Seussical Jnr

With a cast of 60, the vast majority being children, Seussical Jnr played to packed houses at Carine Senior High School.

Producing company Pristine Entertainment, under principal Christine Fillis, has grown from a home based singing school to a fully operational studio with over sixty students and Seussical Jnr features students and others who auditioned. This production was created in conjunction with The Actors' Hub, a centre for actors run by Amanda Crewes. It runs classes at a variety of levels from beginners to professional. The child performers (from Pristine, The Hub and elsewhere) are supported by actors from The Hub Actors' Studio's The Gap Course, a post-secondary part time course for actors embarking on performance careers.

There was lots of enthusiasm from this young cast, with some energetic, fresh performances. 9-year-old Kirra Geddes (she shared the role with Keira Watson) was a very cute Jojo who emoted well. She had good rapport with Arts Hub graduate Andrew Dunstan as The Cat in the Hat and current The Gap Student (and new to Perth), Justin Gray as Horton.

Alysha McGreevy was a gorgeously awkward Gertrude McFuzz, endearing, with a lovely voice. Ciara Taylor (The Gap) was a sexy confident Mayzie and Angela Mahlatzie looked beautiful and had wonderful sass as The Sour Kangaroo. Angela is also new to Perth and attends The Gap.

There were some good performances among the ensemble, with cheeky Wickershams, Bird Girls with Attitude, some fabulous Whos (well led by John Hugo and The Gap's Ashana Murphy) and the charming Jungle Animals. I loved the appearance of youngest cast member Summer Marshall (6) as the Elephant Bird.

A troupe of twelve adult dancers supplemented the ensemble. Though undeniably talented and nicely choreographed, I didn't feel they melded well with the performance as a whole.

Jamie Davies' modular set was inspired and used to great effect and some of the costumes (Sharon McGeevy, Maria Emmanuele, Jennifer Fraser and cast) were works of art. Lighting was a bit hit and miss (which can happen in a borrowed venue) and sometimes key moments were performed in shadow. In general it would have been nice to see more light on these lovely faces.

Pristine Entertainment and The Actors Hub have succeeded in creating an excellent opportunity for young performers to stretch their wings with a great and fun show.

Kimberley Shaw

The Actors Hub is hosting another big event very soon.

Associate Artistic Director of The Actors Studio, in New York, Elizabeth Kemp, will offer a Perth Masterclass from July 14-19.

The workshop will focus on an intense exploration into character.

Applications are open to participate in this Masterclass. Go to actorshub.net.