Review by Sherri Ogden Wellington
It IS fun to have fun at The Cat in the Hat, by The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati, now at the Taft. There is something special and exhilarating when actors of a play go into the audience. It makes you feel like you are an actual part of the play. Even before this play begins, you are drawn in by an interesting character in purple (Ethan Kutcha) who is walking through the audience and then another bedazzled creature in green (Aaron Marshall) waves and talks to the audience.Marshall leads you into clapping to beats, responding to his antics and even doing the wave, which is usually reserved for sporting events. Marshall’s energy captures you to focus on the fun.
The Classic Story
This production is based on the book by Dr. Seuss, aka Theodor Seuss Geisel. This play was originally produced by the National Theatre of Great Britain. The story is of a brother, Conrad (Kavan Vadivelu) and sister Sally (Brinley Culver) who are stuck indoors due to it being a rainy day. Their mom leaves (to go on errands?) The two are bored until a silly cat with an umbrella (Bob Herzog) walks into their home and proceeds to draw them into his capers. Their fish (Bobby Montaniz) keeps warning them that the Cat should not be there. After a variety of escapades including juggling acts (Jack Gallagher, who also plays a kitten and Christopher Baker, who also plays a kitten), aerialist performances (Lauren Ashley Whitfield, Stella Dionysiou and Gina Mauro), unicyclist (Olaf H. Rask, who also plays a kitten) and all with a circus narrator (Aaron Marshall).
All the activities, colors and sounds are enthralling. Vadivelu is athletic and enthusiastic with a warm aura. Culver is exactly how one envisions a girl in 1957 (when the book was published). Her acting is superb and considering that both of them are in the TCT’s Young Artists Company (not professionals), their talents are very impressive.
Local 12’s Bob Herzog gives off a bit of a Jim Carrey vibe in his interpretation of the Cat which is fun and highly entertaining. Montaniz’s performance is exceptionally sincere as he continually attempts to get rid of the Cat. Thing 1 (Elli Maddock, also in the TCT’s Young Artists Company) and Thing 2 (Ella Cooper) are naughty but delightful. Their energy is amazing! What would The Cat in the Hat be without them?
Production Design
The scenery is amazing thanks to Samatha Reno (Scenic Design). There are three simple but perfect scenic designs: the front of the outside of the house, the inside of the house, and the circus. It looks like they come straight out of the book.
The costumes (Jeff Shearer, Original Costume Design, and Roderick Justice, Additional Costume Design) are creative and colorful with distinctive additions. The only theme that prevails on all of the costumes is that they have scribbles, which represents a playful and chaotic nature. Stage Direction, A. James Jones, Technical Direction, Maggie Foley and Andrew Nunley, Director of Production, Dani Lobello, Production Stage Manager, Jadi David, Artistic Director, Roderick Justice and Associate Artistic Director, Maddie Jones all work together and with the actors to make this a truly enjoyable experience.
A special shout out to Yelena Babinskaya, Lighting Design, and to Jason Romney and Dani Lobello, Sound Design. Special effects and sounds are constantly changing throughout the play. It has to be extremely complicated but those folks did an absolutely amazing job. There are so many things that could have gone wrong yet they made it happen.
Conclusion
The Cat in the Hat is a great production and just plain fun. Only 60-minutes, so it is great for kids 4+
Get Tickets to The Cat in the Hat:
Dr. Seuss’s The Cat in the Hat shows:
- Friday, February 21 7:00 pm
- Saturday, February 22 11:00 am & 2:00 pm
- Sunday, February 23 2:00 pm
- Homeschool Performance: Monday, February 24 at 1:00 pm
To get tickets, go to: https://thechildrenstheatre.com/
Up Next for TCT:
The Children’s Theater’s last production this season is Disney Frozen, Jr. running April 25 – May 4, 2025. This will be TCT’s LAST production at the Taft. Next season’s line up will be at TCT’s new location, the Emery!
