Seussical Jr.

October 1, 2, 3

Book by Lynn Ahrens Music by Step Lyrics by Ly Conceived by Lynn Ahrens, S Based on the wo Music Supervised, Adapted an Directed by J

s & Stephen Flaherty phen Flaherty ynn Ahrens Stephen Flaherty and Eric Idle orks by Dr. Seuss nd Produced by Bryan Louiselle Jude Adams

Musical Numbers Oh, The Thinks You Can Think!......................................................................................................................Company Horton Hears A Who.............Jungle Creatures, Cat, Horton, Jojo, Mr. Mayor, Bird Girls, Ensemble Biggest Blame Fool...................................................Sour Kangaroo, Wickershams, Bird Girls, Gertrude, Cat, Mayzie, Horton, Ensemble Gertrude McFuzz...................................................................................................................................................Gertrude Here On Who....................................Mr. Mayor, Mrs. Mayor, Jojo, Who Ensemble, Horton, The Grinch How To Raise A Child...............................................................................................................Mr. Mayor, Mrs. Mayor Oh, The Thinks You Can Think! (Reprise)....................................................................................................Jojo, Cat It’s Possible...............................................................................................................................Jojo, Cat, Fish, Ensemble Alone In The Universe..................................................................................................................................Horton, Jojo The One Feather Tail Of Miss Gertrude McFuzz...................................................................................Gertrude Amayzing Mayzie...........................................................................................................Mayzie, Gertrude, Bird Girls Amayzing Gertrude..............................................................................................................Gertrude, Cat, Bird Girls Monkey Around.........................................................................................................................Wickershams, Horton Chasing The Whos..........................................................Wickershams, Horton, Bird Girls, Sour Kangaroo, Cat, Vlad Vladikoff, Jungle Creatures Notice Me Horton...............................................................................................................................Gertrude, Horton How Lucky You Are..........................................................................................................................................Mayzie, Cat Horton Sits On The Egg/Dilemma........................Horton, Cat, Bird Girls, Hunters, Jungle Creatures Egg, Nest, And Tree.........................................................Sour Kangaroo, Horton, Wickershams, Bird Girls, Hunters, Jungle Creatures Mayzie In Palm Beach..................................................................................................................Mayzie, Cat, Horton Mayzie At The Circus/Amayzing Horton..........................................................................Mayzie, Horton, Cat Alone In The Universe (Reprise 1).....................................................................................................................Horton Solla Sollew...............................Horton, Jojo, Mr. Mayor, Mrs. Mayor, Who Ensemble, Circus Animals All For You...................................................................................................................................Gertrude, Bird Girls, Cat People Versus Horton The Elephant/Yopp!..........................................................................................Company Alone In The Universe (Reprise 2)..............................................................................................Horton, Gertrude Oh The Thinks You Can Think! (Finale).....................................................................................................Company Green Eggs and Ham (Bows)........................................................................................................................Company Strobe lighting effects will be used during this performance. The videotaping or other video or audio recording of this production is strictly prohibited.

Seussical Jr. is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. www.MTIShows.com

PRODUCTION TEAM

Barb Cross & Rebecca Roberts..............................................................Producers Jude Adams...........................................................................................................Director Emily Cross........................................................................................Assistant Director Siena Johnson..............................................................Student Assistant Director Erin Toscani..............................................................................................Music Director Rebecca Yenser...................................................................................Choreographer John Cross.........................................................................Set Design/Construction Courtney Boches & Sue Carney..........................................................Costumers Ava DiFiore & Skylar Ortiz...........................................................Music Assistants Gabi Cherelli................................................................................................................Props Mike Addice.................................................................................................Light Design John Cross & Ashok Mathur.......................................................Light Operators Emily Cross................................................................................................Sound Design Brenda Capwell.................................................................................Sound Operator Skylar Ortiz.....................................................................................Spotlight Operator Christine Wright........................................................................................Scenic Artist Ally Bellaire................................................................................................Scenic Painter Gabi Cherelli...............................................................................................Photography Lindsay Zimmerman............................................................................Board Liaison SPECIAL THANKS All Of Our Wonderful Parent Volunteers Facetime Theater (Phoenixville, PA) Kate McShane The Variety Club (Worcester, PA) Wolf Performing Arts Center (Bryn Mawr, PA)

From The Director I would like to start off by welcoming everyone to our production of Seussical Jr. It is our honor to present you with this piece of musical theater.

