Oh the things you will hear! Oh the things you will see! Bring your kids! Bring your spouse!
As Seussical the Musical Takes to the stage at Laurel Mill Playhouse!
What wonders you’ll see, what excitement you’ll hear!
Great characters to meet, so there’s no need to fear!
With Jocelyn running the show and Stu on Musical Direction,
The Knazik Family brings this show to perfection!
There are whimsical buildings, painted all over the wall
So that the magic of Seuss is seen by one and all!
Set Designer Matthew Williams entices the audience, why just take a closer look!
See his moveable scenery, each set pops out of a painted storybook!
And then there’s Costume Designer Kim Delk on the scene
Using a rainbow of colors, blue, orange, red, and green!
Delk spruces up jungle animals and makes the Whos cute as can be!
With her outrageous designs, they’ll be plenty to see!
Stu Knazik, I mentioned, as the Musical Director,
Quickly becomes this show’s music protector!
Getting great mighty sounds from the talented cast,
Listening to them sing Seuss is quite a magical blast!
Really rocking the audience from opening to close
These fine talented youth really show what they know!
“Oh the Things You Can Think” and “Egg Nest And Tree”
Sensational musical numbers, you just wait and see!
The Choreographer, Hannah Mollerick, how did I almost forget?
Does a miraculous job to keep these kids dancing across the set.
With clever moves all in unison for big company dances
Mollerick adds rhythmic routines for all of their stances.
And getting almost 40 young actors to dance in one place
Can be quite the challenge in that tiny space!
But Mollerick rises and succeeds with a flare!
Making room in the spotlight that all dancers can share.
With so many Seuss characters there’s much to be seen
Keep your eyes on the Grinch (Sam Besse) for he’s totally green!
But a nice Grinch, this time, Besse hosts a Christmas play
And smiles when he sings, what more can I say?
Of course not everyone is as happy and cheery as the Grinch
Those Wickersham Brothers, make up nasty in s cinch!
JoAnn Depestre, Michael Miller, Cora Smith, and Jordan Sledd,
Their monkey shenanigans will cause a spinning in your head!
They’re nasty and mean, and they tease poor Horton to no end!
These zany primates are nobody’s friend!
Songbird voices in “Horton Hears a Who” can be heard
As four feathery females, make up the lady-birds!
Jordan Budzinski, Alexis Thompson, Allison Thompson, and Elizabeth Steele
With their bright colored tails, these girls are quite the squeal!
They sing back-up harmony and their voices aren’t lazy
When performing that song “Amayzing Mayzie.”
Miss Emily Freeman plays Mayzie with the enormous tail
Her stunning stage presence is sure never to fail!
With over-the-top antics and a love narcissistic
Freeman makes this character believably realistic!
Tricking poor Horton and belittling Gertrude,
Some might say her character is really quite rude
But Freeman’s voice is impressive, when singing her song
Both solos show talent, this girl can’t go wrong!
Another talented voice, though he does far less singing
Is General Schmitz (Jory Holmes) he’ll leave your ears ringing!
With his forceful marching and his military ways,
You’ll be sure to steer clear of him for all of your days!
There are two more bad guys that I almost forgot,
Though they turn out quite nice by the end of the plot
Cydney Wright as the little one and Jessica Harzer in there two,
This pair makes up the pouchling and Miss Sour Kangaroo.
With saucy attitudes and stellar belting voices
Harzer and Wright give Horton very few choices!
When singing about the dust speck, and making Horton doubt
Their voices are so powerful they nearly knock him out!
Of course all this nonsense started over the Whos and their dust
So calling them out here in this review is a must!
Mr. Mayor (Andrew Rayo) and Mrs. Mayor (Amy Vecheck) his wife
Are struggling on planet Who for their life!
Rayo and Vecheck have an incredible sound
In their solo “How To Raise a Child” it’s the best sound around!
Their acting is posh and they really know how to rhyme
Doing Seuss’ words a great justice, all in good time.
Their little son Jojo (Jaden Burnett) is an imaginative child
His thoughts and his thinks run totally wild!
For “It’s Possible” Burnett sings with a voice soft and sweet
No kinder a child could Horton hope to meet.
“Alone in the Universe” brings lovely harmonies to the ear
Burnett’s duet with Horton, to your eye brings a tear.
As for Horton (Dexter Warren) he’s quite the talented young man
Warren gives a stellar performance, giving it all that he can!
Singing songs like “Here On Who” and “Solla Sallew”
His emotions are pure and his voice is too!
In love with dear Horton, though she’s got just a one-feather tail
Is the lovely Miss Gertrude (Danielle McCants) and her bittersweet tale.
McCants is quite the actress and a brilliant singer to boot!
Combining both skills in “All For You” it’s quite a hoot!
As she balances dulcet tones while overacting to tell her story
Of how she managed to find Horton in all his glory.
McCants is a wonder, her talent shines so bright
She twinkles as the brightest star in the sky of night!
And there’s one more Seuss character featured in this musical feature
He’s a smooth-talking fellow, no ordinary creature.
Why he’s the Cat in the Hat, Noah Wright is his name,
And with this here musical he’s making his claim to fame.
Snazzy and jazzy and smooth for the song about Hunches,
This Cat in the Hat, knows how to roll with the punches!
Wright is charismatic and charming, and his voice is so strong
You’ll want to hear him singing long after the show is gone!
Especially for numbers like “How Lucky You Are”
Wright shines with pizzazz, he’s truly the star!
Keep your eyes on this young man, he’s an upcoming sensation!
A performing triple threat, he’s bound to storm the nation!
So remember, my friends, oh the things you can think!
Singing and dancing and Whos in polka-dot pink!
It’s not too late to grab a ticket or two
And see this wonderful show before it is through!
So hurry along, don’t grumble or grouse,
See Seussical the Musical! At Laurel Mill Playhouse!
Running Time: Two hours, with one intermission.
Seussical the Musical plays through August 17, 2013 at The Laurel Mill Playhouse — 508 Main Street, in Laurel, MD. For reservations, call the box office at (301) 617-9906. Tickets may also be purchased at the door as early as one hour prior to show time.
Seussical the Musical
Book by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty
Words and Music by Music by Stephen Flaherty
Lyrics by Lynn Ahrens
Co-Conceived by Eric Idle
Based on the works of Dr. Seuss
