Get ready to dream in bright colours and go to strange places like Solla Sollew! Propelled into the bizarre world of Dr. Seuss where the dare to dream mentality is abundant, Seussical is an energetic, zany musical that takes its narrative from an amalgamation of Dr. Seuss stories, most prominently Horton Hears a Who.
Katie Supina’s Cat in the Hat lived up to the iconic trickster’s reputation as she frolicked around the stage with a spring in her step and, with good clarity, provided the narration for the show. The plot centres on Horton the Elephant, stoically played by Denver Capcara, an unassuming and faithful creature who finds the world of Who on a dust speck and vows to take care of the inhabitants. In doing so, Horton is deemed insane by the other animal in the Jungle of Nool, in particular the Sour Kangaroo, played by Julie Ryzuk who admirably encapsulates the extravagantly sonorous spirit of the character.
Kairs Hochhalter dynamic acting capabilities as JoJo, the little Who whose big thinks get him in trouble, compensate for her inconsistent vocal performance. The main problems that affected these young performers were their lack of projection and vocal weakness. Sarah Barth as Horton’s considerate neighbour Gertrude McFuzz, sang her solos with great sweetness however, struggled to generate power from her vocals, as can be said for Kaylin Schenk, whose limited vocal range hindered her portrayal of the sassy, powerful diva Mayzie LaBird. This is a great shame as both female leads were competent actors however, they their lack in depth stopped giving a well-rounded performance.
Thing One and Thing Two perfectly capture the silliness of Dr Seuss. Austin Capcara and Bretton Theune steal the show as the vivacious duo and excite us with their titillating gymnastic routines. As assistants to The Cat in the Hat, they added an extra comedy element that made the show all the more enjoyable, bringing Dr Seuss’s illustrations to life.
