SpongeBob The Musical April 1st – 31st!
– By Nicole Kimzey –
When I heard someone made a musical about the children’s cartoon SpongeBob SquarePants, my first reaction was, why? My second reaction was serious skepticism. Out of sheer curiosity I downloaded the soundtrack and listened. I was hooked!! This cartoon-adapted musical about an underwater sponge and his friends is not to be overlooked or underestimated.
When it came to the music, a highlight of the show, Tina Landau and Kyle Jarrow did something completely unprecedented for a Broadway Musical, and it paid off. They asked some of the top pop and rock songwriters in the industry to write a song for the show – and they did! Including Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Sara Bareilles, Lady A, Cyndi Lauper, John Legend, Panic! At the Disco, Plain White T’s, David Bowie – and that’s just a few!
Just looking at the list of songwriters makes you feel like you’re at the Grammy’s, but it’s the Tony Awards that gave this show all their love, with an incredible 12 Tony nominations – the highest of any show that year. Now, thanks to the Hurricane Valley Theatrical Company (HVTC), you can see the southern Utah premier of this upbeat, entertaining, and sometimes quirky musical.
The show is directed by Kyle Myrick, music directed by Melodie Kimzey, and choreographed by Sammy Myrick. This impressive trio has harnessed the talent of a very strong cast to make a show something spectacular. When asked why people should come to see this lesser-known musical, Kyle stated “It’s about the music and story. The set is great, and we always pull out all the stops for our patrons, but it’s the music and story about friendship & community that gives this show a surprising amount of heart. It also has a great amount of positivity, something we could all use a little more of right now”.
The story focuses on SpongeBob (Reece Jacobson), Patrick (Brad Serage), and Sandy (Hailey Shae Benoit) as they attempt to stop an erupting volcano from destroying Bikini Bottom. Meanwhile, Plankton (Ron William) takes this opportunity to create an evil scheme to serve his own purposes.
Reece Jacobson has dreamed of playing this role since first seeing it on Broadway. When asked about bringing SpongeBob to life he said, “To personify an international, global character has been harder than I would have expected but having the experience of embodying such an icon has been so rewarding. The role allows me to be expressive, goofy, silly, and make people smile – which is why I do theater.” When the topic of the music came up, he added, “It makes the show ten time better than the typical musical. There is music for everyone from country, rap, rock and rock, heavy metal, all the way to ballads. The music itself is one of the stars of the show”.
Come see SpongeBob and Patrick Star as they try and save their beloved town of Bikini Bottom from a volcano and make it the Best Day Ever!
SpongeBob the Musical is playing from April 1st – 30th every Monday, Friday, & Saturday at 7:00 PM, with Saturday matinees at 2 PM at the Hurricane Fine Arts Center, 92 S. 100 W., Hurricane. Tickets are $8 for kids (4-12), $18 for adults (13-64), and $16 for seniors (65+) and can be purchased at the door, or by calling 435-668-9753.
