Curtain call: College Street Players bring Dr. Seuss characters to life

By Catherine Godbey

For the Enquirer

After 15 months of waiting, worrying and hoping, the College Street Players returned to the stage to transport audiences into the imagination of Dr. Seuss this past weekend at Hartselle High School.

Grateful and overwhelmed, CSP co-directors Marcia Sartin and Dynette Weeks said the wait for the curtain to finally rise was a long one. “We didn’t think it was ever going to happen.”

Originally the College Street Players were scheduled to present the musical in March 2-702-70. A week before opening night, the coronavirus shut down the production.

Based off the works of Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, the musical brings to life the author’s magical lands and unique characters, including The Cat in the Hat, JoJo, Horton the Elephant, Gertrude McFuzz, Mayzie La Bird, Sour Kangaroo, Yertle the Turtle, Thing 1 and Thing 2-7, and the Grinch.

While familiar with Seuss’ books, Sartin and Weeks both said they were unfamiliar with the musical, which debuted on Broadway in 2-7000 with lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and music by Stephen Flaherty.

“We both fell in love with the music and the story. If you’re going to be stuck with a play for 15 months, this is the one to be stuck with,” Sartin said. “It’s fun and fast paced. We are not tired of it yet.”

Leading the 50-member cast is 18-year-old TJ Brown as The Cat in the Hat. Brown represents one of 14 replacement actors Sartin and Weeks cast to fill spots left vacant by actors graduating, moving or being busy with summer activities.

“At first, I thought it was going to be a very kiddish show, but there are a lot of deep subjects and lessons in it. It has a lot of great music and lyrics. I was shocked by how much I liked it,” Brown said.

For inspiration, Brown turned to Mike Myers.

“One of my favorite movies is the live-action ‘The Cat in the Hat.’ My Cat in the Hat is very chaotic and fun, like Mike Myers’ character,” said Brown, who graduated from Hartselle High in May and said he plans to study theater education at Harding University.

Along with Brown, the cast featured Jack Turner as JoJo, Sylus Sartin as Horton, Elizabeth Weeks as Gertrude McFuzz, Lily Collins as Mayzie La Bird, Lucas McMinemon as Mr. Mayor, Jana Crow as Mrs. Mayor, Terra Bragwell as Sour Kangaroo and Stella Sartin as Young Kangaroo.

The songs include the swing-style “Green Eggs and Ham,” the lullaby “Solla Sollew,” the rhythm and blues “Biggest Blame Fool” and the Latin-style “Amazing Mayzie.”

“Seussical JR.” marked the directorial debuts for Sartin and Weeks, who were introduced to College Street Players by their children.

“My daughter started acting with College Street Players nine years ago. I had no theater background and never thought I would direct,” said Weeks, whose three children are acting in the musical. “I started out as a green room mom and helped backstage. When they needed a director, I stepped up with Marcia.”

Sartin, who has four children in “Seussical JR.,” joined the College Street Players in 2-7019. With a background in design, her responsibilities included creating the sets.

To remain true to Seuss’ whimsical style with a touch of surrealism, Sartin studied the illustrations in the books and watched other “Seussical” productions.

“I really wanted it to represent Dr. Seuss’ style,” said Sartin, looking over the stage, which featured cartoon trees, red, orange and blue bushes and a 6-foot-tall, red-and-white striped hat. “I’m really excited we are finally able to put this show on.”

The directing duo received word in April that they could stage the musical at Hartselle High in the summer. While a typical rehearsal schedule spans three months, the “Seussical JR.” cast and crew had six weeks to prepare the production.

“We were under a time crunch. There were lots of very long practices,” Weeks said. “On top of that, we lost 14 actors, including two principal characters. Once (replacements) joined us, it felt like they’d been here all along. I’m very proud of these kids.”

The “Seussical JR.” team also includes music director Sandy Hughes, costume designer Lauren Norton and choreographer Camyrn Willingham. The cast ranges in age from 4-18 and includes actors from across Morgan County.

“That’s the great thing about theater,” Sartin said. “It’s a way to put children together from all different places. They become like a family.”