I can’t even begin to express how much fun it has been to get a chance to put my own twist on the wonderful works of Dr. Seuss.

The imagination contained in his stories is as amazing to me today as it was when I was a child. If you close your eyes it is easy to imagine an elephant in a tree, Whoville, and of course who can forget the Cat in the Hat. As great as all of these characters and stories are, I never appreciated the message of the stories until much later. Let’s take the message in tonight’s story as an example.

“A person’s a person no matter how small.” What a great message!!!

It is important for us to value all people for who they are, and not for who we think they should be. It is a message of not judging a book by its cover, and a message of not bullying someone because they are different. These messages seem extremely important in today’s society. If we can teach the lessons to children, then we can certainly try to embody them as adults.

I would like to especially thank my production team for all of their support during this show. Let me tell you, doing a show during a pandemic is difficult. Our entire team went above and beyond to keep people safe as well as provide a fun and educational environment. Theater is truly a collaboration, and everyone involved helped to shape a vision of this show. The thoughtful effort is greatly appreciated. The most important thing a director can do is put together a great team. This team makes our show run.

Finally, I would like to thank the MCT Board of Directors for entrusting me to work with such amazing young actors. I hope we will see them on MCT stages for many, many years. Also, thank you to Variety Club for so generously supporting MCT and providing us with a great space to work in. Any contributions toward Variety Club and their cause are greatly appreciated. Enjoy the show!!

-

Jude Adams

CAST

Alexandra Ortiz.....................................................................................................Horton Aubrey Wheeler................................................................................................Gertrude Ciara Whelan.............................................................................................Cat in the Hat Violet Tulig.......................................................................................................................Jojo Reese Grove..............................................................................................................Mayzie Claire Tanner......................................................................................................Mr. Mayor Julia Toscani.....................................................................................................Mrs. Mayor Katie Shapella........................................................................................Sour Kangaroo Ali Johnson..............................................................................................................Bird Girl Julia Karlinsey........................................................................................................Bird Girl Brianna LaFreeda................................................................................................Bird Girl

Alina Niesen.................................................................................................Wickersham Lydia O’Halloran........................................................................................Wickersham Danny Shapella..........................................................................................Wickersham Abby Smith...................................................................................................Wickersham Zoe Wright......................................................................................Yertle/Grinch/Vlad Olivia McGinley.......................................................................................................... Who Daniel Niesen...............................................................................................................Who Lilly Hearn..............................................................................................Jungle Creature Elizabeth Storrer................................................................................Jungle Creature Madelyn Verna....................................................................................Jungle Creature

MEET THE CAST Reese Grove (Mayzie) Reese is in 8th grade at Arcola Middle School. She is thrilled to be in her fourth show at MCT. She is also in The Christmas Carol at Steel River this winter. Reese enjoys the beach, swimming, and spending time with her family. She has been taking voice lessons from Center Stage Music since she was 8.

Some of Reese’s favorite roles were Small Alison in Fun Home (Steel River Playhouse), Little Red in Into The Woods Jr. (MCT), Chip in Beauty and The Beast (MCT) and Ugly in Honk Jr. (MCT).

Reese would like to thank everyone who worked so hard on this production.

Lilly Hearn (Jungle Creature) Lilly is a sixth grader at SkyView and this is her first theater production. She is excited to do this with her best friend Maddie. At school she performs with the chorus. She thanks the production crew and cast for making this a great show.

Together she thinks the show is going to be fantastic!

Ali Johnson (Bird Girl) Ali is thrilled to be in her fifth MCT production. Ali is a seventh grader at Spring-Ford Area School District. She is proud of how far she has come since her musical debut as an ensemble member in The Little Mermaid. Some of her favorite roles have been Dot in Honk! Jr. (MCT), ensemble in Into the Woods Jr. (MCT), and ensemble in The Little Mermaid (MCT).

