Seussical The Musical at the SCERA Center for the Performing Arts

It is no secret that I am not a big fan of Seussical the Musical (when I saw the Broadway touring production a few years ago I wanted to leave at intermission) but I have to admit that the more I see it the more it grows on me. I still think it is convoluted and loses steam in the second act but the production I saw last night at the SCERA Center for the Performing Arts featuring an insanely talented group of high school students known as Acting Up! just might be the best one I've seen yet because I think the fantastical story is served really well by a young and exuberant cast. JoJo (Casey Garner) is an imaginative boy who sometimes gets in trouble for the thinks that he thinks so the Cat in the Hat (Luke Elison), acting as a Master of Ceremonies with the help of Thing 1 (Al Sorenson) and Thing 2 (Averie Bartholomew), takes him on a magical adventure where he meets Horton the Elephant (Max Wright), Gertrude McFuzz (Juniper Gray), the Amayzing Mayzie (Elena Dutton) and her Bird Girls (Eloise Brown, Lily Martin, Racel Paz, Sophia Rush, Tanya Cespedes, and Vashti Coray), the Sour Kangaroo (Hannah Mildenstein), the Wickersham Brothers (Cairo McGee, Cyrus Beaumont, Dean Salvesen, and Eli Palmer), the Mayor of Who-Ville (Max Warren) and his wife (Gabriella Droubay), and General Genhis Khan Schmitz (Thayne Larson).  JoJo ultimately learns that anything is possible and that he can go anywhere he wants just by thinking his thinks. I was really impressed with the choreography and special effects used in all of the musical numbers, especially "Horton Hears a Who" (something drew my eye everywhere I looked), "It's Possible" (the fish puppets are very whimsical), "Monkey Around" (the acrobatics are quite impressive), "The Military" (the giant knives used as swords are a lot of fun), "The Circus McGurkus" (I loved the tap dancing), and "Havin' A Hunch" (the use of blacklight is dazzling). As I mentioned, the entire cast is unbelievably talented but I particularly enjoyed Elison because he oozes charisma, Wright because he is so enduring and sympathetic (his renditions of "Alone in the Universe" and "Solla Sollew" almost brought me to tears), and Mildenstein because she has an amazing voice! The costumes are bold, colorful, and fun and I especially loved the fanciful feathered dresses worn by Mayzie and the Bird Girls.  The pastel multi-level set comes straight from a Dr. Seuss book and I loved all of the little nooks and crannies from which cast members suddenly appear and the poles used to slide from the top level to the bottom one. Thing 1 and Thing 2 are cleverly used to move smaller set pieces and props on and off stage seamlessly. I know that many of you who have heard me complain about how nonsensical this show is will be surprised but I really enjoyed this version! It will never be my favorite but I had a smile on my face during the whole show because I was so impressed by these young actors! It runs at SCERA through February 11 (tickets may be purchased here) and I highly recommend it.