be comfortable being at the bottom of the ocean, but I was more than that. MYTS production of The SpongeBob Musical took me to new heights (or should that be depths?)

When the citizens of Bikini Bottom discover that a volcano will soon erupt and destroy their home, SpongeBob and his friends must come together to save the fate of their undersea world.

This is a Theatre Company with so much talent, from the moment the show opened, I was gripped by the energy of everyone on stage, with their command of dialogue, songs and dance routines, no-one seemed out of place. Joel Tennant as SpongeBob was alive from the first time he appeared until the show ended, he was constantly acting, even when not in the spotlight, his body language and facial expressions brought much humour to the role. Not only that, he can sing as well! What a performer. Issy Draycott as Patrick Star and Annie Connell as Sandy Cheeks completed the lineup of friends who were going to save Bikini Bottom. Both were confident performers and really held the show together, the harmony singing between the three of them was first class and gave depth to the songs. Jamie Gardner as Squidward Q Tentacles gave the show the ‘Ah’ factor, forever wanting to perform and not being allowed to. His costume was great and must have taken some time to get to grips with, but it never hindered his performance, moving around the stage with confidence. Sheldon J Plankton was the villain of the show, I so wanted to boo him, but Harry Saint-Dunn did not give the impression that this was his first major role, I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of him in the future. Karen the Computer, played by Scarlett Draycott formed the other half of the duo, both of them had a rapport and complemented each other very well.  There were also accomplished performances from Amy Read and Eryn Moore as the two Krabs.

All of the principals were extremely well supported by a large ensemble of various ages. They moved with confidence and sang with gusto, the harmonies which they produced were very good indeed. Praise must go to Hannah Pendleton for her choreography routines, it is never easy to include so many people and to get the movements so accurate. I think it is fair to say that the energy level from everyone on stage was off the chart, I was worn out just watching them!

There were some lovely touches in this production – I loved the screens as part of the scenery, particularly when it continued on to the stage (I’m thinking of the boulder). Also the percussion work from The Foley Fish at the side of the stage was a genius idea, and everything that Aden Lee did made me smile.

The orchestra was well directed by Laura and supported the cast very well, there was just an odd occasion when dialogue was lost over the music, the mics just needed tweaking on the quieter parts to lift the voices.

Sam Simkin is obviously experienced in working with such a large group of youngsters, his direction was innovative and there were never any dull moments on stage, the cast knew exactly what was expected of them and where they should be at all times.

I thoroughly enjoyed the evening, thank you for your warm welcome and congratulations to everyone involved in a first-class performance.

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