She would like to thank her family and all the friends she has made along the way. Ali would also like to thank the cast and crew who worked so hard to make this happen. Love to all!

Enjoy Seussical Jr.

Julia Karlinsey (Bird Girl) Julia is excited to be in her first theater production! She is a third grader at Woodland Elementary and enjoys art and reading. She has been dancing at Pennsylvania Academy of Dance Arts (PADA) for three years and has performed in two Nutcracker ballets and studio productions of Alice in Wonderland/QUEEN and Prince: The Greatest Showman. Julia has also been taking piano lessons at The Music Depot for four years and has played and sang in open mic nights and virtual recitals. She is excited to be a Bird Girl in this production where she can combine her love of singing and dancing! Julia would like to thank the directors of Seussical Jr. for this opportunity. She would also like to thank her family for their support and encouragement.

Brianna LaFreeda (Bird Girl) Brianna is a freshman at Methacton High School and this is her first MCT show. She has been involved in many shows with Firebird Theatre as well as COMAD. Some of her favorite past roles include Sleeping Beauty (Maleficent), Cinderella (Stepsister), Annie (Tessie) and High School Musical (Sharpay).

Brianna enjoys hanging with friends, listening to music, binging Netflix shows, riding roller coasters, and spending time with her family. Brianna appreciates everyone’s time on the production of this show and her family for their endless support.

Olivia McGinley (Who) Olivia is a sixth grader who loves tacos and the color purple.

Olivia was also seen on the MCT stage in Beauty and the Beast.

She likes spending time with her family. She thanks her mom and dad for driving her to rehearsals and supporting her in this adventure.

MEET THE CAST Alina Niesen (Wickersham) Alina is excited to be in Seussical, Jr. She was last seen as one of the four Narrators in MCT’s production of Into the Woods, Jr. She loves art, is a third degree brown belt in karate, and has a bearded dragon named Sandstorm. She would like to thank Erin, Jude, Becky, Siena, Barb and Rebecca for making this show possible!

Daniel Niesen (Who) This is Daniel’s first show! He is in 3rd grade, and drinks chocolate milk every day at school. He likes legos, video games, his cat Annie, and chocolate milk! Scratch that—he loves chocolate milk. And his cat. He would like to thank the directors and producers for all their hard work to bring Seussical Jr. to the stage.

Lydia O’Halloran (Wickersham) A 6th grader at Upper Moreland Middle School, is thrilled to be making her MCT musical debut. Lydia was cast as Annie in Annie at the Neshaminy Valley Musical Theatre group in 2019 and is hoping that the show will go on in 2022. She also played Ursula in The Little Mermaid, Isabelle in A Christmas Carol, The Caterpillar in Alice in Wonderland and an evil stepsister in Cinderella, all productions with the Dramarama group based in Upper Moreland Township. Lydia loves playing travel soccer, travel basketball, flag rugby, reading, singing, playing clarinet, hanging out with her family (including her brother, Jack) and making people laugh. She is thankful for everyone who has helped get her to where she is today and can’t wait to continue her theater career with MCT!

Alexandra Ortiz (Horton) Alexandra is excited to be in her seventh show with MCT. Some of her favorite roles were Scarecrow in Wizard of Oz Jr., Jack in Into The Woods Jr., Kelsi in High School Musical Jr., and Teen Sophie in Mamma Mia!. She is currently in 8th grade at Holy Child School at Rosemont. She would like to thank her family for their love and support and is having so much fun with this wonderful cast and crew.

Danny Shapella (Wickersham) Danny was last seen as The Mysterious Man in MCT’s Into the Woods Jr. Other favorite roles include Chip in Beauty and the Beast, Billy/Pink Foot in Honk! Jr., Michael in Peter Pan, and ensemble in The Little Mermaid. Danny is 12 years old and in seventh grade, and enjoys Boy Scouts and baseball. He’d like to thank his whole family for their help and support!

