The summer camp kids of Whimsicality had 14 rehearsals to put together their culminating activity, a performance of Seussical Jr. Held on the stage of the Swift Middle Schools auditorium, the students clearly worked very hard to put on this high energy musical for their friends and family. The one night only performance was free and was presented in conjunction with Watertown Recreation.
Cat in the Hat cutouts decorated the front door. In an effort to make the ninety minute performance even more fun for the youngest members of the audience, paper Cat in the Hat hats were free for the taking on a table in the lobby. Producer Denise Brown passed out small bottles of soap bubbles to younger patrons, with directions to make bubbles when they saw bubbles in the show. The kids loved it.
Director Devin Brown did a super job of getting the young actors ready for the stage, and the most of the kids brought plenty of talent to their roles. They had a huge number of songs to learn in a very short time, in addition to the choreography by Lisa A. Hamel. They succeeded in both.
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Julia Mehlin was spot on as the mischievous Cat in the Hat; we couldn't wait to see what she would do the next time she popped in. Nate Davino was a standout in the heartwarming role of Horton the Elephant. Colleen Pelletier played Gertrude the Bird and Jenn Beveridge was the mean bird Mayzie.
Cailin McGuire rocked the role of Sour Kangaroo. Mr. Mayor Who and his wife were played by Declan Manning and the super cute Emily Dowling. Danny Nelson covered the role of the very green Yertle the Turtle. All the other characters were covered by a fine ensemble.
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The absolutely adorable Kasey Ingerson played the lead role of Jo-Jo. This young lady is supremely comfortable on the stage and can sing like a dream. She is a girl to watch.
Every child wore black t-shirts with the iconic hat on the front, and added colorful head pieces to make their character apparent. The bird girls added some sashes at the waist. Simple but very effective.
The functional set painted by the adults had a Dr. Seuss flavor, as did the props. The staging of "It's Possible" involved the entire theater and was very impressive. The very cute program cover artwork was done by Mr. Nelson.
Congratulations to the cast and crew and the adults who worked with them to bring this happy show to life.
