SEUSSICAL Continues the 2008 Woodminster Season

Kids Come Free to this Lighthearted Musical Extravaganza

July 21 , 2008 - Oakland, CA -- Producers Associates, Inc. announces that Seussical will continue the 42nd season of the Woodminster Summer Musicals. Opening on Friday, August 8, and playing two weekends, Seussical features a cast of 49 (including 15 children) portraying well-known Dr. Seuss characters including The Cat in the Hat, Horton the Elephant, Yertle the Turtle, and the Whos of Whoville.

Seussical will be performed on August 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, 16, and 17. All performances are at 8 p.m. in historical Woodminster Amphitheater, in Oakland’s Joaquin Miller Park, 3300 Joaquin Miller Blvd.

Tickets for Woodminster shows range from $23 to $38, with children and seniors receiving a $2 discount. Groups of 25 and more can purchase blocks of seats for half price, providing an affordable outing or a delightful fundraiser for a church or service group, neighborhood association, or any other group. In addition, Woodminster’s "Kids Come Free" program allows children 16 and younger to attend for free with paying adults (limitations apply.) One adult can bring one child or teen 16 or younger to any show at Woodminster for free. To further help families who want to attend Seussical, the offer has been doubled: One paying adult can bring TWO kids for free for any performance of this show. For details about the Kids Come Free program or information about tickets, check www.woodminster.com or call 510-531-9597.

Woodminster’s long-standing Kids Come Free Program is meant to encourage a love of live theatre in the area’s children and make it easier for Oakland families on a limited budget to attend together. For more than a decade, it has been funded in a partnership between Producers Associates and various corporate and foundation contributors. In 2008, the major sponsor (and sole sponsor for Kids Come Free to Seussical) is Chevron. Other generous contributors to this worthy program are Wells Fargo Foundation, Target Stores, Alexander & Baldwin/Matson Navigation Company, Clorox, and Mechanics Bank.

Seussical is a musical based on several Dr. Seuss characters and stories. The plot mirrors that of “Horton Hears a Who!,” centering on Horton the elephant's efforts to protect the people of Who-ville, who live on a tiny speck of dust. It also features characters and scenarios from many other Seuss books, including the Butter Side Uppers / Downers from The Butter Battle Book, Gertrude McFuzz, and The Cat in the Hat.

The script is by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, with music by Flaherty and lyrics by Ahrens. A co-conceiver of the show is Eric Idle. The Woodminster production will be directed by Joel Schlader, with choreography by Bong Dizon. Music direction is by Kim and Dick Vetterli. The pivotal role of The Cat in the Hat will be played by Carl Danielsen, a New York actor with Oakland roots, seen at Woodminster most recently as Lumiere in “Beauty and the Beast,” King Herod in “Jesus Christ Superstar,” and Cosmo in “Singin’ in the Rain.” Another N.Y. actor with Oakland roots is Susan Tilson, playing Gertrude McFuzz. In recent years, Tilson has appeared at Woodminster as Anna in “The King and I,” Maria in “The Sound of Music,” and Eliza Doolittle in “My Fair Lady.” The leading role of JoJo, the boy whose imagination is the world of the play, is portrayed by 12-year-old David Kahawaii of Danville. David has previously been seen locally as Franklin Jr. in “Sunrise at Campobello” at the Willows Theatre, the title role in “Oliver!” at the Douglas Morrison Theatre, and Winthrop in “The Music Man” at Diablo Light Opera Company.

After Seussical, the 2008 season will conclude with “The Pirates of Penzance” September 5-14.

The Woodminster Summer Musicals is winner of Oakland Magazine’s 2008 Readers’ Choice Award for best Theater Company. The shows are performed under the stars at Woodminster Amphitheater, an open-air performance facility in Joaquin Miller Park high in the Oakland Hills. The park's spectacular views and serene woodsy environment made it the perfect setting for the amphitheater, cascades, reflecting pool, and paths that were originally built as a WPA project in 1939-40. For many East Bay families, it is a long-standing summer tradition to enjoy a picnic in the park and then see a musical at Woodminster.

Producers Associates, Inc. was founded in 1967 by James and Harriet Schlader to provide affordable live summer family entertainment in the East Bay, and to foster a love of live theatre. For the last 42 years, the organization, in partnership with the Oakland Park and Rec Department, has been producing summer musicals at Woodminster Amphitheater. Today the Woodminster Summer Musicals sell more tickets per year than any other resident performing arts group in the city. Over 27,000 ticket holders passed through the Woodminster gates for the 21 performances of the 2007 season, including 3,000 children who attended for free under the organization’s Kids Come Free program. For more information about the 2008 season or history of the organization, visit www.woodminster.com.

- end press release -

Background information here.

Cast here.

Photos here.

Above, David Kahawaii as JoJo and *Carl Danielsen as The Cat in the Hat.

Below, *Marcie Henderson as Mayzie Bird and *Greg Carlson as Horton the Elephant.

More photos.

*indicates membership in Actors' Equity Association.
Photos by Kathy Kahn.

DESCRIPTION:
Opening on Friday, August 8, and playing two weekends, this fantastical, magical musical adventure, SEUSSICAL, will be performed on August 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, 16, and 17. ALL performances are at 8 p.m. in historical Woodminster Amphitheater, in Oakland’s Joaquin Miller Park, 3300 Joaquin Miller Blvd.

SEUSSICAL is based on characters from at least 15 Dr. Seuss books. In this family-friendly show about the power of imagination and belief in yourself, the Cat in the Hat acts as the emcee to steer us through the world of Horton the Elephant, the Who’s of Whoville, Miss Gertrude McFuzz, Yertle the Turtle, and other Dr. Seuss personalities.

KIDS COME FREE: Each adult paying full price ($23-$38) may bring TWO kids 16 and younger for free. Free tickets available the night of the performance. Restrictions apply, see website, www.woodminster.com

The Woodminster Summer Musicals is winner of Oakland Magazine’s 2008 Readers’ Choice Award for best Theater Company. The shows are performed under the stars at Woodminster Amphitheater, an open-air performance facility in Joaquin Miller Park high in the Oakland Hills. The park's spectacular views and serene woodsy environment made it the perfect setting for the amphitheater, cascades, reflecting pool, and paths that were originally built as a WPA project in 1939-40. For many East Bay families, it is a long-standing summer tradition to enjoy a picnic in the park and then see a musical at Woodminster.