Katie Shapella (Sour Kangaroo) Katie is very excited to be in her 5th MCT show, and has performed with many other theaters. She is currently in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Steel River Playhouse and it will go up on October 8th. Favorite roles include Jojo (Seussical Jr.), Granny (Into the Woods Jr.), Jane (Peter Pan), Wolf (Beauty and the Beast), Fluff (Honk! Jr.). Thanks to everyone in the cast and crew. Love to all!

MEET THE CAST Abby Smith (Wickersham) Abby is very excited to perform in her first ever musical.

She is a 5th grade student at Schwenksville Elementary. She previously danced for many years before deciding to try theater. She is excited for her last year of elementary school and continuing her theater career.

Elizabeth Storrer (Jungle Creature) Elizabeth is thrilled to be performing in her very first MCT production. She is an 8th grader at Holy Child School at Rosemont where she has enjoyed participating in their annual middle school spring musicals. These include Lion King Jr., High School Musical Jr. and most recently Wizard of Oz Jr. Elizabeth enjoys participating in and watching sports. She is captain of Holy Child’s varsity field hockey team and is looking forward to spending time on the basketball court this fall and winter. She thanks the production team, cast and crew for making this such a wonderful experience. Enjoy the show!

Claire Tanner (Mr. Mayor) Claire is so excited to be performing in her very first MCT show, and second Seussical performance. She is in seventh grade at Valley Forge Middle School. She was most recently in Bye Bye Birdie (Mayor‘s Wife, Reporter) at Salt Performing Arts. She has also participated in many shows with the Upper Main Line YMCA Community Theater, including The Wizard of Oz (Munchkin Mayor, Ensemble) and Matilda (Russian Mafia, Ensemble.) The Y is also where she was in the full-length version of Seussical (Ensemble, Hunter) and has recently been casted in Annie (Pepper, Annie Understudy). She has dreams of being on Broadway when she grows up and would like to thank her family, directors, voice teacher, and fellow castmates for all their love and support.

Julia Toscani (Mrs. Mayor) Julia is a 4th grade student at Holy Child School at Rosemont.

This is her 2nd MCT show, having previously been in Into the Woods, Jr. in 2019. Julia loves performing and other favorite past roles include Wendy in Peter Pan, Ella in Ella!, and Middle Anna in Frozen Kids. She is thrilled to have the opportunity to play Mrs. Mayor, and would like to thank the production team, cast, and crew for a wonderful experience doing Seussical, Jr. Julia would also like to thank her friends and family for their support! Break a leg, everyone!

Violet Tulig (Jojo)

Violet is thrilled to be a part of her third production at MCT! She fell in love with theater at the age of 8 and has enjoyed performing since. Past credits include Cinderella (Cinderella) SALT Performing Arts, Matilda (Hortensia) SALT Performing Arts Mainstage, Annie Jr. (Miss Hannigan) Upper Providence Musical Theater program, Honk Jr. (The Cat) Methacton Community Theater, Seussical Jr. (Gertrude McFuzz) Facetime Theater, Beauty and the Beast (Ensemble) Methacton Community Theater Mainstage, and The Lion King, Jr. (Young Simba). Violet would like to thank Lori, Jude, Erin, Becky, Barbara, Rebecca, and Emily for all of the wonderful instruction and inspiration that they have given to her. She also would like to thank the fabulous cast and crew of Seussical Jr. and her family and friends for their continued support!

Madelyn Verna (Jungle Creature) Madelyn is thrilled to be part of her first real production with MCT. She attends Calvary Baptist School and is in 6th grade.

Madelyn has been seen modeling on Disney toys when she was younger, like Doc Mcstuffins and Minnie Mouse. She also was seen modeling for Boscovs catalogs. You can find her on the trampoline practicing her flips. She loves doing gymnastics. Madelyn has 3 older brothers and 1 younger sister. She’s excited to be a part of Seussical Jr. with her best friend Lilly Hearn.

