Northwest Children’s Theater
May 6, 2006; closes May 28, 2006
Irresistibly appealing. Many things to praise, most notably John Ellingson’s playfully poised Cat-in-the-Hat; Lucas Welsh’s endearing, golden-throated Horton-the-Elephant, and NWCTS’s typical cast-of-thousands unified under the fantastically detailed eye of director/choreographer Sarah Jane Hardy. Sets, costumes, lights, props all excellent. Even the canned orchestra didn’t detract, though some problems with microphones.
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17 comments:
Just saw the show tonight, very entertaining. It seemed the whole audience was entertained. Perfect length at just over an hour and a half. Really enjoyed John Ellingson, Lucas Welsh, Stevie Boothe, and Athena Patterson. Saw the understudy for Emily Cawley, and I never would have guessed that she was the understudy had they not announced it. Followspot; did you see the understudy tonight?
Yes, I agree about the understudy (Sophie Moshofsky) in the role of Gertrude Mcfuzz.
Caught the show Friday night and found it to be highly enjoyable. I've been a big fan of Ahrens Flaherty's work for some time so it was fun to see one of their shows produced in Portland. The entire cast was wonderful (Emily Cawley was on and she sounded a little sick though her performance overall was lovely; glad to hear her understudy did well) and the whole physical production was first-rate. Between this and Assassins, right now seems to be a pretty good time for musicals.
Took the kids to see the show this afternoon. I'll have to say, I was rather not looking forward to this production going in. But boy, my opinion sure changed! I almost enjoyed it more than Assassins, though I feel it's hard to compare such polar shows. Thought they did a magnficant job casting, and all in all, found it to be one of the best shows I've seen from NWCT. The cast was gracious and talkative after the show during the meet & greet, especially the kids playing Horton, Mayzie, The Mini Kangaroo, and The Cat In The Hat. Also after talking to some of them who are high school seniors (while my kids were getting autographs), was thrilled to hear that Gertrude is going to Cornish, Mayzie to NYU, and Horton to Willamette. I wish everyone the best of luck, this is certainly a talented bunch of kids. Highly recommended!
Good show. The performances were amazing. The set, however gave me a headache and the lighting seemed dim and too dark in some spots.
Still highly entertaining
Thought it interesting that all of the reviews have been very positive for this show. Seeing it this weekend and just thought I would post the WWeekly's review. I'd say it's still positive for the most part; excited to post my own review this weekend! I hope it's as good as I've heard.
Seussical
[NEW REVIEW] The latest production from the solidly entertaining Northwest Children's Theater gives young audiences a different view of the kid's-book genius: a Dr. Seuss who's thick on platitudes and short on fun. Cobbling together Seuss faves Horton Hears a Who! and Horton Hatches the Egg with a bland series of musical numbers from Ragtime's Tony Award-winning team of Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Aherns, the show slogs through the danger of pharmaceutically enhanced bird plumage, child/egg abandonment, existential angst, and cross-species mating—with few laughs in between. Theater vets John Ellingson (the Cat in the Hat) and Stevie Boothe (the scheming Mayzie LaBird,) manage to amp up the much-missed silliness factor of the show—as does Roger Monroe's charmed set of morphing hills, bathtubs-turned-rivers and pink clouds. But the musical itself boils the creative whirl of fantastic happenings and true wisdom that Theodor Geisel always made look so easy into a pedestrian paste of life lessons. The cast deserves a hearty round of applause for its valiant efforts to shine up a play that's as dull in concept and song as a bran muffin. KELLY CLARKE.
Was Stevie Booth squinting?
Apparently she's not blind anymore...
Seussical is a pretty boring show for the most part, but it's worth seeing because there is a young woman in the show, Stevie Boothe, whose voice just blew me away. I think she's pretty young so she has tremendous potential. Can't wait to see where this voice takes her. If I was a guy, I'd fall in love.
Anonymous who posted right before me... when did you see the show? A friend of mine who's in the cast told me today that Boothe, the young kangeroo, and Mr. and Mrs. Mayor were all feeling ill. Excited to see the show next weekend as well as Moby Dick this summer considering many of the Seuss cast members are in Moby!
I happen to know Sophie Moshofsky (the understudy for Gertrude) and there wasn't an understudy set for Emily's part. Sophie worked through all of her dinner break to learn the part. She did an amazing job considering the short notice.
Went over to the theater today to catch the show and let me start out by saying that I'm thoroughly impressed. There were so many magical moments within the show, and I'd even go so far as to call this one of NWCT's best. Really enjoyed John Ellingson, Stevie Boothe, and Lucas Welsh especially. Ellingson was meant to play this character and he's a joy to watch. Boothe has a wonderful voice and presence, and I'm glad to see her step up to a role in town other than chorus over at Lakewood. I would like to note that she seemed to be injured, but I wouldn't ever have guessed had my wife not talked to her afterwards. Welsh has a voice of gold and I really enjoyed his characterization, especially with his movement. The rest of the principal cast was amazing, as was the chorus. Very highly recommended, I think I may even take my brother and his daughter later on in the run.
--Craig Young
I agree with the above posts (besides the one who thought the show was boring) but ATHENA PATTERSON...she was amazing, what a great voice. The show was a pleasure to the eyes I really really enjoyed it.
Thansk for sharing, the pictures look great! If nothing else, this is certainly one of the best LOOKING shows from NWCT in a while.
The show is amazingly visually pleasing, but those pictures were posted against the will of NWCT.
This show really deserves all the kudos it's getting. Caught the matinee yesterday and the crowd absolutely loved it! Stellar performances from John Ellingson (though he did sound a bit hoarse), Stevie Boothe, and Lucas Welsh. I'm very excited to see where these kids will go with such talent! A bunch of triple threats in this one. My kids loved John's Cat In The Hat, and I personally loved Stevie's take on her role with great comedic timing and a voice to match. Each time I hear Lucas Welsh his voice melts my heart and this performance was no exception. I would definitely recommend taking the kids to see this one before it closes! My five year old loved it just as much as my fourteen year old, so the show really covers the age spectrum quite well! Kudos to all involved.
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