CentreStage Productions Youth Theatre 
The Arch, Eastleigh
Jon Cockeram
05 August 2026
The evening was bright, down the road I did march
To go see a show, that was on at the Arch
Seussical Jr, a show I’d not seen
So listen up closely, hark and be keen
Enough of the rhyming for the moment (my editor will have a fit if I carry on like that), on with the review! Dr Seuss is a well-known kid’s author, having created such oddities as the Grinch, the Lorax and, perhaps, most famously, the Cat in the Hat, all whilst telling us why he won’t eat green eggs and ham. Seussical Jr is a musical that brings several of these characters together into one cohesive narrative – well, as cohesive as any Dr Seuss book gets!
The Cat in the Hat is our narrator (played by Edward Mathieson) with a variety of costume changes and cameos throughout, but it’s the friendship between Jojo, one of the Whos, and Horton the Elephant (Ava Swain and Charlotte Elliott respectively) that really drives the show as Horton attempts to prove the Whos’ existence to the rest of the animals in the jungle. These include Gertrude McFuzz (Ruby Boyle), the bird whose romantic interest Horton is oblivious to, Mayzie Le Bird (Olivia Trumplemann), whose flighty nature puts Horton in a rather awkward position, and a very sour Kangaroo and her child (Matilda Kenway and Polly Wilson-Kite) who are intent on riling up the entire jungle against Horton.
The entire cast, both principals and supporting cast of bird girls, monkey brothers, jungle citizens and Whos, did a good job with the singing and the choreography (shout out to Cerys May for her musical direction and Ashley Mullen for double-hatting both as Choreographer and Director) as well as with the lines – the phrasing for some of the more nonsense lines can be tricky to keep straight in your head, especially when combined with American accents, but for the most part everyone managed this with aplomb.
Special mention must go to the set, designed by Liz Segal – it’s a riot of colour and very, very Seussian in appearance – as well as the two stage crew who were dressed as Thing One and Thing Two, a very nice little touch.
Were there any problems with the show? I think my biggest issue was the fact that the music was pre-recorded – whilst this does give consistency and allow for an easy transition between rehearsal and performance, there were a few moments where the energy in the show dipped a bit whilst the cast waited for one track to finish and the next one to start. Other than that, anything else was probably opening night nerves – a few of the cast were a little uncertain with their lines or choreography at times, but the show kept going and the energy throughout was maintained very nicely.
Director Ashely Mullen and the rest of the CentreStage Youth team have put on a great production. It’s clear to see that a lot of time and effort has gone into bringing the show together, and everyone should be justifiably proud of what they’ve achieved.
The review is now done, my words you have read
Youth theatre’s alive! It’s really not dead
Oh the things you will see, oh the places you’ll go
Go buy your tickets to see this show!
Seussical Jr is at the Arch in Chandler’s Ford until 8th August.
