Students, staff and the entire Nanuet Community was in for a treat on March 8 and 9, as Nanuet Senior High School presented Seussical The Musical! Seussical is a fun musical version of the wonderful stories of Dr. Seuss. This musical mainly focused on his story “Horton Hears A Who,” a story of a brave and mighty elephant that saves Who, the tiniest planet. The citizens of Who live on a dust speck, and are in grave danger. Even worse, nobody believes Horton when he finds them, so he has to prove to everyone the central theme of Seussical: a person is a person, no matter how small.
Sophomore Erik Rydqvist, who played Horton the elephant, said the show was “super fun” to be a part of.
“There was never a dull moment on stage or backstage and being Horton made it even more fun,” he said. “The songs were amazing and super fun to sing. The dance as well, that was so enjoyable. Being on stage with the rest of the cast is an experience I will never forget!”
Liam Dowd, a sophomore, was initially cast as Yertle the Turtle/Vlad Vladicoff, but was then also asked to perform as Whickersham Brother.
“I honestly had such a fun time with my three brothers and I’m so glad I got the honor to share the stage with such talented people,” he said. “This show was so fun for me and I genuinely think the role I ended up with was perfect for me!”
The musical presented an amazing opportunity to work with a wide variety of talented students between members of the cast and the crew, according to Siobhan McDonagh, a junior who is assistant stage manager.
“I’m looking forward to senior year and two more amazing productions as stage manager,” she said.
Playing a Bird Girl was Hanne Rydqvist, a senior, who said she had an “absolutely amazing time” working on the production with her fellow cast members, including seniors Chloe Mirasol, Ava Ramirez, and Grace Damiani.
“The bird girls are kind of like a Greek chorus,” Rydqvist said. “They are always there singing in harmony, helping the storytelling and just dancing around in their feathers. Being a bird girl was probably one of the most fun and whimsical characters I have ever played. I mean being able to sing and dance in the amazing bird girl costumes, exploring these flamboyant characters was such a fun experience and the same goes for Seussical in its entirety.”
This musical allowed students to just be silly, according to Rydqvist.
“I feel like that was really shown and the amount of energy and dedication the cast and crew put into this show allowed the musical to be what it was.” she said. “It was an absolute joy to have been able to be part of this for my senior show!”
“Seussical was the best show I’ve done in a long time.” Senior Bee Arango said. “As I played my role, I enjoyed matching the whimsical and high energy of the show, and I formed a great camaraderie with my fellow actors during rehearsals. This was truly an unforgettable experience and I am forever grateful to Nanuet Drama Society for such a fantastic show for my senior year.”
Out of all the Nanuet musicals she has participated in, senior Gianna Pelleccio said Seussical has been her favorite.
“It was so incredibly fun to play a jungle creature in which I was able to dance in pop songs, play as an evil character and be involved in a ton of different scenes,” said.
The entire production experience helped her gain confidence she did not have before, Pelleccio explained.
“The energy onstage was truly unmatched and so different than last year,” She said. “It turned out to be such a fantastic show. If I had the opportunity to act in another musical like Seussical, I would do it in a heartbeat!”