MEET THE CAST Aubrey Wheeler (Gertrude) Aubrey Wheeler is very excited to be performing in MCT’s Seussical Jr.! Gertrude McFuzz is her first major role and she is so grateful to be doing it. You may have previously seen her in Beauty and the Beast (2018), Honk! Jr. (2018) or Into the Woods Jr. (2019). When she is not acting, she likes to build with her legos, design houses on her computer, and play her guitar.

She thanks the production team, cast and crew for making this such a wonderful experience, and she hopes that you will all enjoy the show as much as she has!

Ciara Whelan (Cat in the Hat) Ciara is a Senior at Perkiomen Valley Highschool. This is her second musical with MCT, and is so excited to be working with her cast and crew in this show. She would like to thank the director Jude for her opportunity to be Cat in the Hat, and dedicate her performance to her biggest fan, her cousin Juliet. We wish you were here to see it. She hopes you have an amazing time at Seussical the Musical Jr.!

Zoe Wright (Yertle/Grinch/Vlad) Zoe enjoys musicals (she can recite the entirety of Hamilton) as well as doing different character impressions and accents.

Her favorite hobby is drawing, specifically digital character art.

Another pastime is playing video games, but she loves taking walks just as much!

MEET THE PRODUCTION TEAM Jude Adams (Director) Jude is now in his 25th year with MCT. Some of his favorite MCT roles include Shrek in Shrek the Musical, Daddy Warbucks in Annie, Horton in Seussical, and Uncle Fester in Addams Family. He also directed the first MCT youth production, Dear Edwina. Outside of the MCT stage, Jude is in his 20th year as an Elementary School teacher in the Allentown School District. He is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership. Jude would like to thank the Seussical Jr. production team for all of their hard work. It has been a really easy group to work with. We couldn’t have done it without you. He would also like to thank his lovely wife Nicolette and daughter Rosalyn for all of their love and support.

Emily Cross (Assistant Director) Emily is proud to be working on her 20th show with MCT. She is especially excited to be on the directing team for the first time! Emily has loved growing up in this wonderful organization, dipping her toes in all of the many roles theater has to offer. Throughout the years, she has performed, designed sound and lights, built sets, assisted with house, and been on stage crew. She also is the co-coordinator for MCT’s social media. Emily lives a very theater-filled life, working as tech director for the St. Hubert’s theater program and recently starting as the office manager for Quintessence Theatre Group in Mount Airy, Philadelphia. Many thanks to the production team, especially Jude, for making this such a fun experience! Congrats to the cast on a great show!

Ava DiFiore (Assistant Music Director) Ava is beyond excited to be collaborating with others again doing what she loves mostMUSIC! Ava has been involved with MCT since age 13, and is now 17 and a senior at Perkiomen Valley High School. Ava loves to sing and is involved in Select Choir, Treble Choir, Orchestra, and is President of Choir at her school! Her favorite role she has ever played was Cinderella in Into the Woods Jr.! You may see Ava performing local gigs at restaurants with her guitar and keyboard, or singing the National Anthem. Ava would like to thank the whole production team for being so welcoming and providing her the opportunity to work behind the scenes of the show. She is so proud of the whole cast and can’t wait to see the final result!!

MEET THE PRODUCTION TEAM Siena Johnson (Student Director) While this may only be her second time student directing a show, Siena is no stranger to the MCT stage, with her first production being Oliver at eight years old. She loved student directing MCT’s Into the Woods Jr. and couldn’t wait to do it again! She is a junior at SpringFord High School. She thoroughly enjoyed working on this production with an incredible team, and an amazingly dedicated cast. She learned so much from this production, and hopes the cast did too!

Skylar Ortiz (Assistant Music Director) Skylar is thrilled to be involved in her tenth show with MCT, and to be working with the production team for the first time! She is currently a senior at Baldwin, and has additionally participated in productions for school, Narberth Community Theater, and Jenkintown Music Theater. Some of her favorite community theater roles include Amaryllis in Music Man, Young Fiona in Shrek, and Baker’s Wife in Into the Woods Jr. Skylar is extremely grateful for the opportunity to have theater back once more, and thankful to the MCT community that has become her second family throughout the years. She is so excited to be working with such a talented and hardworking cast, and wishes everyone the best of luck!

