SEUSSICAL THE MUSICAL, through Sunday, Kingsbury Hall, University of Utah (355-2787). Running time: 2 hours, 10 minutes (one intermission).
Once you make it past Kingsbury Hall's two worst problems — the dreadful acoustics (including, in this case, some of the show's own microphone problems) and the painfully uncomfortable seats — "Seussical the Musical" is a really nifty musical version of a handful of Dr. Seuss stories, all packaged in a bright, energetic production.
With 36 tunes (eight are reprises), there's not a lot of dialogue. This is a song-driven show — and what appears to be a non-Equity cast is more than up to the task of delivering. The national touring company is packed with talent, both on the stage and behind the scenes.
While it's probably not absolutely necessary to be familiar with Theodore Geisel's landmark "Dr. Seuss" books, it's better if you are. Collaborators Lynn Ahrens (lyricist) and Stephen Flaherty (composer) have captured the essence of Dr. Seuss' brilliant, insightful whimsy. Eric Idle (of "Monty Python" fame) also contributed to the process.
The major characters — the very busy Cat in the Hat, the ever-loyal Horton the Elephant, adventurous JoJo, forlorn Gertrude McFuzz and vampish Mayzie LaBird — are all played by a talented bunch of troupers.
Peter Roman's bright voice and lithe, athletic dancing bring the Cat in the Hat to life onstage. Randall Frizado is perfectly cast as the lovable (and loving) Horton, whose emphatic credo is "a person's a person, no matter how small." Gene Biscontini keeps up with both of them as the young lad who becomes JoJo, the son of Whoville's mayor and "Mrs. Mayor" (Booth Daniels and Marcia Sofley). Heather Barr as Gertrude and Dawn Lebrecht as Mayzie are also terrific. In addition, LaDonna Burns is a sassy Sour Kangaroo, and John R. Armstrong, Charlie Mechling and Steve Morgan do some clever monkeying around as the Wickersham Brothers.
One of the show's strongest songs, "How Lucky You Are," is among the underlying themes, popping up at least four times. And the "Circus McGurkus" adds a surreal touch to the proceedings.
William Ivey Long's inventive costumes are stylistic and clever; James Kronzer's scenery has a delightful Seussian feel and Stafford Arima's direction keeps things moving at a fairly rapid clip.
Kelly Anne Lambert's six-piece pit band provides fine accompaniment for Flaherty and Ahrens' score, which ranges from moving ballads to vibrant calypso to jaunty ragtime (not surprising, when you consider they also wrote the score for "Ragtime").
Hopefully, the show's sound problems can be quickly resolved. Both JoJo's and Gertrude's body mics failed early in Act One and they were quickly given hand-held replacements, which worked much better. But Kingsbury Hall audiences are plainly stuck with the poor sightlines, little legroom and cramped seats.
Quite a few people were also grumbling, once the show was over, about the lack of buses shuttling folks from Kingsbury Hall to the stadium parking lot. There were only two, and the delay in waiting for them to return for a new load motivated some, with children in tow, to walk back to the lot instead of waiting in the chilly night air.
E-MAIL: ivan@desnews.com