Students at Patrick M. Villano School are getting in touch with their inner thespian. Rehearsals for Seussical, Jr. are underway. The musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flathery is based on the works of children’s author Dr. Seuss.
¨Every year we get blown away by the immense talent found in Villano. This year’s show is very different from last year’s, but the work that the cast and crew put in makes it an awesome experience and a very fun show,¨ Joseph Gibbs said. Gibbs is the school’s band instructor and one of this year’s play directors.
There was a lot of excitement from the student body to audition for a role. Anyone who tried out got a part. Directors announced the cast list at the end of December 2024. This year, new ideas are brewing in the minds of Gibbs and fellow directors, Amanda Binetti, the school social worker, and Allison Beckley, the school vocal instructor.
¨The characters in this show are based on some classic books by Dr. Seuss. We meet the Cat in the Hat, Horton, the Whos and jungle creatures from Horton Hears a Who, Mayzie from Horton Hatches an Egg, and Gertrude from Gertrude McFuzz, and many others. It’s fun to see how these characters all interact with each other when they’re typically from different stories,” Binetti said.
Rehearsals are a bit different than last year as far as organization goes and how the directors are running them.
“This show has a lot more music and a lot less dialogue, so the bulk of the rehearsals at this point are learning the music so we can get it ready to go on the stage,” Beckley added.