Rebecca Roberts (Producer) Rebecca is a long-time member of MCT. She’s been seen on stage in many productions (Evita, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Shrek, Little Mermaid, Oliver, and others). She has enjoyed learning the off-stage crafts including props, stage crew, spotlight, and now producer. She is grateful to Barb Cross for helping her learn the ins and outs of producing. She is thankful for the time spent on this production with her daughters, Ali and Siena Johnson. Enjoy the show!

Erin Toscani (Music Director) Erin is so happy to return to live theater with Seussical Jr.! This is her 8th MCT show (with the 9th show shortly following... Cabaret!). Erin teaches General Music to children in Preschool - 3rd Grade at Holy Child School at Rosemont. She would like to thank Jude for the opportunity to work on the show, and would like to give a shout out to the cast, production team, and crew for a delightful experience working together. Thanks to Ava and Skylar for joining her in this endeavor! And as always, a huge thank you to Erin’s husband Peter for holding down the fort at home with the kids while she pursues her happy place of being in the theater.

Rebecca Yenser (Choreographer) Rebecca is delighted to return for her eighth show with MCT. She received her BA degree from Penn State University in Theatre/Dance Performance. When she isn’t busy hanging with the Whos and jamming out with Jungle Creatures, she enjoys playing board games with her husband, Dustin. Rebecca would like to thank the production team for their hard work, patience, and support. And a very special thank you to the entire Seussical Jr. cast who were SO FUN to work with!

MCT thanks our donors: The Addice Family Sue Carney The Cross Family Diane DiSandro Ray DiSandro Jr. John Gray Johnson and Johnson Laymen Playmen Elisabeth Majewski Deb Moses Liberty Mutual Kate McShane Elizabeth Ruth Parnell Pfizer Inc. Irene Savage MCT 2021 Board of Directors: Kate McShane (President) Nicolette Adams (Vice President) Sue Carney (Secretary) Ashley Lawrence (Treasurer) - non-board Barb Cross John Gray Katie McCool Heather McElhiney Lindsay Zimmerman

MCT would like to thank Variety Club for the use of the Recreation Hall to rehearse and perform Seussical Jr. We appreciate their generosity and value our ongoing partnership with them.

Founded 85 years ago, Variety – the Children’s Charity of the Delaware Valley has a mission to enrich the lives of children and young adults with disabilities through social, educational, and vocational programs that nurture independence and self-confidence and prepare them for life.

Congratulations Ciara as Cat in the Hat Best Wishes to The Cast and Crew of MCT’s Seussical Jr. We are so proud of you and your hard work and dedication to doing what you love. Have Fun and make lots of memories!

We LOVE You! Mommy, Daddy and Emma

a

We are so proud of our Bird Girl!!!

Julia, your singing and dancing make us smile, and we love seeing you on stage. It is so fun to watch you perform, and we hope you enjoy your first musical production. You are a STAR!!!

Love, Mom, Dad, Ava, Gavin, & Charlotte

Elizabet , We are s prou� of ou ‘Tige ’ an� loo forwar� t you fi s performance wit MCT! Enjoy eac momen an� m s impo tantly, HAVE FUN !

Love, Mom, Da�, Eri , Al�, Ryan, Bailey & Dotty

Zoe, we always knew you were a character.

We just didn’t know how MANY of them you were.

You’re very talented and we’re so proud of you.

– Mom & Dad WrightBrain.net

POTTSTOWN SEW & SEWS Part of THE AMERICAN SEWING GUILD OF PHILADELPHIA For information call 610-666-7630 KEEPING AMERICA SEWING

ELizabeth, Congratulations on your debut in community theater! We are so proud of your hardwork and commitment to the show.

Love, Nana & Grandpa Austin

We’re Back At Shannondell!

November 7th (2pm) & November 13 (7:30pm) Tickets and more information at theatermct.org