Take a seat in a row, and stay for the show Take a seat in a row, and stay for the show (November 12, 2004)

PYT stages 'Seussical the Musical'

By Katie Vaughn

For kids raised on the books of Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, Peninsula Youth Theatre's latest production allows cast and audience members alike to realize a childhood dream.

"Seussical the Musical" brings a variety of storybook characters to life, complete with all the zany fun expected of anything related to Dr. Seuss.

Composer Stephen Flaherty and writer Lynn Ahrens, the duo behind the score of "Ragtime," created "Seussical" with the books "Horton Hears a Who" and "Horton Hatches the Egg" as the base. Then they threw pieces of "The Cat in the Hat," "McElligot's Pool," "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas," "I Had Trouble Getting into Solla Sollew" and "Hunches in Bunches" into the mix.

"It's a fitting tribute to Dr. Seuss," said director Dexter Fidler. "A lot of the work of Dr. Seuss is set to music."

The play intertwines stories of Horton the elephant and JoJo, a boy who begins the show reading "The Cat in the Hat" in his bed. Soon the Cat magically appears and brings JoJo into the Seussian world. The Cat serves both as narrator of the story as well as the character who takes JoJo on an incredible journey to meet Horton the elephant.

"I try to help JoJo believe in himself and believe in his thinks," said Meredith Muller, the 16-year-old who plays the Cat, referring to the Seuss word for thoughts.

In the adventure, Horton discovers the miniscule town of Whoville on a speck of dust. When hooligans steal the speck, Horton must do the right thing and search for the residents of Whoville, despite teasing from his peers for believing in something he can't see. Complicating Horton's quest is the lazy bird Mayzie who convinces Horton to sit on her egg for her while she takes a short "vacation."

"Seussical" wasn't a smash hit on Broadway in 2000, but gained popularity on several national tours. And one important critic, Audrey Geisel, Dr. Seuss's widow, has raved about the musical.

Fidler said "Seussical" is an ideal production for Peninsula Youth Theatre because it's obviously fun, features good music and offers a large number of roles. It also provides unique opportunities for the actors who range in age from eight to 20-years-old.

"I don't usually get parts where I get to interact with the younger kids," Muller said.

Many actors play several characters in the musical. Ten-year-old Kimberlee Vandenburg performs as part of the Whoville ensemble as well as a hoop-jumping poodle in a circus scene.

"I'm part of a marching band because I'm a Who child," she said. "We have some very funky instruments."

Indeed, all of the props in "Seussical" have a whimsical quality. Vandenburg's trumpet, for instance, features a twisted neck and three ends. Fidler said Dr. Seuss-appropriate props were a challenge to find.

"We could hardly buy anything," Fidler said. "We had to make them to have that certain Seuss tilt. We have everything from a six-feet-tall egg nest tree to a tricycle with a keyboard attached to it to a drivable bathtub."

In contrast, the costumes are quite simple. Diana Vandenburg, Kimberlee's 8-year-old sister, plays Thing Two, a character who often accompanies the Cat. She wears a red sleeper and big "Thing Two" signs plastered to her front and back. Even actors playing animals aren't decked out in elaborate furs or masks.

"You recognize them more by the way they act, not by the way they dress," Fidler said of the characters.

Fidler ranked the musical's score as a top "Seussical" feature. From start to finish, most of the production is set to music, from pop and gospel to blues, R&B and Latin numbers.

Naturally, the entire cast sings in the production, and some perform solos and duets. Kimberlee Vandenburg said she's excited about singing and acting in the wacky play.

"When you see the audience, you're kind of nervous, but then it's just a lot of fun," she said.

Information

What: "Seussical the Musical" presented by Peninsula Youth Theatre

Where: Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro St.

When: Nov. 13-21

Cost: $7-$17

Call: 903-6000 or visit www.pytnet.org.

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