The Upside Down World of Dr. Seuss
The lights dim. The sound of a concert floods the room. First the keyboard, then the violins, and the rest of the pit orchestra. The cast, pit, and crew simultaneously release a breath no one had realized they were holding.
The show begins. From the Cat’s hat to McElligot’s Pool, Whoville to the Jungle of Nool, Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, the co-writers of the musical, bring the audience on a mind-boggling adventure with the likes of Horton the Elephant, JoJo the Who, Mayzie LaBird, Gertrude McFuzz, and the Sour Kangaroo.
Formed from some of the most musically-talented students Delone has to offer, the cast of Seussical dedicated over four months to master the songs and choreography. This musical is a challenging one to perform, even with a robust theater program. Despite the challenges the cast, crew, and pit faced during the extensive rehearsal period, including the unplanned performance of a Bird Girl by Brittany Stevens, the show’s director, Delone Catholic’s production of Seussical was a hit with all ages.
Aubrey Ditmar’s hilarious interpretation of the Cat in the Hat, which even included stealing the show from Mr. Yealy and directing the pit orchestra to introduce the audience to the second act.
The crew of students and adult volunteers built the spectacular set transporting the audience to Whoville and made sure the show went off without a hitch behind the scenes. Of course it wouldn’t have been a musical without the pit orchestra under the direction of both Mrs. and Mr. Yealy.
The pit, in which I participated as a percussionist, was able to learn over one hundred pages of sheet music. It was a feat that I know every single one of the cast, crew, and pit will remember as a high point in our high school careers.
